72 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 10 “and development costs are a lot higher here than they are in parts of the U.S.” Wenstrom cites New York City and Los Angeles as examples. Prices there may be as high as $1,000 a square foot. Yet Canada can be similar, as Carter notes, sharing her father’s summation. “You want to build in Vancouver?” she rhetorically asks. “Well, I hope you’re a millionaire!” Busy days, dream homes Carter maintains a busy schedule. On this particular day, she’s meeting two clients to finalize flooring. Then the cabinet colors must be agreed upon. “Mostly I’m there to offer an opinion when an opinion is needed,” she adds. “A lot of times, I become a marriage counselor. Part of my unlisted duties is when couples disagree or they have to talk things through. I’m there to keep them on track.” When it comes to building a dream home, nothing is ever 100 percent smooth and toplan, as Carter allows. Yet she perseveres, finding solutions and doing everything she can to keep clients happy through long months of close consultation and collaboration. It is, she observes, truly rather like a marriage. Wenstrom’s schedule is no less busy. He often finds himself working out of his truck, chasing down calls on his cellular telephone, going from one job site to another, and walking through builds in progress. “The first part of my day, I start in the office,” he shares, “and I catch up on all my scheduling and e-mails. I schedule or reschedule because something’s gone awry at one house. Or at another, a trade can’t make it. Then I have to reschedule for five different people that I go to. I try to get to each job site at least every other day.” What is it that gives Wenstrom his greatest job satisfaction?
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