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Meet Sarah Senderhauf of L&D Construction

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Senderhauf.

Sarah, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve worked in the real estate industry for about 15 years and have specialized in new construction home sales for the past five years. I moved away from Colorado for a couple of years and when I moved back, I saw a great opportunity to join forces with L&D Construction. David Schultz (owner of L&D) was building an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) on his property and we started talking about this type of development. I saw a great opportunity to create a niche market in the Denver area. We have been building ADUs for about 2.5 years now. ADU is still a term that many people have never heard of so we started doing happy hour events and educational classes on the term and the process. ADUs go by lots of different names – Carriage Homes, Alley Flats, In-Law Quarters, etc. Currently, the zoning code in Denver only allows ADUs to be built in about 20% of the city, but we see that changing.

I love what I do because I feel like it is smart development for the Denver area. We need housing here and this is a great way to keep the neighborhood feel and gently increase density. I love the opportunity ADUs give homeowners to allow them additional rental income and provide needed housing. ADUs can grow with the families needs as well – maybe they use it as a short-term rental initially and then change to a long-term rental when they get tired of changing the sheets! There is also the option to use the space for an aging family member, have a live-in nurse or possibly a nanny. I believe ADUs are a great solution to helping families stay in the neighborhoods they love when they need that extra space.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There are still challenges! I think with any business it takes time to grow especially when you are creating a new niche market. Financing these projects is a challenge for homeowners so we have had to work through a lot of those issues. The Denver zoning code is challenging because there are many people who want to build and can’t because their zoning doesn’t allow for it.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with L&D Construction – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I’ve kind of hit on this in the other sections, but we are a General Contractor specializing in urban infill construction projects. We build Accessory Dwelling Units and Single Family Residences. L&D Construction has been in business for 10 years and we have done everything from basement finishes, pop-tops, breweries, commercial work to the current ADU and SFR construction.

I’m very proud of the product we put out, the attention to detail we have and the building science that we think about on a daily basis. Working with clients from the initial design through the actual construction allows us to think about every detail of the project and how it will function. We are building very tight efficient small spaces and we think about not only the building science but also how the space will live and feel for the owner. We know the project isn’t ours, but it is the owners and we want to make sure we listen to all their wants and needs. Our attention to detail and being on time and on budget sets us apart from other contractors.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We are excited to see more people build ADUs in the future. We do work on the advocacy side as well and there are potentially a lot of zoning changed coming up with the recent adoption of Blueprint Denver and the Comprehensive Plan. We plan to continue to be a part of the positive change within our city. We are also excited about working with a new panelized building company Simple Homes here in Denver. This will help us on the construction side of building on smaller infill lots and we will be able to have homes weather tight in about one day. This is an exciting development for the future of building in this area.

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