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How
to Build a Custom Home
10 Things to Think About Before Getting Started
10 Things to Think About Before Getting Started
I
Where do you want to live? This might sound obvious, but it really does all start here. The lot you select has plenty to do with the overall quality of the home that you ultimately wind up with. Also, make sure all local building and zoning codes are enforceable within your desired plans. Think about your topography and how it will blend with your home design. Check on the availability of all utilities and compare costs on alternative energy strategies.
II
What size and style of home best fits your needs? If you already have plans for your new dream home, skip to the next item. If not, the size and style of your new house will determine just about everything . . . cost, time to build, labor and materials needed and just about every other detail from start to finish. There are literally thousands of plans to choose from many reputable design firms. If you do buy your plans online, buy a set of 5. The reproducible plans cost more and are a waste of money.
III
Consider backing in to a price. Rather than be disappointed from unrealistic expectations as to how much you can have for how much you can afford, consider the top dollar amount you are comfortable with and work from there. Knowing your financial limit is crucial. It then becomes a matter of getting the most you can for your money. Find a general contractor who only charges you time and material and will work for either a percentage or a fixed retainer.
IV
Prioritize the major expense categories of new home building. What do you really care about? Is a low maintenance house important to you? Is it worth more to install alternative heating & cooling systems? Do you really need a finished basement and an attached 3 car garage? What façade material can’t you live without? Should you invest in smart-home technology or the newest “green” home protocols?
V
Think about your finished goods way ahead of time. Although you don’t have to pick everything months in advance, your so-called “allowance items” can eat up as much as 20% of your total budget. If you must have cherry cabinets, granite tops, oceans of hardwood and tile, custom trim and top of the line doors and windows, you should certainly expect to pay more. Needless to say, if money is not your biggest concern, you can have anything you want.
VI
If you are building a new house with your significant other, you must pre-determine who is in charge of what. Once the project has begun, disagreements can be costly and waste a lot of time. It is always better to have a unified front when dealing with tradesmen and suppliers.
VII
Make sure you understand that a budget is really just another word for an estimate. Although new home construction is a finite process, every house ever built was unique in many ways. No two will ever go up the same, or cost the same. With the right builder, your budget / estimate should be within 1 or 2% of the final numbers without including those so-called “allowance” items. When it comes to finished goods, every home owner is responsible for their own spending patterns.
VIII
Try and have realistic expectations during all phases of this process. As much as you might want to believe things will go perfectly, most of the time, they won’t. There are always unexpected delays, weather problems, illnesses, damages in transit, boxes with missing parts, etc. Despite these minor setbacks, your new house will be completed and you will be happy you did what you did. When someone hands you the keys to your new front door, you won’t remember any of the bad stuff.
IX
Always remember it is more cost effective to do something to a new house during construction. Once the house is completed, the home owner is pretty much on their own (warranties aside). Moving walls and raising ceiling heights is a piece of cake when you’re framing. Doing things like that down the pike are messy and expensive. If it’s something you know you’re going to be sorry you didn’t do, as long as you can afford it . . . do it now.
X
Throw away your magnifying glass. Of all the things in the world that shouldn’t be looked at through a magnifying glass, a new house is at the top of the list. It is literally impossible to build a perfect anything. People that inspect the work on a molecular level are destined for disappointment. I promise this type of inspection wouldn’t hold up in the Oval Office or Buckingham Palace.
Email: Joel @ BurrwalCreek.com