WELCOME TO VAN METRE
A half-century after I founded Van Metre Companies, we remain committed to the business principles on which this Company was envisioned. At Van Metre, we believe in:

INTEGRITY. Our word is our bond. Perhaps that comes from having your name on the Company. Perhaps it's just who we are. We say what we mean. We mean what we say. We believe in fairness and honesty. We expect others to live up to their words too.

INTENSITY. We bring an unrelenting intensity to management, every day. We're always asking how we can do things better. We never stop asking, or thinking, or doing. Automatic pilot isn't fun when you're flying an airplane and it isn't how you succeed in business.

INNOVATION. We don't stand pat. We're always looking at how to do things better, faster, and with more value. Yesterday's news is just that. We strive to be leaders, not followers, whether it's in how we work with local governments, in construction practices, design, finance or anything else.

INDIVIDUALS. We are no better than our people. We always seek to hire the best, and then get the best out of them. All of us at Van Metre carry our heads high. Everyone is a contributor to our success. Our employees are our most valuable asset.

INVESTMENT. We will be around for the long term, so we run our business that way. We don't over-leverage, so we don't risk our projects in slower times. Van Metre buys land that's the future for our homebuilding and investment properties. We put money back into our multifamily and commercial properties with “rolling rehabs” before they're needed. We don't take the money and run. We've been building for generations, and will be for many to come.

INSPECTION. We inspect what we expect. We're hands-on. Regularly, our executive-owners visit our projects. It allows us to know first hand how things are going. We talk to our sales and rental agents. We talk to our buyers, residents, commercial tenants and subcontractors. We walk our jobs. We inspect what we expect.

INVOLVEMENT. Northern Virginia and Metropolitan Washington is our hometown; it's our backyard. So we get involved in our communities. We contribute to local causes. We organize events. We devote our time.

INDEPENDENCE. We're not a division of some conglomerate or a subsidiary of an overseas owner. We're not publicly owned by millions of unseen shareholders. We're not beholden to Wall Street. We own our Company. And nobody cares the way an owner does.

INCOME. The bottom line is...we always think about the bottom line. The executive owners don't take salaries; we only make money when our jobs do. Our goal is to always increase returns to our partners and the Company. Sometimes that's by cutting costs. Other times, the way to make money is to spend money. We love what we do. But we're here to make profits, every day.

These principles have served us well. They guide us in all our dealings, whether with landowners, governmental agencies, our subcontractors, our buyers and tenants, our financial sources and our employees. The first fifty years have been successful ones. As I look back over all we've accomplished, and as I look ahead, it's clear that the best is still yet to come. I hope you'll be a part of it.

Albert G. Van Metre, Sr.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer