Articles

The Berlanga brothers-Jose and Tristan- are the creative force behind Tricon Homes, homebuilders who established a Houston presence ten years ago with a company that continues to grow and gain market share.

• They move from Mexico City and became full time Houstonians in 1986
• Launched Tricon Homes in 1997; it has grown from a company of two employees to nearly 50 employees with a target of $75 million annual billings for the current year
• Education: Jose—Graduate, University of St. Thomas, Houston, major in Business and Economics; Tristan—Graduate, University of Houston, major in Environmental Design
• Hobbies: Jose—work; Tristan—listening to music, playing guitar, reading
• Civic: Jose—plans to get very involved with Shriners Hospitals for Children; Tristan—focus is on education, contributes to neighborhood schools

From what aspect of homebuilding do you derive your greatest fulfillment?

Today’s home buyer is very savvy, well informed and well educated. They do plenty of research when it comes to such a high ticket item. Over the years, when you begin to build a reputation for commitment to the housing industry and to the Houston community, rather than of a builder that is only here to take advantage of a business opportunity, people rapidly identify it and everyone wins. Our employees win because they are proud of what they do for a living are fulfilled by our accomplishments. Our customers win because they get the chance to buy a beautiful product with the best value, quality and finishes that they can afford, one located close to downtown and all of activities that our city offers—theaters, restaurants, museums and parks. And Houston wins because we are gradually improving the look and feel of many important areas to a level that should proudly represent this city.

As successful homebuilders, what is your greatest motivation?

By nature, you have to be extremely motivated to operate constantly growing business. Patience, passion and some serious sacrifices are amongst the many attributes required in this field.

What is your greatest challenge?

It is extremely challenging to forecast so many unforeseen obstacles and to juggle each and every demand that this business presents. There are definitely some difficult days but we always come back to one conclusion: to keep focusing on maintain the quality and creativity of our product and try our best to please everyone of our buyers.

Is there a secret to your success?

There is not a perfect formula and there are certainly no secrets, but timing does help tremendously and it can mean everything bi business. Ten years ago when we started, there were great land opportunities which really helped our growth. Today most of the land is overpriced in relation to the current home sales prices and there is absolutely no margin of error. You must really know what you are doing. Another good ingredient is to love the industry enough that you keep seeing beyond the painful and often expensive setbacks that consistently come up. If you enjoy what you do just like any other field, you stay with it simply for that reason.

Despite your growth and gain in market share, you continue to be a recognized as a “Heights builder.” Is that a fair characterization?

Not anymore. Even though we offer one of the widest varieties off styles, designs, floor plans, elevations and in many neighborhoods at different price points throughout the inner loop, we started building only in the Heights for the first few years so that reputation stayed with us. It is now changing rapidly.

Is there on aspect of the home buying process that you consider as the most important?

There are so many to consider but on of the important ones is to understand the current living standards, life styles and market trends within your market. If you don’t understand what buyers are looking for you will have a problem building the right home. We also insist on meeting our buyers’ needs, not only before, but also after the sale of a home. Taking care of new homeowners after the sale of a home. Taking care of new homeowners after the sale is finalized is very important to us.

You have spoken of being in business “for the right reasons.” Can you be more specific?

To us, being in this business was always about a passion for designing and building homes. There has always been a great satisfaction for us in watching the tangible results of our work. We started not for a promise of success but for the love of the trade.

What do you like most about Houston?

Houston’s geographical location and climate make it an ideal city for progress and growth, a place that attracted families and business from all over the country and world. Diversity of its people and cultures is evident in the variety of restaurants and businesses. Houston is fast becoming a very cosmopolitan and internationally known city full of energy, excitement and opportunity.

You are brothers, but you are also best friends. How has that related to the development of your business?
Our close partnership has helped us continue to do our best. We have two different types of talents coming together and we combine them well. Trust is also a vital part of any relationship, and in this partnership, we have complete confidence and trust in each other.

A final question we ask of our At A Glance subjects: If you could have lunch with anyone, past or present, who would it be?

Jose: Emeril, Bobby Flay or Wolfgang Puck. And my brother bee be sitting right there next to me because we both love food.

Tristan: My whole family. Other than that anyone who has a good story to tell and a few jokes.

Reference: Intown Magazine
Reference URL: https://www.intownmag.com/

Builds Success with Fascinating Architectural Concepts, Superb Floor Designs Tricon

Residential Construction & Design brings together the talents of brothers Tristan and Jose Miguel Berlanga. Each skilled in particular areas of the custom homebuilding industry, their talents complement each other’s in a way that has driven business growth every year since the company was founded in 1998.

Known for versatile designs and visionary concepts, Tricon creates distinct homes and residential projects throughout Houston Inner Loop neighborhoods, where a renaissance in urban residential development is taking place.

Tricon has particularly mace its presence felt in Houston’s Historic Heights, where the company is playing a key role in that remarkable community’s revitalization, In addition to the Heights, Tricon builds homes in such neighborhoods as Montrose, Shady Acres, Midtown, Medical Center and Rice Military.

Their homes range in price from $250,000 to $600,000. The Berlanga brothers’ dedication to achievement and their love for homebuilding are the building blocks of Tricon’s commitment to excellence, ‘Tristan has a degree in architecture and environmental design from the University of Houston, Jose Miguel has a degree in business administration and economics from the University of St. Thomas.

‘Tristan was attracted to the business because of his passion for architecture and his keen interest in the home-building process. He brings to his work an abundance of visionary ideas, a strong work ethic and a high level of motivation, Jose Miguel is the company’s economist and business planner. His expertise in land acquisition plays a major role in helping Tricon contain costs and maximize opportunities for developing attractive residential real estate projects.

Reference: Builder/Architect Magazine
Reference URL: https://builderarchitect.com/

For Jose Berlanga ’89, success in business meant  he had to pay a personal  price. While his buddies were  playing pool, bowling and  going to parties, he was  studying at UST and working  day and night in his first  business: a parts distribution  company for the oil and  gas industry. 

The hard work and sacrifices paid  off for Berlanga. CEO and co-founder  of Tricon Homes.  “The business started small. just  the two of us (including his brother  Tristan),” he said. “In the ’90s, the inner  city of Houston was undergoing a  revitalization process. and we noticed  there was a niche. an opening. Not  many builders were attracted to these  transforming neighborhoods.” The  brothers began building in The Heights.  Montrose, Midtown. Museum District  and other areas. 

Now, Tricon – which is both an  architectural firm and a developer/  builder – is one of the biggest builders  in Houston. “We built a name for the  product,” he said. The homes, generally  priced from $500,000 to $1 million.  include styles ranging from loft to  Victorian to Craftsman. 

Berlanga gets great satisfaction  from providing a service people  appreciate. He enjoys the whole cycle  of his job as CEO, from discussing  potential sites. planning and negotiating  to “driving by one day. looking through  the window, and seeing a family having  dinner. That’s what keeps me going in  business: he said. 

Berlanga admits that one of his greatest challenges has been  finding the right balance between work and personal life. Now, at  46. after spending the past 18 years building a successful business.  he thinks he’s found it. He’s about to have his first children. His wife  Adriana is expecting twins – a boy and a girl. 

Berlanga is grateful that he was drawn to UST for the Catholic  education as well as the smaller size of the c lasses and campus.  He said he formed many lifelong friendships and made important  business contacts while on campus. 

“It’s amazing that I’m standing on my balcony staring at Link-Lee  Mansion,” Berlanga said. “My office overlooks the campus.  Close to 30 years later and I’ve never left the neighborhood … it’s  kind of cool:

Reference: University of St.Thomas Houston / UST Today Spring 2015 – Page 17
Refrence URL: https://issuu.com/usthouston/docs/web_ust_today_spring_2

Jose M. Berlanga is the CEO of Houstonian Capital, which focuses on property acquisitions, development, residential construction, commercial development, and multifamily ventures.

Jose, who learned patience and market fluctuations from his first company, wanted to establish a business but wasn’t sure which sector to enter. After a lengthy struggle, he understood that success requires sacrifice, especially in the short term. His hard work paid off, and now he manages various Houstonian Capital enterprises. Since then, he has been an entrepreneur, and his mindset makes him interested in most parts of his organization. He believes success comes from the accumulation of small steps, but most people expect a gold medal without putting the amount of work required to obtain one. He thinks leading is hard, and expecting things to be easy and fast would fail. Leaders need discipline, persistence, repetition, effort, and “never-ending”; improvement because progress is rarely linear, making individuals feel like failures.

