In the world of custom home design, there are artist architects and builders’ architects. The former pursue their exacting vision of what a house should be; the latter focus on supplying what the builder needs to get the job done most efficiently. Frank Neely is that rare architect who manages to do both equally well. In an Atlanta market addicted to empty-calorie McMansions, Neely strives for historical authenticity. “We won’t work anywhere outside of Atlanta’s few historic neighborhoods,” says Neely, whose forte is designing infill houses that look as old as their neighbors. “The goal is always that the house looks like it was built in the 1920s,” he says. The path to that goal is clear, if not easy: a high degree of project oversight and “an absolutely ridiculous amount of drawings and detail.” That approach also takes a load off of builders, who avoid the unwelcome task of filling in the blanks on incomplete plan sets.
Neely attributes his operating style to the years he spent standing in a builder’s shoes. “I’ve cut marble and granite,” he says. “I’ve built cabinets. I’ve been a framer and a roofer.” His first gig after architecture school was a design/ build project. Today, Neely and his two design associates spend their time directing builders rather than swinging hammers themselves, but he’s still a hands-on guy. “I’ve been known to fire a roofer and get on a roof when I didn’t like the way it was coming out,” says Neely. He is currently shopping for a 4-foot lathe so he can turn custom newel posts for his projects. To handle the bulk of the work, Neely relies on a select group of quality builders, people who “love to do something neat as much as we do.” His reputation allows him to insist that clients bid their projects only with builders he approves. And if loyalty is another quality that makes Neely a builders’ architect, the formula pays off for him as well. Since starting his business 10 years ago, he has never had a reason—or the time—to advertise. “I never got a business card,” he says. “The phone just rings.”
Neely Design Associates, Atlanta
Type of business: custom home design
Years in business: 10
Employees: 10
2003 volume: $25 million in total construction cost
2003 starts: 12
