A house-building husband and wife duo were recognized last week by the City of Waterloo for 50 years of business as they’ve been contributing to developments in the city and Monroe County since their 20s.

Dennis and Virginia Brand are the owners and operators of D&A Builders in Waterloo. Both are lifelong Waterloo residents. They each attended Waterloo High School and proved to be strong high school sweethearts.

Dennis recalled how his father was a builder – his grandfather often joined in the work – and he worked with him through high school.

While Virginia went to work straight out of school, Dennis briefly attended college in Missouri.

“I was at Rolla for civil engineering,” Dennis said. “Was down there for a year, and I really enjoyed it, made good grades and all that, but there was sorta a turning point that summer. Virginia and I were wanting to get married, and we were pretty well tapped out paying out-of-state tuition, so I went back to hammering nails.”

Dennis returned to work with his father, and the two got married in August 1974.

In January 1975, as his father was quitting the business, he started his own with D&A Builders, aided by his brother for several years.

As they recalled, he was 22 at the time, and she was 20. Virginia was still working in insurance at the time but joined him to handle the books after a few years, also taking care of multiple kids.

The environment for building a house was somewhat different back then, and it was a bit of a roller coaster over the decades.

“We were building homes back then for $40,000,” Dennis said. “Built all over the Monroe County area… Times have really changed. From 1975 to 1980, we had about 10 percent inflation per year on the homes we were building. There was major inflation there. And then 1981, we hit the high interest rate years. We maybe built one house a year.”

They further noted that, amid those high interest rates in the 1980s, a partnership with a local bricklayer helped keep them busy so they could make sure their crew stayed working.

Dennis and Virginia ran through the numerous subdivisions and projects they’ve had a hand in over the years, with a 30-acre investment in the area known as Sterritt’s Run, the Bradford area of town that they described as big for “empty nesters” and the Remlok property where lots are still being sold.

They also pointed to their work in the Legacy area, Brellinger in Columbia and building multiple daycares in the area.

In generally considering the changes they’ve experienced in business for 50 years, Dennis spoke about how they computerized their office in 1988. He particularly noted how the use of computer-aided design and drafting software changed things for the business, everything having been drawn by hand originally.

He also discussed how mobile phones hugely affected the construction world, recalling how Sunday evenings used to be such a mess as everyone involved in a project was frantically coordinating over landlines for Monday.

Looking back on their overall experience, growth and success over the years, they said there were definitely highs and lows, particularly with the 2008 housing crisis.

“We had our ups and downs over the years, but determination is really why we made it through it all,” Dennis said. “We went through some rough times in 2008 with the soft market. That was some tough times for us, but we made it through.”

They emphasized major reason they were able to persevere through that turbulence – and why they’ve continued to do the work they have for so long – is the relationships formed through the years.

“We’ve met many, many, many wonderful people through the 50 years, and we’re still friends with them,” Virginia said.

Relationships with their crew have been particularly meaningful.

“We’re just fortunate to have a really good crew and very good sub-contractors with us, and what a neat community we have here,” Dennis said. “We feel very honored to be part of this community.”

The couple also had high praise for the many homeowners they’ve worked with during their career, though some of those homeowners are also family.

“What’s interesting is we’re now building for previous homeowners’ children, which is cool,” Virginia said. “We’ve also built a home for each one of our children which was fun, too.”

“And we’ve built for homeowners multiple times,” Dennis added.

The couple also had kind things to say about the city and those they’ve worked with these many years.

“I think the world of the city here, the officials and the aldermen and the mayor, they’re very focused on having a nice community here,” Dennis said.

One strong relationship they’ve made over the years is with Waterloo Deputy Director of Public Works Nathan Krebel, who’s worked with them both as a city official and as an employee for 17 years as he’s a union carpenter by trade.

“As far as being a previous employee, Dennis and Virginia are top notch in my book,” Krebel said. “Always had a paycheck on Friday, insurance was always paid in, and they always found enough work to keep their employees on full-time all year around. I was very blessed to be part of the D&A team.”

Krebel further praised the development skills he’s seen from them through his time with the city, saying “they are always doing work the right way.”

With 50 years in the business behind them, Dennis and Virginia still have plenty of energy for the years to come. Though they each have their hobbies – Dennis enjoys golf and Virginia plays music, including with the Waterloo Municipal Band – they have every intention to continue working and are as eager to continue building in the community as they’ve ever been.

They expressed some hope they’ll be able to find someone to take the D&A reins when they’re ready to settle down, though even outside the future of the business, they’ve built a strong legacy in the community.

The Brands have played a very big role in the development of Waterloo and other areas of Monroe County through the past 50 years, though that thought has only really struck them recently.

“We never really looked at it that way, but since the city recognizing us, quite a few people came up to us and told us that,” Dennis said. “We love building homes and doing the construction work we’re doing. We’re planning on doing it for quite a while.”