Working with a Professional Builder: Does It Really Matter?
How homeowners benefit from an established builder’s systems and relationships Over the past decade, many new contractors have emerged as homebuilders. This has given homeowners more options, tempting some to choose a contractor based strictly on price. Bad idea. It’s nearly impossible to compare apples to apples when collecting competitive bids, especially for a complex custom home. […]
Construction Quality
As a professional builder, our company takes pride in creating high-quality homes. So we’d like our homebuyers to understand the difference between a well-built home and something less. What do we mean by “quality”? It’s not a mystery—construction quality is easy to see when you know what to look for. We’ve found that the best […]
Controlling Moisture to Prevent Mold
Your professional builder knows the best techniques and materials to keep mold at bay We’ve all seen stories about black mold in houses, and no one wants to experience that. But even a new custom home can develop a mold problem if the builder doesn’t use the right construction practices and products. Mold is a […]
The Changing Role of Allowances
Price chaos for materials has made budgeting more complicated. Here’s what you need to know. Most people are familiar with allowances—a way to let homeowners create firm budgets for items that haven’t been specified at the time of contract signing. For instance, if the homeowners and kitchen designer concluded that $30,000 would support the quality […]
Why Changes are so Costly
Change orders have always led to budget increases and schedule delays, and it’s not getting any better. With inflation showing up in the news and at the grocery store, some homeowners are asking what they can do to keep construction costs from escalating. Part of the answer is to choose the features and products you […]
Looking Beyond Sticker Prices
Installed costs vary greatly from product to product, but your builder can help manage them. Cost control is top-of-mind for anyone building a custom home these days. That includes keeping final product costs as close to the estimate as possible. With this in mind, some homeowners browse at design centers and box stores, then come […]
The Importance of Interior Design
Interior designers can help create safe, comfortable spaces that are perfectly tailored to your needs. Homeowners sometimes ask what, exactly, interior designers bring to the table. It’s a valid question. You’ve lived in homes all your life and know what you like, so choosing products, colors and layouts shouldn’t be complicated, right? The answer is […]
Are You Being Served?
When choosing someone to build your new custom home, there’s a truth that you ignore at your peril: your ultimate satisfaction has as much to do with your day-to-day experience of the project as with the final result. This is very different than buying a tract home, where you have only minimal interaction with the […]
How Much Will It Cost?
Whether it’s a $7 million custom home or a $70,000 kitchen remodel, no one wants to pay more than they have to. So it’s no surprise that the first question many people have for their architect, interior designer, or custom home builder is about cost. That’s not a good starting point for getting the best […]
A New Home is a Healthy Home
How professional builders create a healthy indoor environment. If you have concerns about how healthy your new home will be, you’re not alone. In a 2021 survey of 551 American homeowners commissioned by York (a manufacturer of home heating and cooling systems) 62% of respondents said their home’s indoor air quality needed improvement. And in […]
