Building a new home can be stressful and rewarding. Understanding the process and having the proper expectations well communicated before things take off can make building really fun! Here’s a list of things to work through when consider building a home.
Do a lot of research- If you are considering a custom built home, take your time to really compile a style and look you like for the exterior and interior of your home. It’s OK to watch a lot of HGTV to get ideas. After a while you will discover a style you like and that can be the basis of where to start designing. People suggest pinning anything and everything that draws your attention and the attention of your spouse. Pinterest and Houzz to common apps/websites where you can compile board.
Meet with A Lender- Get a meeting scheduled with a local lender. (refer to the “Financing” blog). If you don’t know what you can afford, all of the other preparation and research is fruitless.
Hire A Builder- Get several recommendations. If you do not know a builder personally, schedule a consultation. At Crestone we suggest you meet with the all people that you are going to be working with. The company owner (if possible), the project manager. Job superintendents. It’s important to select someone you trust. Decide what aspects are important to you when building your home. Do you want someone who is trustworthy? Personable? Communicates well? Has a great relationship with their subs? Stays in budget? Will they be flexible with your ideas and visions? Ask for referrals of homes they have built. It’s important to ask a lot of questions of the builder and their team. Share with them your expectations and ask them what their expectations of you will be.
Weigh pros and cons of custom vs pre-designed homes. Most builders will have pre-designed floor plans to offer. Custom homes will take longer as you are designing from the ground up and it will require a lot of time and imagination. Sometimes people hire architectural firms not affiliated with the builder to design a home. This process by itself could take up to six months. There can be a lot of revisions and many thought processes. If you decide to hire an architectural firm, ask to have your builder in the meetings so they could give advice as to what might or might not work structurally and in keeping budget in mind.
At Crestone Homes, we believe if you can dream it, we can design it and we can build it. We want to make it a fun, stress-less process.
