Granville Homes

With a love and passion for building, the team at Granville Homes combines innovative design and progressive building techniques to create neighborhoods that foster responsible growth. Located in Fresno, California, Granville builds an average of 200 to 250 homes per year and throughout its existence has completed more than 5,000 in the Central Valley.

Founded in 1977 by Farid Assemi, Granville has experienced exponential growth over the years by providing clients with a high-quality product and placing customer service as a top priority. “I meet with every homeowner that we serve,” says Darius Assemi, CEO of Granville and Farid’s brother. “Establishing a relationship with the client is very important to me and a big reason for our success.”

The Assemi brothers immigrated to the United States in the late ‘70s with the dream of starting their own business. With a small loan from their parents, the two brothers went right to work and started building homes. “It was very difficult to break into the Fresno market,” recalls Darius. “We began working in small communities in Madera, California, and a few years later we were able to break into Fresno.”

Darius joined Granville on a full-time basis in 1982 after graduating from college with a civil engineering degree. He says that the level of customer satisfaction that his company has achieved is largely due to the work that Granville has done with quality assurance consultants, Stan Luhr and Carol Smith. “I met with them at a seminar in the late ‘90s when we began utilizing their services,” recalls Darius. “That really helped to propel us into a much higher level of quality assurance and therefore higher customer satisfaction.”

Green homes

With Darius’ background and the help of Luhr and Smith, Granville has become an innovative builder with a reduced carbon footprint. With its Eco-Smart technology, Granville provides clients with a comfortable home that is up to 30 percent more efficient than other new homes. Eco-Smart utilizes several components to increase energy efficiency. “The biggest impact for the customer is the fact that we use 6-inch exterior framing,” explains Darius. “We also use a high-tech duct system for more efficient air conditioning.”

Other aspects of Eco-Smart include a green hyperefficient insulation. In 1990, Granville was the first homebuilder in the Fresno area to discontinue the use of wood-burning fire places in the homes it builds. All Granville homes now feature a gas fireplace.

“Granville was also the first company in the area to implement the use of Cool Roof technology. In testing this system, Granville built two houses side by side,” says Darius. One of the homes was built with a black composite roof, the other with a Cool Roof. The Granville team discovered that the tiles of the Cool Roof deflected heat and radiation away from the house. Darius also says that Granville utilizes strict recycling practices on materials such as drywall, which helps to reduce costs.

Being heavily involved in the local community, Granville became active in the revitalization of downtown Fresno in 2006. Granville established a small division within the company to focus on the development of rental properties in the area, which presented a significant challenge. “We had to deal with issues such as historical preservation, outdated infrastructure and different community and interest groups who have their own opinion of how things should be developed,” explains Darius. “It’s a very complicated and lengthy process.” The development projects included mixed-use facilities and the conversion of an old warehouse into an arts complex.

The work that Granville completed in the revitalization project did not go unnoticed within the industry. The company received numerous Blueprint Awards in several categories. In addition, the company has received the People’s Choice Award for Best Home Builder for 10 consecutive years.

Giving back

Philanthropy is very important to Granville. The company has established the Granville Foundation to help improve the well-being of people in the Central Valley, United States and the world. “Our passion drives our involvement in programs that provide access to food, water, shelter, health care and education for those in need,” explains Darius. “The foundation also helps to raise money for the nonprofit organizations we work with, as well as raise awareness for them.”

In an additional philanthropic effort, Granville established the Granville Home of Hope (GHOH) in 2006. The company, along with its partners, donates a brand-new home each year, complete with many luxurious amenities, as a grand prize that is awarded to one lucky winner each fall. “This home is a symbol of what each of these organizations do each and every day by giving hope to those in need in our community,” says Darius. “In 10 years, GHOH has raised more than $3.5 million for nonprofit organizations.”

As an agile company, Granville is currently investigating other markets in the surrounding communities. “We all love what we do and we put a lot of hours in,” says Darius. “We’re content with the size of the company but are looking to grow.” With its participation in the local community and consistent delivery of high-quality service and products, Granville Homes will remain a staple in the Central Valley home building industry.