Savvy, well-informed buyers like trusted brands

Pulte/Del Webb Builders is the largest builder in the Chicago area. In an average year, it sells more than 1,000 homes. Even in recent years, the company has averaged 700 to 800 sales per year, according to Chris Naatz, vice president of sales and marketing for the firm's Chicago operations, based in Schaumburg.

"We want to remain the leader in the market, whatever that market happens to be at the time," Naatz said.

"It is challenging right now," he admitted. "But we believe in keeping a positive attitude."

Because Pulte/Del Webb is a national builder, its customers have a vastly different experience than those who patronize smaller builders, Naatz believes.

"We have been building in the Chicago area since 1961 and have a solid foothold in the market," he said. "People's trust is well placed with us.

"Our people are our greatest asset. It is all about attitude, innovation, spirit and customer relations."

His dream home: A Cape Cod-style home with a giant front porch overlooking a beach somewhere in the northeast. Maybe Cape Cod itself?

His favorite amenities: Inviting kitchens and family rooms that combine higher quality cabinets, top-notch appliances and carpeting.

His background: A native of Schaumburg, Naatz, 39, spent most of his growing up years in that suburb before his family moved to Libertyville in his teens. He graduated from Indiana University with degrees in journalism and Spanish and later went on to earn a master's degree in marketing from Roosevelt University.

Naatz began his career in sales with Sundance Homes and moved up to general sales manager before taking a job as a sales manager with Concord Homes. Four and a half years ago he moved to Pulte/Del Webb as vice president of sales and marketing with a staff of 40 salespeople.

The details: Pulte/Del Webb now has 14 communities under construction in the Chicago area. They range geographically from Shorewood in the south to Zion in the north and as far west as Huntley.

The Pulte line of products features townhouses in Yorkville starting in the $150,000s and single-family homes in Lindenhurst costing in the $400,000s and $500,000s, and everything in between. The Del Webb homes feature a similar range. Duplexes in Shorewood start as low as the $150,000s and single-family homes at Grand Dominion in Mundelein list in the $400,000s.

Buyer profile: Most Pulte buyers, according to Naatz, are young move-up families and first-time buyers; teachers, policemen, nurses, professionals and commuters to Chicago have all been able to find a Pulte home to their liking.

Del Webb buyers, on the other hand, are in the empty-nester, 55-and-older category since Del Webb specializes in active adult communities.

The best part of being a builder: "I am not just selling a home. I am truly bringing people the American dream," Naatz said. "This is a passion for me.

"I know that I am selling them so much more than a place to live. I am selling them the place where they will celebrate birthdays, weddings and so much more. I talk with my team about that every day."

Biggest changes he has seen in the business: "Buyers today are so much better informed than they were when I started in this business 17 years ago. Much of that is because of the Internet. It just makes it so much easier for people to narrow their search and focus on various builders' quality.

"Today buyers want to be much more involved in the building process than they ever were in the past. That has become a huge focus for the whole industry. Buyers want to get to know the entire building team and work closely with them because they have come to understand that buying a new home is a very important purchase.

"That is probably why J.D. Power (and Associates) started evaluating home-building companies just like they have always evaluated car companies."

Future plans: "I see Pulte/Del Webb continuing to build communities in locations with top-rated schools and amenities. And I see us capturing a larger percentage of the Chicago market in the next five years as people have a renewed appreciation for what it means to purchase from a national builder. That branding has a lot of value and means that we are stronger and more reliable than builders without that brand behind them."