Most buyers who want a big ranch home end up compromising. The lot is too small, the bedrooms share baths, or the “ranch” quietly puts half the house upstairs.
St. John Construction, Inc. put a different answer in the 2026 Franklin County Parade of Homes: a one-level house with an en-suite bath for every bedroom, on a street in Aubrie Place with a wake-forest address. This guide covers what the public record shows about the builder, what that Parade home tells you, and the questions to settle before you sign.
Who Is St. John Construction?
St. John Construction, Inc. is a Wake Forest general contractor that does new homes, remodels, and commercial work. Its office is at 821 Crowder Avenue in Wake Forest.
The documented history
The company’s About page says David St. John started the business after earning a Civil Engineering degree, with an emphasis in construction, from North Carolina State University. The company says it has been a North Carolina licensed general contractor since the 1980s. Its home page says it has been building and remodeling for 40 years.
That is a long run for a local contractor. Even so, check the current license and the qualifier’s name yourself with the North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors. The website doesn’t list a license number, staff, or project managers.
Don’t confuse it with the San Diego company
Search “St. John Construction” and you will also find St. John Construction Inc. in San Diego, a California-licensed firm run by Pete St. John. That company is not the Wake Forest builder. The 2026 Parade guide lists the North Carolina company’s site as stjohnconstructioninc.com and its phone as 919-618-2416. Use those details when you look up reviews, licenses, or court records, or you’ll end up researching the wrong company.
What Does St. John Construction Build?
St. John Construction builds custom homes, but that isn’t the only work it does. Its Services page lists four lines of business:
| Service line | What the company lists |
|---|---|
| New home construction | Entry-level homes and high-end custom homes |
| Remodeling | Historic homes and buildings, kitchens and bathrooms, additions |
| Additions | Family rooms, sunrooms, primary bedroom suites |
| Commercial construction | New construction and upfits |
Builders who do a lot of renovation tend to be good at the small problems that come up on real job sites. A builder that also takes commercial upfits may have several crews running at once. Ask how many homes the company is building right now, and who runs your site day to day.
The 2026 Parade home: Lane’s End
The 2026 Franklin County Parade of Homes guide lists St. John’s entry as Lane’s End at 1410 Cottondale Lane in Aubrie Place. These are the published numbers:
| Detail | 2026 Parade listing |
|---|---|
| Price | $995,000 |
| Size | 3,644 square feet |
| Bedrooms | 4, each with its own en-suite bath and walk-in closet |
| Baths | 4 full, 2 half |
| Layout | About 3,000 square feet on one level, plus a bonus room, a second study, and a half bath upstairs |
| Garage | Three-car |
| Outdoor space | Large screened porch and a grilling deck, both reached from the living area and the primary suite |
| Design firm | Heritage Home Designs |
That works out to about $273 per square foot, lot included. The floor plan also shows a safe room off the primary closet. You don’t see that often at this price.
The guide names a listing agent from Julie Wright Realty Group. That agent works for the seller. If you’re buying this house or hiring St. John to build one like it, bring your own representation.
Where Aubrie Place sits
Aubrie Place uses Wake Forest 27587 mailing addresses, but the Parade map colors it as a Granville County subdivision, north of Falls Lake. A brokerage listing for a neighboring lot in Aubrie Place also shows Granville County. Before you write an offer, confirm the county, the tax rate, the school assignment, and whether the lot is on well and septic or public utilities. A Wake Forest address doesn’t mean Wake County services.
How Does Building With St. John Construction Work?
St. John Construction doesn’t publish a step-by-step building process, a warranty document, or a pricing guide. Its home page describes its standards: scheduling, attention to detail, craftsmanship, and open communication. A description like that doesn’t commit the company to anything.
Since the company hasn’t put its process in writing publicly, ask for it in writing yourself. Here’s the order we’d ask in:
- Scope and plans. Get the plan set, specifications, and finish schedule tied to your exact lot.
- Price structure. Find out whether it’s a fixed price, cost-plus, or fixed price with allowances, and get every allowance amount listed.
- Site work. Ask for a separate line for clearing, grading, the driveway, the septic or sewer tap, the well or water tap, and erosion control.
- Schedule. Get the start date, the date for substantial completion, and what happens if either one slips.
- Draws and lien waivers. Get the draw schedule, the inspection points, and lien waivers from subcontractors before each payment.
- Closeout. Get the punch-list process, the final walkthrough, and the written warranty.
If a builder with 40 years of experience can’t hand you those documents, that tells you something. If they come quickly, that tells you something too.
