The Rebellious Kid Who Became a High-Performance Builder (DDP #50)

Sam got expelled from three schools before he turned 16. He stole the master key at boarding school in Asheville. He skateboarded instead of studying and didn't care about traditional education. His Cuban mom and Mexican dad didn't know what to do with him.

Now he builds some of the most technically sophisticated homes and decks in North Carolina and he's studying to become a certified passive home builder.

In this conversation, Sam shares how his father's 100+ employee drywall business collapsed in 2008, how he worked at a car wash while bouncing through six different college majors, and how he finally decided at 24 that he wanted to be a builder. He pledged five years to a local contractor to learn the trade, got his license at 30, and started Crews Built with a neighbor's custom home and a one-and-a-half page contract that he's embarrassed about today.

Sam explains why he prioritizes high-performance building over square footage, what passive home certification actually means, and why he'd rather build a small, scientifically advanced home than a big traditional one any day.

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