Discover how Young & Burton’s talented and experienced team tackles unique and challenging projects
The Young & Burton (Y&B) team is made up of a group of dedicated construction professionals who are passionate about building, committed to excellence and living up to the company’s mission of ‘delivering the very best, consistently’.
For 40 years, Y&B has specialized in the construction of unique residences, remodels and select commercial projects. Founded in 1985, its offices are in San Ramon, California and its work covers the greater Bay Area from the East Bay to San Francisco and from the Napa Valley to the Monterey Peninsula.
Y&B works closely with clients, architects, engineers, and government agencies to facilitate the process in a timely and efficient manner. Providing close supervision at every step, Y&B ensures that cost controls, scheduling and coordination between the many different trades and the design team are maintained so that projects are completed properly each time.
Having completed hundreds of projects, the team not only has a long list of satisfied clients but also the expertise necessary to construct architecturally diverse projects with a proven track record.
“Y&B was formed by my father Mike Burton, a General Contractor since 1979, and his then partner Larry Young in 1985. The newly formed company was in the right place at the right time and, with a lot of hard work and luck, the business has been booming ever since,” begins Samantha Burton, Vice President. “The partnership continued to grow and even branched out to Arizona for a period but that move proved to be another catalyst for change and the partnership ended in the late 1990s with my dad keeping the company here in the Bay Area.
“Coming from a builders’ background, we had always self-performed framing and finished carpentry, and, at one point, we had as many as 60 employees. Today, while we still self-perform some carpentry, we’ve consolidated down to our current team of around 20+. We no longer self-perform framing, opting instead to use our reliable network of subcontractors.
“We have six superintendents with an average tenure of 25 years, so I’ve known most of our people my entire life. Each and every one of them is a talented and experienced builder in their own right and together we’ve been blessed to navigate the different economies and market changes, while creating hundreds of unique homes for our clients, most of whom are all still friends of ours. We service our work after it’s completed and have formed great longstanding working relationships with architects and designers, as well as discovering new people to work with, which has been great. We have a good pool of subcontractors who travel almost anywhere for us. While I grew up in the company, I worked with other builders and went away to get my degree in construction management, coming back in 2011 to rejoin and grow our business in San Francisco. It took a couple of years, but the hustle paid off and we’re still building in San Francisco today. My dad is still heavily involved and can be found on our jobsites or in the office almost every day. My background is in project management, so I’ve helped to develop that within Y&B, and I also oversee daily operations,” Samantha elaborates.
“I’m lucky in that I know everyone in our business on a personal level, and they’ve put their trust in me to let me guide them through new process implementation. Construction can be a legacy industry and while not all changes happen overnight, we’re certainly making progress.
“There are definitely more women working in the commercial sector of the industry than in residential. That said, there are certainly many women in construction education as well as design and architecture and the number in construction is growing. In terms of clientele, it can be mixed, but a lot of women are the driving force behind their home projects. It probably doesn’t hurt that I’m still showing up as a united front with my father, thereby reinforcing our history and experience. I do believe, however, that it’s an exciting time for women in the industry.
“My favorite aspect of any project is forming a completely new team,” she continues. “The best projects involve a full team with everyone working collaboratively. We don’t do the design element, but rather are there to execute it. We do have input in usability and functionality, as well as highlighting various construction methods and options. We’re able to push the project forward and it’s our job to coordinate with the architect, interior designer, structural engineer, lighting designer, landscape architect, and the owner’s representative to ensure we’re all driving forward in the same direction. We foster open communication and collaboration to work toward completion of these really special projects. These are people’s homes, and we strive to ensure their dreams become reality.
“We have a superintendent on site running the day-to-day operations and pushing the schedule. In the office, a project manager resolves queries and disseminates information. We also hold regular meetings with all relevant parties to maintain the flow of information, review outstanding issues and ensure the project is on track.
“In 2024,” Samantha shares, “we wrapped up three projects and all of them are special for their own reasons. We fully remodeled a home for a client who decided to take the home that they love and invest in it rather than proceed with any of the various iterations of new projects they’d be considering over the years. They’ve been living there for about six months now and are so happy with the result.
“We also finished a project in Carmel for a repeat client,” she adds, “and that one was unique because it was for a wonderful client who knew exactly what they
wanted in terms of style. So, the architect and designer really focused on delivering that thoughtful design to create a one-of-a-kind project. Then we got to do a short-schedule remodel of a four-story home in San Francisco. It was an existing home that wasn’t necessarily forgiving, so there was no wiggle room for error. It brought new life to the property and the complexity of the result is quite breathtaking.”
New project
Looking to the future, Samantha shares details of Y&B’s upcoming projects in the pipeline: “We’ll soon be starting a special project that’s currently in the pre-construction phase. It’s in San Francisco and is a remodel addition of a Tudor-style home, originally built in the 1920s, increasing the existing sq. ft. while maintaining that style for the young family who live there. The most exciting part is meeting the client, seeing the home and knowing that it’s becoming what it needs to be for that family. The Tudor style is very exciting for us coming from a carpentry background. It’s an exciting opportunity and we’ll be working with a renowned architect and design team with whom we’ve yet to work. It’s going to be a tricky project but a fun and collaborative one. So, we’re very excited to break ground on that.
“We’re ready to add new clients to our books in 2025, and this year is an exciting one from the perspective of starting some new projects. It’s also our 40th year, so I’m happy and proud that we’re still here and the same people are still here with us. I think it’s going to be a year of new beginnings. In five years,” she concludes, “I’d like to see some new blood in the company, both in the office and out in the field, learning from our experienced superintendents to support us in the next 40 years of business. I’d like to expand our network of architects. There are so many talented people out there that we’ve never worked with and that means there are new teams, relationships and projects to forge. There’s plenty of opportunities for us to grow, to connect and to learn more. The goal is simply to be a part of great projects and to keep our 20+ family of employees busy and engaged for the future.”