Jason Pedersen explains what makes iLevel Construction unique in the Black Hills’ homebuilding landscape
Founded by a mechanical engineer, iLevel Construction (iLevel) holds the distinction of building generational custom homes with the discipline of an engineering firm. This means that its homes run the way an engineering firm runs a project: the process is documented, sequenced, and visible from anywhere. We learn more about what makes the company one of the Black Hills premier homebuilders from Founder and Owner Jason Pedersen.
“Since starting the business in early 2019, it has evolved quickly. Amazingly enough, I never launched iLevel with the intention of being a custom home builder. The original plan was to do some remodeling work and use it to support the real estate investment side. Over time, we started doing more construction work and it rapidly became clear that we were rather good at managing full builds as a general contractor. As a result, two and a half years ago, we decided to focus solely on custom homes. We are a small team, and right now all our clients are coming from out of state, including Texas, Colorado, North Dakota, Minnesota, Arizona, and Washington DC, to build retirement homes or vacation properties here in the Black Hills region,” he begins.
Jason’s route into construction is not the obvious one. His professional journey started out in mechanical engineering, shaped in part by watching the 2008 recession tear through the construction industry in the Flathead Valley of Montana, where he grew up. “My dad was in manufacturing, and construction got hit very hard out there. A lot of the people we knew in the construction sector were heading to North Dakota to chase oil field work just to keep things going. So, I did not grow up thinking construction and real estate were great career paths. I went to school to get a two-year associate degree in applied science in machining, which is the type of manufacturing my dad does, then a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. As I worked in construction all the way through engineering school, I gradually started to see that there was a different, more secure way to approach it. We were building cool things, and I found it really enjoyable. All my siblings stayed in manufacturing, engineering, and robotics, so I am the only one who went strictly into building homes. However, I recently hired my younger sister, who has just started doing home design for us, so the family connection is back,” he reveals.
Effective technology
One of Jason’s driving motivations behind starting iLevel was the desire to give homeowners a better building experience. Custom home construction has an often-justified reputation for going over budget or running late, which causes significant stress to customers and can leave them on poor terms with builders by the end of the project. Jason believed there was a better way to approach home building as well as client relationships and set out to offer it. Part of that means bringing proper process discipline to an industry that, in many corners, is still running on handwritten carbon-copy pads. To change that, iLevel has invested in reliable technology and hired a project manager who is also a mechanical engineer, empowering the team to use the technology properly.
“With the help of our project manager, who has been working with us for six years, what we bring to the table is a real understanding of how to use technology effectively. We are using AI to optimize the behind-the-scenes processes so we can focus our attention on the client experience. In the Black Hills, we are one of the first builders to offer 3D virtual tours of home plans before construction begins. Although it’s not new technology, it is very uncommon in our area, and we thought letting clients walk through their future home virtually before a single foundation is poured was a great idea. Pairing that kind of technology with a personal building process has made a real difference,” Jason emphasizes.
iLevel’s combination of technical thinking and attention to detail comes through clearly in the projects it has delivered over the years. One that stands out is the Shiprock House, a home in the southern Black Hills built for local clients and inspired by a national park aesthetic. “We went and toured Bear Country USA and Custer State Park to get a real feel for the look they were after,” Jason recalls. The result incorporated concrete log siding sourced from Montana, local Gold Creek slate patios, and natural stone harvested directly from the property itself and repurposed for the fireplaces and stone columns. The home also features a full solar battery backup system and a wood-burning fireplace whose brick runs visually through the entire house.
Nuanced approach
The second standout project is currently operating as a vacation rental called the Whiskey Bent Hideaway. This property is a cozy but exceptionally well put-together build in the Black Hills that works both as a personal getaway and an income-producing property. Inside, the iLevel team built a custom spiral staircase with matching railings fabricated by a local partner. What made this project particularly interesting to design and build was the dual brief: every selection and detail had to work for the owners personally while also holding up to the wear and demands of being used by many different guests over time. Balancing that required a different kind of thinking, and it is exactly the kind of nuanced challenge that iLevel enjoys taking on.
These projects are a world away from where iLevel started. Evolving in a different direction than the one it was originally expected to go, the business has since established itself as one of the Black Hills’ most thoughtful custom builders thanks to its digital walkthroughs and customer-friendly approach.
