ZappiCo Real Estate Development expands into a new market while navigating approvals and changing buyer demands
Greenwich, Connecticut, demands precision. Buyers come in with clear expectations, defined budgets, and a vision for the lifestyle they want. For ZappiCo Real Estate Development (ZappiCo), the town represents the next chapter in a story that started more than 40 years ago in neighboring Westchester County, New York.
Brothers Brandon and Brian Zappi, both licensed professional engineers and consulting vice presidents, now oversee much of the day-to-day operation at ZappiCo, guiding projects from land acquisition and approvals through design and construction. Their leadership builds on the foundation established by their father and company founder Jim Zappi, who started building homes in Westchester before expanding into larger residential developments. Growing up around the business, the brothers watched projects move from raw land to completed homes, an experience that continues to shape ZappiCo’s hands-on approach today. The skills and values established on Jim’s early projects stay with the company, while overall, it has grown significantly in scale and scope. Today finds Zappico handling large subdivisions and building multi-million-dollar higher-end homes for the luxury market.
Engineering excellence
Over the course of its history, ZappiCo has built more than 500 homes throughout Westchester and nearby communities. “We like to make it as easy as possible for our customers. We’re a one-stop shop. We handle everything: site engineering, subdivision approvals, home design, and construction. We even own the site work, engineering, and construction companies. That lets us manage the entire process under one roof,” Brandon describes.
Engineering sits at the heart of the company’s approach. Before buyers review layouts or finishes, the team might spend years evaluating land, securing approvals, designing infrastructure, and coordinating with local agencies. ZappiCo treats engineering and construction as parts of a single process, which helps teams spot challenges early and adapt designs before building begins. Keeping engineers involved connects development, design, and construction. It aligns with the specifics of each site.
The company’s pipeline keeps expanding. Alongside active projects in Greenwich and Sleepy Hollow, ZappiCo has more than 100 lots in various stages of approval across Westchester County. Managing projects at different points in the cycle helps the brothers balance current construction with future growth.
Engineering shapes many company decisions. Before buyers even step into a model home, years of work might have gone into evaluating land, approvals, infrastructure, and coordination with local agencies. Keeping engineers in the conversation gives ZappiCo a unique perspective on risk, timelines, and site planning.
That expertise grows more valuable as codes change and municipalities expect more from developers. Treating engineering and construction as one helps teams spot challenges early and adapt designs before building begins.
Evolving requirements
That one-stop model also shapes how the brothers split their roles. Brian’s work starts years before construction crews step onto a site. “I focus on the bigger subdivisions and guide projects from start to finish. That includes the full approval process, designing for steep slopes, stormwater management, and site plans. Everything needed to deliver pad-ready lots,” he notes.
“Brian prepares the approved lots, and then I meet with the buyers and guide them through the rest,” Brandon adds. “It’s easy to get on a call and work through anything that comes up during the process. Having a second professional opinion is always valuable”.
Growth remains the goal, but both brothers also now spend more time handling outside factors, as larger developments can face some resistance from local communities. “We’re seeing more organized opposition to development on online platforms and social media. More people can make their voices heard, whether for or against a project, and that tends to carry influence,” Brandon observes.
Regulation and continual legislation updates also test the ZappiCo team. Approvals feel the pressure first. Slower reviews and permitting delays are common. “Every few years, towns increase their code requirements, and energy regulations become more restrictive. Building departments are also taking more time to review permit applications. In many cases, it now takes longer to get a building permit than to construct the house itself,” Brandon notes.
Longer reviews cost more than time. “The soft costs behind getting a home approved are tremendous. That’s probably the biggest cost that’s increasing. The process keeps dragging on,” agrees Brian.
Those delays shape how the brothers talk to buyers. “We try to give people a realistic understanding from the start: how long the process may take, what could change, and what’s involved in building a custom home,” Brian clarifies.
The power of reputation
The Sleepy Hollow development shows how that plays out. “We’ve been evaluating that property since 2020. We closed on it and submitted a permit application in 2021, and it’s been a long process due to factors including some opposition from neighboring residents. We’ve addressed their concerns with detailed technical reports that show the issues being raised aren’t supported by the data,” Brian reports.
He explains that the wait also reshaped the plan. “Our original plan was 31 smaller lots. As things developed, we began targeting a higher-end market. Now we’ll have fewer but larger manor-style homes.”
ZappiCo once focused on building spec homes, but now customization drives much of the work. Buyers’ tastes are shifting too. The market is moving toward higher price points and more demanding finishes. Buyers are also placing a greater focus on outdoor living spaces, and are asking for outdoor kitchens, covered gathering areas, home gyms, saunas, and cold plunges. “We typically presell and build exactly what the customer wants,” Brandon notes.
Wellness keeps coming up in design conversations. Alongside outdoor living areas, buyers continue to invest in spaces dedicated to health and recreation. “We provide sidewalks in many of our subdivisions to enable interconnectivity with local amenities and encourage outdoor living,” Brandon explains. “Activity based amenities, such as home gyms are still popular requests, and we’ve just completed a house where the gentleman put in a cold plunge and sauna.”
Some requests are new altogether. “We’re building our second car-storage facility. Some customers have multimillion-dollar car collections, and we’ve created a way for them to store those vehicles on their own property,” Brandon reveals.
Alongside custom builds, ZappiCo has active projects in Greenwich and Sleepy Hollow, and more than 100 lots at various stages across Westchester County. Some developments are advancing through entitlements, others are moving toward construction, and several remain part of a longer-term pipeline that gives the company visibility across multiple years of activity.
Much of that work comes through referrals, built on client relationships that stretch back more than 40 years. “A landowner who lived next to one of our other developments approached us. He saw how we worked and how we delivered results, so after seeing everything firsthand, he asked us to partner with him on his own project,” Brian recalls.
“We pride ourselves on our reputation,” Brian continues. “We have second-generation customers: people who grew up in a ZappiCo home with their parents and now want to buy one for themselves. That standard traces back to Jim, as we’ve always been taught to do the right thing and make sure our customers are taken care of.”