What Should You Verify Before Signing With St. John Construction?
Before signing with St. John Construction, check the license, the team, the money, and the warranty for your specific project. The Parade home shows what the company can build. Your own due diligence shows whether it will build it that way again on your lot. Our guides to choosing a Triangle builder and who the builder’s agent really works for explain how to put that comparison together.
License, insurance, and the contracting entity
Confirm that the license holder matches the company named on your contract. Ask for certificates of general liability and workers’ compensation insurance. Ask how the company makes sure its subcontractors are insured. Do all of this before you pay a deposit.
References that match your project
Ask for three recent new-construction clients, not remodel clients. A builder can be excellent at kitchens and still be average at managing a 3,600-square-foot house from bare dirt to closing. Ask those owners:
- How close the final price came to the contract price.
- Which allowances fell short.
- How change orders were priced.
- Whether the move-in date held.
- How fast warranty calls were handled after closing.
The company’s website doesn’t have a testimonials page or a project portfolio with addresses. That makes these calls more important.
Allowances and change orders
The $995,000 price on Lane’s End is a finished-house number. If you’re building your own version, find out which parts of that look came from allowances and which were upgrades. Ask for the builder’s change-order markup in writing. Ask whether a change caused by a code requirement or something found in the ground counts as your change or theirs.
Warranty in writing
The company doesn’t publish its warranty terms online. Get the coverage periods, the exclusions, and the claim process attached to your contract. Then compare them against our home builder warranty guide.
How Does St. John Compare With Other Building Options?
St. John Construction is a small, owner-led general contractor. A buyer is choosing between that model and two others.
| Building model | Plan flexibility | Price certainty | Who you deal with | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production builder | Low | High, early | Sales office and a rotating superintendent | Buyers who want a known plan and a fixed date |
| Small local custom GC (St. John) | High | Set by the contract you negotiate | Usually the owner or a small team | Buyers who want a large one-level home and direct access to the builder |
| Large custom/luxury builder | High | Develops with design | Project manager and design staff | $1.5M+ projects with architects involved |
The small-builder model works when the owner is on your job. It struggles when the owner is spread across remodels, commercial upfits, and several houses at once. Ask early how busy they are.
Who Is a Strong Fit for St. John Construction?
St. John Construction fits a buyer who wants a large, mostly one-level house in the north Wake Forest corridor and values a builder with decades of local history.
The strongest fits usually:
- want main-floor living with private baths for every bedroom (aging parents, adult kids, frequent guests);
- are comfortable with a lot in Granville County that has a Wake Forest mailing address;
- budget in the high six figures to around $1 million, based on the 2026 Parade price;
- will do their own reference checks, because the company publishes very little online.
If you want a builder with a design studio, an online portal, and a printed warranty booklet, this probably isn’t the right fit. If you want direct access to an experienced contractor, it may be.
Final Thoughts About St. John Construction From Tim Clarke
Lane’s End answers a question we hear all the time in this price range: can I get one-level living and still have a real guest setup? A four-bedroom house with a bath in every bedroom, a three-car garage, and a screened porch for $995,000 is a strong value case north of Falls Lake.
But a Parade home is the builder’s best work, polished for the public. What you need to know is how the next house goes, and the one after that.
I have spent 17+ years in Triangle real estate. Our team builds as well as sells, so we look at a builder proposal the way a builder would. We separate the lot cost from the site work. We check every allowance against the finishes you actually want. We read the change-order clause before it costs you anything. And we tell you when a Wake Forest address comes with a Granville County tax bill.
If St. John Construction is on your list, or Lane’s End caught your eye, call us at (919) 355-8462. We’ll walk the house with you, pull the comparable sales, and represent you, not the seller, from the first conversation to the final walkthrough.
Sources
- https://stjohnconstructioninc.com/
- https://stjohnconstructioninc.com/about
- https://stjohnconstructioninc.com/services
- https://stjohnconstructioninc.com/contact
- https://franklincountyhba.com/parade-of-homes/
- https://growthzonecmsprodeastus.azureedge.net/sites/2621/2026/09/2026-Parade-Map-compressed.jpg (2026 Parade map and entry list)
- https://issuu.com/circamagazine/docs/2026_franklin_county_parade_of_homes_guide (2026 Franklin County Parade of Homes guide, page 13)
- https://www.duncanprimerealty.com/property/1405-cottondale-lane-wake-forest-nc-27587/pid-1803458128/ (secondary: Aubrie Place county field)
- https://www.stjohnconstruction.com/ (the unrelated San Diego company, cited only to tell them apart)
