John and Julie Evans had always envisioned a life out in the country. After raising their family in Menasha, WI, they were ready to be surrounded by nature and live the rural lifestyle of their dreams. As avid outdoor enthusiasts, they had purchased a 20-acre lot through GreenStone over 10 years ago. Now they were ready to call their rural getaway home!
The Perfect Landscape
When they first purchased their property, they fell in love with the variety of recreational opportunities the landscape had to offer. As a fervent hunter and fisherman, John was immediately attracted to the 15 acres of both hardwood and pine woods residing on the land. In addition, it also boasted the perfect fishing river running from end to end of the property. For Julie, the natural landscape was the perfect opportunity for enjoying hiking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, and just getting out in nature. The Evanses even enjoyed camping on the land and would make frequent trips up for a weekend getaway.“We always looked forward to spending time on our land and would dream about the day when we would only be a few steps out our front door away from it instead of the hour and a half commute from our home in Menasha!” said Julie.
When John and Julie had decided they were ready to take the leap and make their country dreams a reality, they sought out the best way to ensure their forever home was exactly what they were envisioning.
“It’s kind of an interesting story how we ended up deciding to build our own home with a DIY construction loan through GreenStone,” explained John. “We started by looking at model homes for inspiration and then ended up going to a builder to customize our home with exactly what we were looking for. However, we knew we wanted to be really hands-on in the process. The only problem with that was, when we went to our traditional lender, they wouldn’t provide the financing for the project since I was going to be acting as the general contractor. That’s when we turned to GreenStone for a second time.”
Planning a Forever Home
Having financed their recreational land with GreenStone years prior, the Evanses decided to reach out once again to see if it would be possible to build their dream home on their own terms.“When we had financed our land with GreenStone years before, there was no stipulation to build on the land which was perfect for us at the time since we didn’t know exactly what the future would hold and if we would end up being able to build out here,” explained Julie. “We were able to enjoy our land for years, and then when we were ready, GreenStone provided the financing for us to build the home of our dreams in the perfect setting.”
In September of 2024, the Evanses broke ground on their new home. “Once we partnered with GreenStone on the financing of the construction project, it was a smooth process from there,” said John. “When I had originally contacted a traditional lender, there were so many nuances to the process, and we had spent around 3 months trying to get the financing accomplished. That’s when I decided to give Ann a call.”
“When John and Julie came to GreenStone for the financing of their new home, we were able to get them approved right away,” said Ann Klemp, vice president of lending out of GreenStone’s Clintonville branch.
“It was a really smooth process from start to finish,” commented Christina Stants, the Evanses’ construction disbursement specialist at GreenStone. “John and Julie were great to work with, and they knew exactly what they wanted so that made it easy for us.”
As the general contractor of the project, John was able to be involved with every detail of the construction process. “When you have a contractor doing everything for you, you don’t have complete control over the construction process and every detail going into the house,” explained Ann. For John and Julie, it was important for their new home to include the features they had been dreaming of for so long.
A Dream Come True
In January of 2025, they completed the construction of their long-awaited rural dream home. The house stands overlooking the woods, with plenty of room in the back yard for turkey, deer, and other wildlife to roam in. With an 18-foot vaulted ceiling, open-concept floor plan, and enormous living room windows with an outstanding view of the property, it’s clear why John and Julie originally fell in love with the land all those years ago. The home features rustic finishes such as solid wood doors, knotty pine trim, and hickory cabinets.
The Evanses home is filled with rustic charm such as hickory cabinets, knotty pine trim, and all wood doors.
One of the must-haves when building their home included John’s “man cave” downstairs, the perfect place to display all those trophy deer he’s collected over the years hunting on their property!
For Julie, her favorite part of the home is the living room windows. “I love just coming out here in the morning with all the natural light coming in. The view is fantastic, and I’m excited to get to see the landscape change with the seasons each year.”
John and Julie are also looking forward to beekeeping on their new property for their small honey business. “We keep around 30-50 hives at a time and sell to retailers as well as individuals,” said John. “We’re looking forward to another way we can enjoy doing something we love on our property.”
With so much to enjoy on their property in their new home, John and Julie are sure to make countless memories for years to come.
“We don’t even want to go anywhere else now,” laughed John. “We used to dream about the day when we would never have to leave here,” added Julie. “It used to be we would come out here on the weekends to make memories, but now those days are every day for us. It’s like a dream come true!”
John and Julie Evans are ready to enjoy their forever home!
To view the spring 2025 issue of Partners magazine in its entirety, click here.
