FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED SINCE 1976

 

A COMPANY BUILT ON LOVE:
THE START OF OUR PARENT COMPANY, 

WISCONSIN LOG HOMES

 

In the early 1970s, Wisconsin Log Homes founders, Dave and Kathy Janczak, shared a common wish – to live in a log home. Dave lived and breathed construction since he was a child. When he was young, Dave and his father would spend time together remodeling old homes. Dave learned more about the art of construction and carpentry while working for a local custom home builder throughout his high school and college years. After getting married, the couple soon fell in love with a twenty-acre piece of land in Green Bay. Dave promised Kathy that he’d use his construction background and build her a beautiful log home they’d both be proud to own. ​

Working day and night throughout the design and construction of the home, the couple hand-cut and peeled each log that would go into their home. Dave worked on-site every day, while Kathy visited on her lunch breaks to give Dave a hand or word of encouragement. ​

The home was soon completed and received great fanfare from our local media. Newspapers and TV stations did stories on the labor of love. As a result, people began showing up at the house asking Dave to build them equally beautiful log homes. ​

The reaction from the many log home enthusiasts is what prompted Dave and Kathy to begin Wisconsin Log Homes in 1976 and is still what drives the company to be an industry leader and pioneer in custom wood home building technologies. Dave began to design and build the homes while Kathy used her marketing and advertising background to educate customers about log homes – and together they set a new standard for the industry. ​

Of course, with all the growing Wisconsin Log Homes has done over the last several decades, the number of people behind the company has grown far beyond Dave and Kathy. Today, the Wisconsin Log Homes team consists of talented Architectural Designers, General Contractors, Builders, Craftsmen and an in-house Interior Designer. Our custom home experts are just as passionate about the homes and services our company provides as Dave and Kathy were from the start.

Pictured: Dave & Kathy on the porch of the first home they built in the 1970’s

Watch Dave & Kathy’s Story on Epic Log Homes TV Episode

© Copyright WLH Custom Homes

A GROWING FAMILY BUSINESS:
THE START OF WLH CUSTOM HOMES

 

Dave and Kathy’s son, Nate Janczak, owner and General Contractor of both WLH Custom Homes and Wisconsin Log Homes, grew up in the family business since he was a kid. He went to work with both his parents quite often and always had a job to do – whether it was pushing a broom in the warehouse, stuffing flyers, or working on the construction crews during off-time throughout his high school and college years. After graduating from St. Norbert College in 2003, Nate officially joined the Wisconsin Log Homes team as a Home & Design Consultant and soon started to manage the business operations alongside his parents.

Over the years, we’ve had many requests from our past homeowners asking us to build them a custom conventional home with the same level of quality, attention to detail and personalized services provided by the Wisconsin Log Homes team. To address this request, Nate created the WLH Custom Homes division and our same team of experts officially began to also specialize in conventional homes of all sizes, styles and levels throughout Wisconsin.

​Today, Nate owns and oversees both divisions of the company and is the General Contractor for our custom conventional homes and custom wood homes throughout Wisconsin. Not only does he manage each project (with the help of our Project Coordinators), but he also personally works with our in-house Architectural Designers during the design phase of each home and spends much of his time on-site working alongside our crews constructing the homes. Working on-site is what Nate is really passionate about as he gets to physically play a role in bringing his team’s work to fruition while being hands-on with his inherited design and craftsman abilities.

“Spending my entire life watching my parents grow their business and do what they love really inspired me and made me want to follow in their footsteps; I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I’m very fortunate to be surrounded by such a talented team who works together to create a home that is a dream come true for each homeowner. Being able to design and build homes of all different architectural styles makes it even more fun and exciting as each project is so unique.

To us, a house isn’t just a house – it’s a special place for family moments and memories. It’s really a special thing we get to be a part of.”

– Nate Janczak

Pictured Left to Right: Kathy, Dave, Nate & Stephanie Janczak