A native of North Caldwell, New Jersey, Michael Ziman initially studied business at the University of Michigan in the early 2000s. He grew up watching his father build homes on Long Beach Island (LBI), which led to a love of designing and crafting beautiful homes. By his junior year of college, he’d secured his first-ever real estate deal, having already been well-versed in real estate development after growing up immersed in the industry.
Ziman was fascinated by his father’s entrepreneurial spirit from a young age, and that only continued when he began to learn directly from him while still in college. Directly after completing his business degree, he went full-time at Ziman Development. After graduation, he began working on implementing his business plan for the company. This consisted of studying and perfecting his father’s existing real estate formula and adding his own ideas along the way.
“I watched my father spec homes, and loved real estate, finance, and creating things,” Ziman shares. “I took his formula and turned it into a business plan while finishing at the Ross School of Business in Michigan. Then I began implementing my formula, creating homes on LBI. It has been a journey continuing to find the best products and methods to create beautiful custom homes, with minimal maintenance.”
Over the last 26 years, Ziman Development has earned a reputation as a top custom homebuilder and luxury home remodeler operating out of Long Beach Island, New Jersey, under Ziman’s guidance. In that time, he’s overseen the creation of more than 200 homes.
Ziman eventually took over Ziman Development completely as owner and president. He has led the company in significant evolution since, including a growth in project numbers and types. He has also continued to develop the company’s unique customer-centric, collaborative approach to its work, which has been around since its founding.
Ziman named his approach “The 5 Simple Steps” process, a trademarked workflow that provides clients with a collaborative project system that puts them in direct contact with Ziman Development’s design team. This unique process takes each client’s personal style and tastes into consideration through every step of the building process and guarantees that credible subcontractors and suppliers are utilized. From initial discussion and the creation of preliminary floor plans to implementing a full-scale construction plan, Ziman has worked to center Ziman Development’s workflow on offering clients exceptional attention to detail.
Under Ziman’s leadership, Ziman Development also weathered the COVID-19 pandemic for the better, including a major addition to the business’s core pillars. “When COVID hit, it gave me time to reflect on my core values and business,” Ziman says. “On a personal level, I am very much pro-environment. It is important for me to leave this planet in a better state. I realized I needed my business to share more core principles of being a good steward of the environment.”
Once Ziman decided to focus Ziman Development on sustainability, the company began to prioritize sustainable building materials using their knowledge of building in coastal environments as a foundation for the transition.
“I started an ongoing research experiment; always looking to source sustainable materials, in ways that minimize greenhouse gas production through constructing and living in our homes. I changed up a lot of materials in our typical construction to more locally supplied materials. As this cuts down on transportation big time, which is a huge driver for greenhouse gas production,” Ziman notes.
He continues, “I also adopted certain practices to cut down on HVAC use and electrification. Additionally, I researched passive house practices that aim to cut down electrification by up to 90% from traditional homes. I built a home with these principles in mind, to test the effectiveness for myself, and determine which practices are suitable to incorporate into our homes.”
Ziman Development now sources local, eco-friendly building materials that require minimal maintenance. These sustainable materials include everything from lumber and energy-efficient windows to tankless water heaters. Sourcing as many products locally as possible was an important part of the company’s three-pronged approach to sustainability.
Ziman and his team’s commitment to sustainability naturally blends with their customer-centric design process. This allows them to have educational conversations relating to all areas of homebuilding with clients, including renewable energy options for homes and incorporating air exchange systems. But Ziman’s sustainability efforts don’t end there.
In 2020, he launched the One Tree Pledge in partnership with American Forest. It is a sustainability campaign for commercial and residential builders and homeowners created to help mitigate the carbon footprint left by home development. The initiative prompts builders and homeowners to plant one tree for every square foot of a home to help offset emissions and has supported the planting of 250,000 trees since its inception. In 2021, Ziman took additional steps to expand One Tree Pledge’s reach and impact by forming a partnership with One Tree Planted, a non-profit organization with multiple planting projects across the globe.
With Ziman Development’s focus on sustainability and delivering a customer-centric experience for each client, Ziman is set to lead the company into a successful future. His mission is to continue creating homes that surpass customer expectations while incorporating sustainable practices wherever possible.
“My vision is to continue to create beautiful and sustainable homes on the Jersey Shore. I’m excited to keep researching and sourcing new systems and products with natural, sustainable materials as they become available to give families dream vacation homes that truly stand the test of time,” Ziman says.
Spencer Hulse is the Editorial Director at Grit Daily. He is responsible for overseeing other editors and writers, day-to-day operations, and covering breaking news.
