Client Reviews

January 2021 – Jack & Becca Benfield
Highly likely to recommend

We have already recommended him to family and friends.

The experience of developing a new home with Raju was better than we could have imagined. That is not an overstatement. He and his whole development team are some of the most honest, dedicated people we ever had the pleasure of meeting.

Our family has been vacationing in the Outer Banks for over 20 years. When we decided it was time to start looking for a place of our own, we had the good fortune to meet Raju. He listened to what we were looking for and presented us with options that met or exceeded our every expectation.

Once we decided to move forward with the purchase of new home, it could not have been easier. Raju and his team have made the process of selecting finishes and trims easy and fun. Right from the start, the weekly updates from him were something our whole family looked forward to receiving. Living in Virginia, we were able to visit the site a number of times and Raju was always there to walk us through and answer any questions we had. Even between updates and visits, he was always available.

When COVID-19 driven shortages reduced the availability of materials, Raju still found a way to get it done. Never one to cut a corner, it usually meant he had to use upgraded materials at a higher cost to him. That cost was NOT passed on to us. The number he gave us at the start of the project was the number he used at the end. You cannot find that kind of commitment and integrity elsewhere.

It has been two weeks since we closed (three months ahead of schedule) and Raju still follows up with us regularly to make sure we are happy with everything. Thanks to him and the rest of the Homes By Eillu Team, our family will have a place to be together for years to come.

January 2021 – Dave & Patricia Pitrolo
Highly likely to recommend

We have already recommended him to family and friends.

It is our great pleasure to highly recommend Raju Uppalapati and his real estate and development firm as a meticulous developer and outstanding professionals. We hesitated for some time before we made our decision to pursue our family’s dream of owning a vacation home in the Outer Banks. When we toured Homes By Eillu’s model home, we were instantly impressed with the quality and craftsmanship that was obvious in every detail. The model was beautiful, well-designed and full of quality touches throughout and sold quickly. Fortunately, Raju had one lot left which provided us the opportunity to develop our own home.

Raju promised to complete it on time and with the same attention to detail. He did not disappoint and was always available to answer any questions or provide guidance on a moment’s notice. We were sent updated photos every week, which we eagerly awaited. From the beautiful detail on the exterior to the exceptional tile work by his contractors, we could not have been more pleased.

While we have built several homes over the years, we have never worked with a developer that was so accommodating. Despite the COVID pandemic and the numerous issues with supplies and contractors, Raju managed to develop our beautiful home on time with extras that we had not even anticipated.

We could not have been more impressed and thankful for his integrity and professionalism. We were very fortunate to have met him and Vijayasree and look forward to wonderful times with our family in the OBX. All of us are thankful for what Raju did to make our Outer Banks dream come true.

January 2021 – Chip and Kim Gregory
Highly likely to recommend

We have already recommended him to family and friends.

Big, big thanks to the Beach Home made and created by Raju Uppalapati of Homes By Eillu, real estate development company in the Outer Banks. We are so excited to have our dream become a beautiful home! Raju’s eye for details during development, his honest and accurate communication before, during, and after the building of our home is a testament to his caring nature and his deep commitment to excellence.

We felt like every aspect of our home had been carefully thought out before we even broke ground. I can’t say enough good things about Raju and his development team. Thank you, Raju! You made our dream come true.

September 2020 – Peter and Debbie Green, NJ
Highly likely to recommend
Bought a Single Family home in 2020 in Corolla

Raju Uppalapati assisted us with the purchase of a second home in Outer Banks, NC in 2020. We have worked with many real estate brokers, agents and developers over the years – buying and building many homes and we can confidently and without hesitation recommend Raju.

Raju was instrumental in helping us navigate an out of state, home purchase in a very “hot market.” He impressed us at every stage of the process and was a sheer joy to work with. His knowledge of the local market, ability to understand our needs, adeptly provide unbiased guidance on the positive and negative aspects of potential investment rental properties, together with expert referrals and strategies to overcome any obstacles proved invaluable. Raju’s greatest strength beyond his obvious high degree of integrity was his proactive and highly engaging communication approach. No matter what day or time – his availability, accessibility and response to his clients is stellar.

We highly recommend Raju and his entire team based on their professionalism, strong communication and expert advice and counsel. Raju has so many wonderful qualities that make him an extremely successful and effective broker. He is not only knowledgeable but passionate about what he does and tenacious about ensuring the clients best interests are always the number one priority.

As busy executives, time is of the essence and Raju’s style was exactly what we needed. He listened closely to what we were looking for and delivered options that satisfied what we were looking for in an investment property. His expert advice and counsel from assessing fair market value to negotiating effectively on our behalf was greatly appreciated and clearly showed countless years of experience. Raju’s attention to details is top notch – from his verbal and written follow-ups with the management company currently responsible for renting our beach home to items well after our closing, he can always be counted on for his unwavering support.

