Community commitment and client collaboration define Augusta’s approach to custom homebuilding
Based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Augusta Custom Homes (Augusta) aims to serve clients and the community. The company strives to build quality homes while supporting those in need with a percentage of profit from every project being donated to a local nonprofit of the customer’s choice.
“My wife and I started the company in 2015 out of frustration; we couldn’t find the type of product we wanted,” begins Chase Bentley, CEO. “I grew up building with my father, starting at age 11 sweeping job sites and eventually working my way into the trades. Although I went on to study and practice engineering, something my dad encouraged me to do so I wouldn’t have to build homes, I found myself drawn back to it. We realized that custom doesn’t necessarily have to be expensive, this is a misnomer. It’s about having the freedom to make a home your own while removing the lack of transparency that is engrained within the traditional custom homebuilding process. That idea sparked the business. We initially planned to keep it small, building one or two homes a year, but it grew from there.
“Like most trends, every style has its moment,” he continues, elaborating on the styles of homes the company creates. “Seven years ago, the modern farmhouse look became incredibly popular, and many of our homes reflected that. While those homes continue to serve our clients well, we’ve tried to build homes that hold up well beyond shifting trends, so we often guide clients toward more timeless choices.
“More recently in our area, we’ve seen a shift toward contemporary, mountain modern, and transitional architectural styles, which have been well received. At the same time, some clients are returning to more traditional designs. Ultimately, our approach is flexible; we’ve never built the same home twice and have had the opportunity to work across many architectural styles over the years.”
Thoughtful relationships
When it comes to his approach to business, Chase shares the influences that have shaped him over the years. “Being a father now has altered how I see things. I reflect a lot on the manner in which I was raised,” Chase shares. “I was adopted, and my adopted father, who raised me, had a completely different demeanor. He was softly spoken and communicated thoughtfully, often saying less but meaning more, especially with his subcontractors. What stood out most was that he led by example; he was on-site, doing the work himself.
“That approach stuck with me. While I’m less hands-on in a physical labor perspective today as we’ve grown, I stay closely involved with clients and rely on long-standing relationships with trusted subcontractors who understand our process without needing constant direction. That kind of shorthand and consistency has helped our building process become more efficient and scalable over time.”
As well as his adoptive father, Chase credits much of his entrepreneurial mindset to lessons instilled early in life by his adoptive mother. Her influence, he says, shaped not only how he approaches challenges, but how he leads today.
“Something my mother never let me do was quit. No matter the situation, if I made a commitment, I had to see it through. Even when I felt frustrated, she’d remind me to fix my attitude and finish what I started. That lesson stayed with me through high school and then into college, where I was balancing intense demands on my time.
“Even now, I make mistakes every day, but I don’t give up; I just ask questions, listen, and keep adjusting to move forward. That persistence has been critical, and it’s something I’ve passed on to my own kids: be a good human and never quit. Those two principles have guided me, especially when stepping into challenges I wasn’t necessarily trained for.”
Responsive experience
With multiple businesses, Chase goes on to explain that while his businesses are connected, they’re intentionally structured to serve different roles. Some operate closely together, while others remain entirely separate.
“Augusta Ventures and Augusta Custom Homes work hand in hand. Augusta Ventures focuses on acquiring and developing raw land for residential use, and then Augusta Custom Homes either builds on that land or works with clients who want to. They function almost as one entity; we share the same team and ownership structure, which makes everything seamless.
“On the other hand, Augusta Capital Partners and 4 Elements Ventures are separate. We intentionally keep those businesses distinct, with no overlap. Augusta Capital Partners doesn’t invest in real estate, while 4 Elements Ventures’ thesis is the acquisition of smaller service-based companies. That separation is by design.”
He also notes that service and community impact remain a guiding focus in how the homebuilding business operates, even as it has grown. “From day one, we’ve done two things: we’ve never built the same home twice and give back. Every client owns their plans at the end of the build, and we contribute a portion of our profit to a nonprofit of their choice. Even in tougher situations, we have always honored that commitment. At the end of the day, I believe if you run a business well, there’s enough to go around. You can be successful and still help people along the way,” he adds.
“Many builders rely heavily on realtor referrals; they’re typically the main gateway into new construction. We enjoy working with realtors, but to broaden our reach, we’ve refined our front-end process to offer a more responsive experience for our clients,” he continues. “From January 1st, 2026, to now, about 96 percent of our client leads have come through creative adjustments to our marketing and internal processes. For us, that shift suggests that our continued focus on the client experience is making a difference.”
Broader outlook
In terms of projects, Chase points to one major development currently in progress. “It’s a hybrid project between Augusta Custom Homes and Augusta Ventures, working with a family that owns a significant piece of acreage. Their goal is to develop the land so each family member can have their own home on separate plots; enough space that everyone has independence, but still remains close,” he explains.
“To do that, we’re handling the full scope of development: entitlements, roadway planning, infrastructure, and drainage before building the homes themselves. It’s a sizable project in Ellis County, just south of Dallas, and something we’ve been working on for around two years now, so it’s rewarding to see it finally coming together.”
Looking to the future, he also reflects on the broader outlook for the business heading into 2026. “2025 was arguably one of our more challenging years, even when compared to the years of Covid, largely due to broader economic uncertainty. Even so, we were fortunate to remain profitable and to keep our team supported. We’re grateful that since January, we’ve booked more clients than in all of 2025 and 2024 combined.
“Because of that growth, we’re now focused on scaling carefully. I’m reviewing every stage of our process, from first client contact through to project completion, to ensure we maintain quality as we grow. We also actively collect client feedback at the end of each project and use it to refine and improve what we do next,” he concludes. “The goal is simple: keep improving without letting quality slip as we scale.”