Nearly 30 Years of Bishard Homes | Built in Virginia Beach

Nearly 30 Years of Bishard Homes: Built in Virginia Beach

If you’ve lived in Virginia Beach for a while, there’s a good chance you’ve driven past a Bishard home.

Maybe it was near the Oceanfront. Maybe in Great Neck, Chic’s Beach, the North End, or somewhere you wouldn’t immediately recognize as a Bishard project.

There are more than 1,500 of them now.

But before the homes, communities, and nearly three decades of building across Hampton Roads, there were two brothers who grew up here.

Before Bishard Homes, Virginia Beach Was Home

Steve and John Bishard grew up in Virginia Beach.

They spent their childhood near the water, surfed together, and built their lives here. Their introduction to homebuilding came through their uncle, a local builder, long before Bishard Homes became what it is today.

Eventually, they saw an opportunity.

They knew Virginia Beach. They were learning how to build. And they believed they could create homes that felt right for the place they already called home.

So they started Bishard Homes.

Looking back at how two brothers who never necessarily planned to go into business together ended up doing exactly that, Steve once summed it up simply:

“God made a way.”

That says quite a bit about the company that followed.

Faith mattered. Family mattered. How people were treated mattered.

Nearly 30 years later, those things still do.

1,500 Homes Changes the Way You See a City

Since those early days, Bishard Homes has built more than 1,500 homes.

That number is easy to put on a website. What’s harder to capture is what nearly 30 years of building in the same place looks like.

It looks like townhomes near the ViBe.

Luxury homes tucked into the North End.

New construction on individual home sites in established Virginia Beach neighborhoods.

Entire communities that started as plans on paper and eventually became places hundreds of people call home.

And it looks like more than 1,500 front doors, kitchens, bedrooms, backyards, and garages that stopped being “Bishard homes” the moment someone moved in and simply became home.

That part has always mattered to us.

We may build the house. The homeowner gives it a life.

There Isn’t One Version of Virginia Beach

One of the advantages of building here for this long is learning that Virginia Beach isn’t one kind of place.

The North End doesn’t feel like Great Neck.

Chic’s Beach has a different relationship with the water than the Oceanfront.

Old Beach has its own character.

The ViBe has an energy entirely its own.

That matters when you’re deciding what belongs somewhere.

Over the years, Bishard has built townhomes, single family homes, luxury coastal residences, infill homes, and complete residential communities. Our work has stretched from the Virginia Beach Oceanfront and North End to North Suffolk and northeastern North Carolina.

There has never been one “Bishard house.”

And we think that’s a good thing.

A home should make sense for the people who will live there and the place where it’s being built.

Sometimes Building Means Starting With What’s Already There

Not every Bishard project starts with an empty field.

Some of our favorite opportunities have been in neighborhoods that already have a story.

When you build on an existing Virginia Beach street, you’re stepping into a place with neighbors, mature trees, architecture, traffic patterns, and a personality of its own.

The neighborhood was there first.

One example is Laguna Villas near the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. The property once held nine dilapidated homes. Bishard eventually transformed the site into a new residential development.

That kind of project requires more than asking, “What can we build here?”

The better question is:

What should be here?

That question has followed Bishard through a lot of projects.

From Individual Homes to Entire Communities

As Bishard grew, so did the scale of what we were building.

Today, Bishard is both a homebuilder and residential developer. That means we think about individual homes, but we also think about streets, architecture, common spaces, surrounding neighborhoods, and what a community will feel like years from now.

You can see that in projects like Lookout Point.

The Virginia Beach community includes just 29 townhomes and a private dock where residents can kayak, fish, or spend time by the water. It isn’t a massive subdivision, and it wasn’t supposed to be.

You can see it in our North End spot builds, where new homes are designed for individual homesites within one of Virginia Beach’s most established coastal neighborhoods.

And now you can see another chapter taking shape at Spencer’s Watch in North Suffolk.

The projects look different because the places are different.

That’s the point.

Nearly 30 Years Teaches You a Few Things

Homes have changed since Bishard started.

Floor plans have opened up. Building materials have improved. Energy efficiency matters more. Technology has become part of everyday life. Home offices became necessities. Kitchens became gathering spaces. Buyers expect more from storage, outdoor living, and the overall performance of a home.

We’ve changed with them.

But nearly 30 years also teaches you which things shouldn’t change.

Build it well.

Design it thoughtfully.

Communicate.

Treat people with integrity.

Keep learning.

Experience isn’t valuable simply because you can say you’ve been around for a long time.

It’s valuable because of what you’ve learned while you were here.

The Part of the Story That Isn’t About Houses

Some of Bishard’s history has very little to do with construction.

Faith and service have been part of the company from the beginning.

One of the longest examples is Bishard’s relationship with Recovery for Life, a Virginia Beach nonprofit serving individuals and families affected by addiction and compulsive behaviors. John Bishard served as the organization’s original board chairman beginning in 2000. Steve later became chairman and helped develop transitional homes for the organization.

Over the years, Bishard has also supported Young Life, Prison Fellowship Ministries, Norfolk Christian Schools, the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, and local education initiatives.

We believe in: Serving people. Use what we have well. Help where we can. Treat people with integrity. Leave something better than we found it.

Still Building Here

Almost 30 years after Steve and John started Bishard Homes, we’re entering one of the busiest chapters in our history.

Approximately 200 additional homes are planned to be finished end of 2026.

But the goal isn’t simply to build more.

It’s to take everything we’ve learned from building more than 1,500 homes and use it to build the next one better.

Better homes. Thoughtful communities. Strong relationships. Places that still feel right years after the construction crews leave.

Because after all the homes, neighborhoods, and years, the heart of the Bishard story is actually pretty simple.

We started here.

We grew here.

And we’re still building the place we call home!

EXPLORE OUR CURRENT HOMES TODAY!

Frequently Asked Questions About Bishard Homes

Who is Bishard Homes?

Bishard Homes is a Virginia Beach homebuilder and residential developer founded by brothers and Virginia Beach natives Steve and John Bishard. For nearly 30 years, Bishard has built new construction homes and communities throughout Virginia Beach, Hampton Roads, Coastal Virginia, and northeastern North Carolina.

How many homes has Bishard Homes built?

Bishard Homes has built more than 1,500 homes, with approximately 200 additional homes planned for 2026.

Where does Bishard Homes build?

Bishard builds throughout Virginia Beach and the greater Hampton Roads region, including the Oceanfront, Old Beach, ViBe Creative District, North End, Chic’s Beach, and Great Neck. Bishard’s broader footprint also includes North Suffolk and northeastern North Carolina.

What types of homes does Bishard Homes build?

Bishard builds townhomes, single family homes, luxury coastal residences, infill homes, spot builds, and complete residential communities.

What is a Bishard Homes spot build?

A spot build is a new construction home built on an individual homesite within an established neighborhood rather than within a traditional new home community. Bishard spot builds can be found throughout Virginia Beach, including the North End, Chic’s Beach, Old Beach, Great Neck, and Lakewood.