With a penchant for breaking the metaphorical mold, Davila Homes of Orlando, Florida approaches design and construction from a fresh angle. The company’s collective fearlessness transforms complex projects into elegant results, a talent that makes the firm popular amongst discerning private and development clients who demand the highest standards in custom construction. This is in fact a discipline that Davila Homes has honed into an art.
Established in 2010 by co-founders Thiago (TJ) Davila, Chief Executive Officer, and his wife, Michelle Sanchez, President, the business is the couple’s second enterprise, focusing on smaller boutique communities, single-family residences, and townhomes. With US Aluminum—a Screen Enclosure company that builds pergolas, sunrooms, pool enclosures, outdoor kitchens, pavers, and more—as part of its portfolio, Davila Homes benefits from having access to top-notch products including patio pavilions, awnings, and other hardware.
As a general contractor with a keen sense of attention to detail, TJ Davila began his construction career building homes in the early days, growing the business based on effusive customer referrals, which have had a key role to play in taking the team to where it is today.
Now, more than 800 residential units later, Davila remains as well-known in the Central Florida construction industry as ever, running a successful company alongside his wife and business partner. Thanks to their vision and the stalwart dedication of their team, the company has forged a reputation for bringing designers’ wildest visions to life. With owners who know how to inspire their team to achieve the impossible, Davila Homes’ capabilities come as no surprise.
The results of their combined efforts are many happy customers and awards recognizing the firm’s commitment to excellence and the industry. These honors include the Grand Award by Parade of Homes, which the firm received in 2019 in the Custom Homes category for its Lakeshore Model. The same model won first place in the same contest that year for units between the $1.8 million and $2.2 million range. The following year, the team brought home the Merit Award for its Florencio Model in the Custom Homes division of Parade of Homes.
Following these successes, in 2023, Davila Homes won first place for its Savannah Model in Parade of Homes—again in the Custom Homes category for units priced between $1.9 and $2.9 million. This year was in fact no exception on the awards front, with the company bringing home the Parade of Homes Lake-Sumter 2025 Merit Award for Best Outdoor Living Space for a custom home with its Savannah model.
Naturally, it takes strong leadership company-wide to achieve such prestigious recognition.
One of these outstanding leaders, Otavio Camara, Chief Operations Officer, has been with the firm since 2019, starting as just its fourth employee. At the time, the company was completing around 15 to 20 custom-built homes annually. Today, Davila Homes employs 35 people, a truly formidable team of professionals. “We grew pretty quickly,” says Camara. “We have a great staff, and I think that’s a big part of it.”
Davila Homes doesn’t exclusively build custom homes, however. With its years of experience in designing custom plans, the team has selected a few such plans to add to its portfolio and make available for clients who want to build their dream home without going through the process of designing a custom home from the ground up. Clients can incorporate a number of high-end, custom options as standard offerings, saving them money and precious time. This is where the firm’s design team shines in presenting the vast range of available material and finish combinations in a warm and supportive way. Once visualization presentations are complete, clients meet their project manager while permitting gets underway.
This process is followed up with scheduled site walks at specific stages to ensure that customers are up to speed and able to give their feedback, and to guarantee that they are satisfied with the final product by the time it is completed—just about a month or so later. During this time, a project manager is always on call during business hours. Thanks to modern technology and the company’s dedicated project management software, it is possible to digitally access real-time project information and make changes to the design as needed.
Davila Homes decided to further hone its processes by ensuring that it has full control of these in-house multi-unit development projects, putting material choices, timelines, floor plans, and every other design and construction aspect into the hands of its team rather than external contributors.
The result of this decision has been a wonderful selection of marquee projects. These include, among many others, the Golden Oaks Reserve, a collection of seven custom luxury, single-family homes starting at $4 million each. There is also Preserve at Lakeside in St. Cloud, a community comprising 10 single-family units that start at $1 million. Moreover, Lakeview Village Estates boasts a boutique community featuring 14 townhomes and 26 single-family homes in downtown Winter Garden, starting at $600,000 per unit.
A far cry from the typical profit-based development strategy one sees so much of around the globe, Davila Homes is motivated by quality instead. “We are trying to create a different identity. Even though we may have 50 to 100 homes in one subdivision, we want high-end products—houses that stand out,” Camara says.
With a dedicated sales team always ready to assist, Davila Homes provides its natural sense of good service with as much elegance as the rest of its offerings. Cultivating a relationship of trust and respect with every customer, this relatively new team has already proven its worth, demonstrating professionalism and dedication with every project and every client interaction.
Indeed, the company’s commitment to creating robust internal systems that form a safety net for project success has been integral to its success. Camara is especially proud of the firm’s ability to keep everyone on the same page by providing ample information and design capabilities in sleek, modern ways. “I think that this transparency with clients and being able to give them what they expect of their dream house is very important,” he says.
These standards of excellence and clear communication apply not only to clients but reach every employee of the firm as well. By creating a healthy and mature workplace ecosystem, Davila Homes’ creativity and problem-solving skills have the space to shine. Moreover, its sincere sense of care for its employees and theirs for one another makes it an even better workplace where design and construction could be called a happy team sport. “Part of our success is bringing in people who are in line with our core values,” Camara adds.
A key aspect of these core values includes doing genuine good in the world. Davila Homes’ non-profit organization, Above and Beyond for Change (ABC), was founded by President Michelle Sanchez during the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization facilitates everything from Cultural Day to holiday parties and STEM Club, alongside providing essential items, clothing, and food to underprivileged children. Having identified a need for digital and financial literacy, parenting skills, health and wellness information, and more, Sanchez’s dream is to create a community center for the group that will provide education and skills training to youth and adults. “We hope to make life better and easier for as many people as possible,” she says, highlighting the importance for the Davila family to be part of something bigger than themselves.
The company also has its own expansion plans underway. Set to house its stunning new office and design center, its new facility will inspire all who visit. Another exciting project is its new Richmond Model home in Bella Collina—an idyllic place that’s perfect for its most recent creation.
Beyond this breathtaking new address, Davila Homes aims to further diversify through new projects that continuously explore sophistication, beauty, and quality in ever-evolving ways. By blending classic craftsmanship with leading technology, and by empowering its team with rich opportunities for work-life balance and ample room to grow and develop both professionally and personally, Davila Homes is inspiring and transforming its future—and that of its clients.