As shared above, Raju represented us on the purchase side of the transaction but we would not hesitate to use him as our listing agent if we were selling a property. His many wonderful qualities would equally translate and be an asset. We have the highest level of confidence in Raju and look forward to working with him again.

August/2020 – Renee & Percy Jones
Highly likely to recommend

It has been several months since we moved into our dream home developed by Raju Uppalapati. Every day it seems like a dream that we are living here in this beautiful home, with all the wonderful fine crafted details throughout. Raju’s eye for details during construction is evident in every aspect of this home, from bathroom fixtures, lighting, painting, decking, everything, perfection.

The process of developing the home was wonderful, Raju guided us through all phases of construction with seamless precision. From start to finish we were kept informed through weekly photos and emails detailing step by step process that made us feel connected to the house from the beginning. Even with the problems Raju faced building a new home during a Pandemic, he completed construction ahead of schedule and delivered our vision of the perfect home.

My advice to anyone looking for their concept of the perfect home, Raju can make it happen.

Raju’s company slogan should be “We Build Paradise”.

9/18/2020 – Tim and Laurie Rose
Highly likely to recommend>
Bought a Single Family home in 2020 in Duck, NC

When my wife and I decided to purchase a vacation home in the Outer Banks, we started looking at properties on the usual internet sites. One property had caught our eye, so we responded to the ad on the internet. As our luck would have it Raju Uppalapati and his team responded to our call in an extremely responsive timeframe.

We did not end up purchasing the home that we had originally had called about, but after 8 months of searching we finally found a home that we are excited to start our journey with. Raju had spent a lot of time steering us in the right direction with his extensive knowledge of the island and all of the service people that were needed to complete the transaction. Whenever we needed question answered or concerns addressed, Raju responded immediately, and if he did not know the answer immediately, he found them out in a very timely manner.

Our permanent residence is in California, so this was all done long distance and went very smoothly because of Raju and his team.

I would highly recommend Raju to anyone looking to purchase in the Outer Banks. We will not hesitate to call Raju for any further real estate needs.

June/2020 – Toby & Maria
Highly likely to recommend

We have brought our family to the Outer Banks for 15 years. With each visit, our dream of owning a home here became only stronger. We live in Salt Lake City, Utah and so the thought of going through the complex process of purchasing, and likely renovating, a home from across the country was an insurmountable obstacle to the realization our dream.

During our visit the Summer of 2019, we had requested showings of homes in which we had interest. It was our incredible luck to meet Raju Uppalapati during one of those showings. As we toured a home with him, we learned that his company, Homes by Eillu, had developed several of the homes on our list. After the showing, we both commented that our interactions with Raju had felt like we had been visiting with a longtime friend. Throughout the remainder of our stay that summer, in our conversations with residents in the community two words came up repeatedly when we asked them about Homes by Eillu: Honesty and Integrity.

Six weeks later, after having returned to Utah, we reached out to Raju to inquire whether it would be possible to arrange for a new home in a specific community in Corolla. He indicated that it was feasible, if we were ready to pursue our dream. After a short discussion, we decided to go for our dreams and have not had a single regret. Raju adeptly guided us through each step in what was a seamless process. The associations that Homes by Eillu has forged with construction contractors, design/décor, property management, landscaping and all companies necessary to purchase, build and maintain a home from across the country all reinforced the themes of honesty and integrity. The use of the online BaseCamp application kept us up to date on our home’s progress. In fact, Raju’s updates became an event our whole family anticipated and enjoyed each week.

As we have taken the time to enjoy of our home with our children, we have both been so grateful to the whole team at Homes by Eillu for their ability to have made our dreams reality. Their honesty, integrity and professionalism are truly amazing. The relationships we have made through this process are ones that haven’t ended with our purchase but will be cherished by us for years to come.

June/2020 – Shelly Ahrens – Sound Landing.
Highly likely to recommend

I consider myself unbelievably fortunate to have connected with Raju. I never anticipated building a house when I started looking at properties in the Outer Banks; however, when I met Raju, toured the houses he had developed and viewed the lot and neighborhood, the decision to go with him was an easy one.

From the very beginning, Raju made the process easy, transparent and most of all FUN! From evaluating and tweaking the house plans to making design choices to tracking the building process along the way, the process was so seamless that it took out all the stress and let me focus on the joy of creating my new home. Raju is so well-connected across the area and has built such good relationships with businesses and vendors that not only were the interactions with the cabinet, tile, and flooring companies easy to navigate, but he also connected me with furniture distributors, vacation rental agencies, and pool and lawn services that helped me get set up as well.