Since Jose has always been self-employed, he never had a mentor, but he credits his father with helping him become a productive member of society. He takes leadership advice from partners, collaborators, clients, and friends and follows captivating leaders. He emulates passions by studying routines, disciplines, and schedules. He says the most important thing for a leader is to keep their eyes open, know what they want, be eager to learn, and then act.

Determine the key to two-way consistency

Jose claims that he is often tempted to throw in the towel and give up when things get tough, but he never does because his stubborn persistence kicks in. Even if he spends his life trying, he will not consider giving up, something that is not in his nature, no matter how severe the circumstance. His obsessive-compulsive brain never stops thinking about business, even at night, on weekends, and on vacation, for the numerous deals at present and the ones to come.

Jose asserts that organizations depend on multiple strengths. In a competitive world, business models identify your idea and your mission. clear business vision could even outweigh other components like effort, creativity, excellent processes, skill, focus, and drive which are all necessary. After identifying your company’s assets, you need a strategy and good hires. Everyone is needed for advancement and organization. Organizations can be companies, symphonies, bands, sports teams, blockbuster film stars. Matching people to roles and having good chemistry increases success. Time is crucial since fate and time must cooperate, in Jose’s view. He avoids squandering it on long meetings. He believes leaders can and will make mistakes but advises them to act quickly, when things get difficult, and that practice will boost your batting average. You’ll be surprised how many firms’ futures depend on a few neglected, postponed, or ignored decisions. He starts with easy tasks to clean his plate and then moves on to focus on harder stuff. Every leader has a different style and some begin with large challenges but Jose works the other way around because having a lot of small things clouds his perception, so he gets them out of the way first. He composes himself before discussing significant matters and recommends avoiding corporate clutter by working efficiently.

Explaining communication, Jose thinks that it depends on the message and topics. Leaders, according to him, should regroup to analyze the risks and communicate often to reset and understand the company’s goals. He then describes their future and how his team’s work will affect the organization. For him, repeating goals ensures comprehension, and most importantly, his sincerity and respect promote teamwork.

As Jose suggested, an effective organization needs regular discussions with sincere and diplomatic messages. Kind and honest, he prioritizes problems above successes. He avoids aimless laborers and knows people should clearly understand their role, and observe and advise improvements to avoid problems. He must help teammates recognize their talents and shortcomings by learning how to enhance their lives since successful initiatives promote happy workers who then produce better results. Always explain constructive criticism with attention, a decent message, and straight forward direction. He assists others with recommendations and experience and believes happiness and meaning are two-way streets. He’ll shortly face his next test, and he values first base over home runs because sustainable progress is more attainable and will ultimately get you there. It takes years to succeed. It is important to recognize that employees have different motivations; some want money, recognition, or a challenge. He tailors his encouragement to each team member’s interests. Jose hopes to inspire others by being his best and setting an example.

Leaders should analyze the problem before giving guidance and inspire future leaders work hard and lead by example. If they care, they can transform lives. Great leaders examine department- and position-specific results, performance, and productivity. When you look back, it will have been worth living. Like a newborn, a company needs time and care, and it may not be your calling if you can’t lead the group with passion.

Jose’s latest concept is to make each employee a leader in their industry and the CEO of their own sector. They are steadily establishing a program that allows the team to make decisions and achieve goals without micromanagement, excessive supervision, or oversight. They want ambitious people, not laborers. They want leaders and executive activities where everyone thinks proactively and responsibly.

Jose loves organization, which can be a business structure or a talent derived from the Greek word “Organon,” a musical instrument or working tool. This is the art of organizing and synchronizing movements. He believes there is no bad system, only poor implementation, and, hence, prioritizes consistency and rationality over technology. If you know how to utilize QuickBooks or Oracle, either one is fine as long as you stick to one. Jose values organizational abilities, which can’t be taught. That is more essential to him than the experience which can always be gained through time.

Leaders have several career stages, and although Jose is young in business, he is not a fresh entrepreneur who worries about the next five or ten years. After decades of planning and dreaming, he wants stability, efficiency, consistency, health, and happiness for family and work. He wants to manage his firm, invest more, work less, and automate company operations. He believes all successful organizations should have an available but not necessary leader. Technology and developing trends should be used to work
remotely. He concludes that leaders must make the organization self-sufficient to develop, solve problems, and serve society!

Reference: www.c-levelfocus.com – C Level Focus
Reference URL: https://c-levelfocus.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/2023/Inspiring-CEOs-of-2023-V2/index.html