Featured Projects

Custom Residential Estate – 10,000 square feet – Forensic Investigation / Forensic Accounting / Expert Testimony

Mr. Henderson* was building his dream home a few blocks from the Pacific in Manhattan Beach, CA.  As a prominent businessman, his banker referred a well known builder to construct his new home. Construction began in 2003 and was to take 18 months with an approximate cost of $2,800,000. Four and a half years and more than $4,000,000 later the residence is still not completed. Mr. Henderson cannot live in his home due to construction defects, serious soil and structural issues and is facing two years of litigation before corrective work can begin.  More than $2,000,000 in unnecessary costs and four years of delay would have been avoided with the presence of a competent Owner’s Representative. In the end, our forensic work has helped the Owner recover $5,000,000 and we are currently assisting with the planning and design of the reconstruction for his estate.

Commercial Building – 32,000 square feet – Owner Representation

Medical Buildings, Inc.* converted a former restaurant to more than 32,000 square feet of prime office space in Encinitas, CA. When plans and permits were ready, a building contract was negotiated with a well known builder. Work commenced and almost immediately the Owner was informed the plans were incomplete and the project would cost much more. Further, the builder insisted he needed more time. The builder was held to his promised schedule but upon completion he demanded over $1,200,000 in change orders.  Because the Owner had competent representation (Oris), he prevailed against the builder’s claim for extras and the project was completed with minimum delays.

Custom Residential Estate – 5,320 Square Feet – Planning & Design

Charles Heincy, Director of Building Design, designed a beautiful custom estate for private Owners of over 5,000 square feet.  With every detail planned and executed according to specifications, this upscale hilltop residence has a grand marble foyer, master chef’s kitchen, his and her master bath, private yard with unique lush landscape and much more.  It is a good example of excellence and what a good design from the concept phase can lead to.

Custom Residential Estate – Preliminary Drawing - Planning & Design

This is an example of a preliminary custom estate design drawing created by Oris Design and Planning services.   It shows how the process of building design begins.  Once approved by the Owners, this will become a set of detailed plans and specifications which will then be carried out by a professional builder under the supervision of Oris Group.  Actual building design experience together with intricate technical knowledge is what enables us to protect Owners and avoid countless challenges before they become costly.

Multi-Family Residence - 125 unit Apartment Building – Cost Estimating

A 125 unit apartment complex being built in Northern California was estimated to cost $32 million dollars and to be completed in 18 months.  After an exorbitant amount of change orders and 27 months of construction, the project was still nowhere near completion.   To make matters worse, the completed areas of construction were found to have numerous defects.  The Owner was left with these problems as well as an unfinished project when the builder simply gave up and walked off the project.  A proper cost estimate together with accurate project cost tracking would have saved the Owner hundreds of thousands of dollars as well as the time and immense burden which was incurred as a result of the builder leaving and construction coming to a halt.

Actual Case Example – Residential – Forensic Cost Estimating

Mr. and Mrs. Johnson* decided to build their oceanfront dream home in Malibu, CA.  Their Architect referred a reputable Builder who signed a contract to build the residence for $1,500,000, which outlined the work to be substantially complete in one year.  After 17 months of construction, the project was near complete, however the Owners observed some critical construction defects.   The Builder refused to fix the issues and as a result, another Builder was hired to correct the issues, which in the end cost around $800,000.00. In the litigation that followed, the original Builder presented a cost to repair the home of approximately $500,000.00.  A detailed cost of repair estimate prepared by Oris showed the actual cost of repair to be closer to $1,200,000. This forensic cost estimate provided the Owners with a powerful tool to recover their losses in the litigation process. 

*Project names have been changed