Tracking the progress each week through the online collaboration tool, basecamp, was also a great way for someone out of town to feel very connected to what was happening. Each week, I would look forward to updates and new pictures that were posted every Sunday without fail. Raju always treated me like I was his only and most important client. He is incredibly responsive. Not only in terms of quickly getting back to me, but also in terms of his attention to detail and actively anticipating my questions or needs. Over and over, he went out of his way to be helpful or do something extra. His guidance and advice were invaluable. Not only does he have integrity, but you can tell that he genuinely wants to make his clients happy.

COVID-19 occurred toward the end of my build and had the potential to derail things in a number of ways, and yet, Raju partnered with me to find solutions and continued to find ways to keep the project on track. In the end, he still managed to deliver the house a week early. The house is gorgeous and so much better than I had anticipated—I also built a new friendship along the way. I couldn’t recommend Raju any more enthusiastically, and I certainly wouldn’t let any of my friends or family work with anyone else!

March/2020 – Christie Anne Short
Highly likely to recommend

Working with Raju was the best decision I made when developing my dream beach home in Corolla. He has gifted me the most amazing experience, and the end product is beautiful and better than I ever imagined! Raju is incredibly knowledgeable and was able to offer guidance through the whole journey of making a dream become a reality. He was patient, kind, and offered exceptional customer service. Raju responded to my many, many questions immediately whether through email, phone, text, or communication portal. I received weekly pictures and updates, and I was able to watch the whole building process, which was so exciting. This ongoing communication and attention to detail resulted in a beautiful beach home and a family who feels incredibly blessed to have a new friend and an amazing resource in Corolla. Raju’s ongoing support did not stop after the house was completed. He has continued to support me by recommending insurance agents, landscaping, and pool services. Raju went above and beyond to make sure that the house was exceptional, and I felt comfortable taking over the keys! He has committed to being just a phone call away. Raju and his wife, Vijayasree, are simply kind professionals who truly enjoy making others happy. They have brought a tremendous amount of joy to a family, and words cannot describe how appreciative we are to Raju, Vijayasree, and his exceptional team!

March/2020 – Debbie Shealey, Realtor
Highly likely to recommend

I have worked with Raju Uppalapati twice recently, not only as a Co-Broke Agent but also as a developer with Homes By Eillu Development. I have found Raju to be a very honest and integrity person. He provides a quality developed home, and makes the process from start to finish easy for my clients. He stays in touch with us on a weekly basis with pictures and updates thru his basecamp project management, and we were able to reach him at any giving time. My clients have been known to say, Raju, makes the whole development process fun, you can see from his work ethics, that he enjoys working with clients and helping to make their dream a reality. I would highly recommend using Homes By Eillu for the Development for your next home.

February/2020 – Pustelnaik Family, NJ
Highly likely to recommend

My family and I were interested in purchasing a vacation home in the Outer banks as we vacationed there for many years. During our search, we came across Raju and his Eillu team. Our first communications with the team was with Marti who responded to every single email inquiry timely. This left us with a great first impression and we knew we wanted to take a visit to OBX to learn more. Prior to our first visit, Marti and Raju provided us with extensive details of the towns of OBX and recommendations for possible locations for our new vacation home.

During our first visit, Raju had a full day planned for us where we toured through the many towns of OBX. He reviewed the pros and cons of each town and each community we visited. His extensive knowledge of OBX was extremely helpful to my family and I as we narrowed down which town we would focus on for our search. Raju’s main goal was to make sure that we were happy in the town we chose and we did not feel pressured to select any area or property. At the end of the day of our first visit, we selected a lot in Monteray Shores that met our needs.

Being from out of state, Raju set up a seamless process as we began the construction of our new home. This included using the online tool, Base Camp, where we received weekly photos and updates of the development of our. When it came to selecting the interior elements of the home, Raju coordinated a simple and effective process that made it very easy for us. We made a second trip to OBX where Raju scheduled an afternoon with various vendors to select some of the key options for our home including the kitchen cabinets, flooring and bathroom tile. Raju also recommended a furniture store that would be able to provide us with any furnishings we need to complete the home. Because we are from out of state, this was a wonderful recommendation that made what could have been a complicated endeavor much easier.

Throughout the entire process, we had many questions, and Raju would, at times, respond within minutes via phone or email. This exemplifies Raju’s commitment to customer service and that he is truly there to make sure your every need is met. If you were hesitant about buying a home because you live out of state, Raju has developed an excellent process that will allow you to monitor all progress virtually. Raju made what could be a stressful and complicated process so easy! We are thrilled with how our home turned out and we cannot recommend Raju’s team enough!

