Third-Generation Takes The Helm
Scott E. Reine, the latest CEO of Summit Contractors, has taken the helm and follows in his father's footsteps, George E. Reine, III, and that of his grandfather, George E. Reine, Jr. Managing the day to day of the construction process, Scott Reine has learned well from his predecessors and is thrilled at his opportunity to continue growing the award-winning business started over 40-years ago by his family.

A Legacy of Construction Excellence
George E. Reine, III is a second-generation contractor with more than 40 years of experience in real estate, including residential construction and development, commercial construction and development, and land sales and acquisition. Reine’s family-run operation, based in Slidell, LA has built more than 1,500 single-family homes (ranging from $18,000 to $2.9 million); hundreds of multi-family units; office buildings, shopping centers and warehouses; commercial office parks and buildings; and has developed over 4,500 single-family lots.

George Reine has earned the respect of the home building community for his tireless efforts within the industry and is well known for his determination, persistence, expertise, and dedication to the communities he serves. Throughout the years, the Reine family has created a legacy of construction excellence that has stood both the test of time and countless satisfied home buyers in Southeast Louisiana and on the Gulf Coast.

During the 1950s, George’s father also owned and operated the Reine Construction Corporation based in Slidell, LA. He was a commercial and residential land developer and builder. He built approximately 50 to 60 residential homes annually.

George comments on his father’s construction business: “My father was a builder/developer, mostly in the affordable entry-level home market. His main focus was quality. He did not stress gingerbread, preferring to offer affordable, quality homes build to last. He was the first tract builder in St. Tammany Parish. Originally from Mandeville, he started building in Slidell and eventually worked his way up to 100 to 120 homes per year.”

In the late 1960s George’s father retired and George began construction and developed operations. By age 23, George was in full operation of his own company.

“My father’s theory always was, if you build a good house, people would buy it. And then their children and grandchildren would buy from you. Over the years I have heard many, many people say, ‘My grandmother lives in a house your father built,’” says Reine. “I have based my own company on that same basic tenet of business.”

“I recently received probably the most rewarding recognition I’ve gotten over the last 40 years. A client bought his second new home from us 25 years after buying his first new home from us. He said he was elated with his first home and was treated honestly and fairly. So when it came time to buy another, why go anywhere else?”

First Sale
Reine worked in the field Monday through Friday, acquired his real estate license and sold homes on the weekends. His persistence and determination led to his first home sale.

After showing a prospective buyer every home the company had for sale, he informed the woman he had one last home to show her. When he returned home that night, he told his wife he had good news and bad news. The good news was that he had sold his first home. The bad news was they had to move out of their own personal home by Friday. When none of the company’s homes were what the client was looking for, Reine showed and sold his own home.

After making $1.65 an hour physically working on all aspects of residential construction, commercial construction and land development, his profit on that sale made George realize that the future was in sales and owning your own business.

A Company of His Own
With his father as his mentor, Reine opened his first business in 1968 and specialized in building quality, affordable homes.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Reine developed a systematic, fine tuned tract-building program for their own company that provided all buyers, especially first-time homeowners, the opportunity to participate in the foundation of American dream, owning your home.

By the late ‘70s, Reine’s company was building 300 homes a year, employed more than 100 people and was growing dramatically. Reine began branching out into all aspects of real estate. He would soon be involved in the design and building of custom homes, as well as the planning, financing, development and construction of multi-family units, apartments, condominiums, office buildings, shopping centers, warehouses and commercial office parks and buildings. At his peak he was the largest home builder in Louisiana and one of the largest in the entire Gulf Coast Region.

Local Projects
Reine has developed subdivisions for such nationally known companies as U.S. Homes, General Homes, Southern Homes and Faxon-Gillis. He expanded his companies into Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee. He has done numerous projects throughout St. Tammany Parish, including Commercial Square and shops in Corporate Square Shopping Center and the Medical Arts Building. Summit has also built a number of investment properties.

Controlling the Construction Process
Organization is obviously one of George Reine’s special talents. Reine coordinates the Summit Construction schedule every Thursday. Reine describes the process: “Our staff meetings cover what we call milestones, or each individual element that happens on the project. We determine who will be responsible and the date that we expect that to be completed. Then we discuss the budget and the status of our projects.

Honest, Fair Customer Service
When asked if he felt there was one contributing factor to his success, George stated unequivocally, “Customer satisfaction.” Giving people a quality product at an affordable price is a solid formula for success. Whether Summit is building a 1,100-square-foot spec home in a starter neighborhood of a $500,000 custom home in one of their prestigious gated communities, they walk through every house with every client, answering questions and concerns. Without customers, specifically happy customers, no business can survive.