February/2020 – Trotter Family, VA
Highly likely to recommend

My wife and I have spent many vacations in the Outer Banks, and recently decided it was time to have our own “get-away” home in Corolla. We visited many homes for sale. The majority of these homes had been in rental, and unfortunately most required significant renovation, which we did not want to undertake. We had just about given up when introduced to Raju Uppalapati, the premier developer in the Outer Banks. We met with him and visited several of his homes under various stages of development process. I was immediately impressed with the quality of the homes, and the manner in which Raju presented them. Having had 5 previous homes built, we knew a little about home building, and his process appeared to work well with us.

As the project began, we were frequently given status updates by Raju, making us feel very comfortable. We ultimately realized what a great experience this would be when we went to select all the furnishings (colors, granite, sinks, carpet, etc.). It was a very smooth process, with no hidden upcharges.

We were never told any item would cost more (as most builders do) and his standards were all very good quality. Not to expect a “cost addition” at the end of the contract was very important to us. During the development process I became ill, and Raju not only checked on me, but often let me know I had nothing to worry about, he would take care of everything. And he did!

We love our new house thanks to him and his team!

More than a realtor/developer, Raju is now our friend and we hope to see he and his wife often. They are truly exceptional people!

June/2019 – Jordan and Trigg Snidow
Highly likely to recommend

We are happily new residents of the highly anticipated home that was built by Raju and company to our specifications in Sound Front in Corolla Bay community in Corolla. We fell in love with the view from lot we bought as right on a pond that leads into Currituck Sound, it is just breathtaking. We met Raju last Fall and discussed wishes we had and the next time we met, we were both pleased completely with the design which incorporated our ideas into the house and lot we had chosen.

During building process Raju emailed with information of work done that week, plus with pictures, so we felt like we were right here watching the building. We really appreciated him making us feel like a real part of our new home down here and couldn’t have been more pleased with the progress made right when he said it would be, despite weather interference. We picked our flooring, appliances, special hand railing I loved, backsplash in kitchen, and master bathroom and everything done perfectly by his excellent men, everything just couldn’t be better! I even asked him to choose ceiling fans, light fixtures, and island and once again the very best …

Raju’s ethical work is better than anyone we know and he even did things because Jordan wished it to be that way…everything is placed together without any problems and we were able to move-in in 6 months after started which is definitely pretty good during wintertime..

March/2019 – Steve & Deanne Hudson
Highly likely to recommend

While visiting the Outer Banks in August 2018, my wife and I decided to visit a model home in Corolla Bay with the hopes of getting ideas for a future beach home. We always hoped to purchase a beach home and had looked at several homes in Duck as well as Corolla. Although we would have been happy to do some renovations, we simply had not found the right property. Finding a home with a good rental history was a priority, but the prospects were disappointing. Fortunately, we became interested in a model home we spotted on the internet and decided to have a look even though this new home had no rental history.

Upon entering the model home, we had an instant feeling that this home was different and interesting. Each room revealed a well thought out plan and a surprise feature. Upon arriving on the top floor, we met Raju, the developer of the community. We established instant rapport with Raju and upon further investigation and discussion, we knew we were at the right place. Although the furnished model had already been purchased, he helped us pick out the best lot for us and answered all our questions without exerting any pressure. We left Corolla that day knowing we were ready to start a new venture and firmly believing that Raju was interested in us as individuals and sincerely wanted to deliver a product that would function for us and one that we would be excited to own.

Since that time our excitement has never faded. Raju has been the ultimate professional and has made every effort to construct a solid home that is both innovative and modern. He is thoroughly knowledgeable about all aspects of construction and has an excellent working relationship with his clients as well as his sub-contractors and staff. All questions were answered in a timely matter, and he has made many accommodations to meet our needs.

It is hard to express our appreciation of Raju. Building a home makes most people apprehensive at best, but Raju made this a pleasurable experience, and we confidently recommend him to all interested clients.

March/2019 – Dave and Connie Skipper
Highly likely to recommend

“Choosing Homes by Eillu was the best decision we made when building our “dream” beach home. Due to the keen insight, guidance, and exceptional customer service provided by Raju Uppalapati, owner and developer, building a home in Corolla while living in Pennsylvania was not an issue, in fact it was a pleasure. From our first conversation, which included a personal tour of Corolla, we were provided with every detail to consider when building a home including location, type, financing, furnishing and rental opportunities. While considering options and throughout the entire process, Raju responded to our many, many questions immediately whether through email, phone or text. After making our final decision, a communication system was introduced where we could watch and engage in the building process from our PA home. This ongoing communication and attention to detail resulted in a beautiful, high quality home and very satisfied customers. This ongoing support did not stop after the house was complete. Raju continued to support us by recommending local landscaping, pool and maintenance services as we transition into the summer rental season. Words cannot describe how appreciative we are of the personalized attention of Mr. Uppalapati and the Eillu team”.