Building your own home is an exciting prospect, but you learn that building a house can cost you time, effort, and money. The home you dream of can quickly become more expensive than you initially thought.
Fortunately, there’s a lot you can learn beforehand to avoid running into unexpected developments and mistakes down the road. For example, talking to professionals from Architerra will give you an idea of the cost, challenges, and better planning. This will enable you to prepare for what may lie ahead.
Here is some key advice on building a new home from its initial planning stages to completion.
Find out what you envision for your home
Before you even set foot on building anything, do some research on home renovations. Explore what you envision the house to be. Understand its purpose, its rooms, your expectations for its function, the way you want to spend the time there, and with whom you want to spend it.
Ensure your builder’s estimates include at least $50K
The likelihood of accidentally spending over budget for building a new home is certainly there. Builder estimates are just estimates. Have some extra money you can put towards it if discoveries mean more cost, such as plumbing, cabinetry, lighting, flooring, ceilings, extra built-ins, etc.
Identify and rank the most important rooms
As you make cost decisions, you will have a budget, and to keep your expenses in line, it’s key to prioritize what’s important. Define your rooms and what’s in them. Identify what’s important about each room and what’s worth the cost or what can be cut if it comes down to it.
You should reduce the size of the house you want
A big way to save money and maximize space efficiency is to shrink the house size you want. If you don’t need all those bedrooms, forget about them! Never mind if you only use your media room once every six months. A smaller house means more budget room.
Get additional input from a designer
A designer can help you format your home, knowing your vision. They can help you make key decisions and provide insights into how to build a new home that you may not be familiar with.
Don’t rush into building a new house
Many people start building a new home and think they can rush it and finish it in weeks or months. It can often take 1-2 years from conceptualizing to finishing the construction work. So many decisions factor into building a house that it makes sense to take your time and slowly work your way through the steps.
Break ground after finalizing plans
Don’t break ground until your new home plans are finalized. After you break ground, the clock ticks, and you’ll have to move on to finishing the house. Take the extra time to plan and be ready when you break ground.
Check stock and place holds
As you decide on materials with your builder, minimize the chance of delay or back-order by checking stock and placing holds. Construction can easily be delayed by weeks and sometimes months, waiting for materials to arrive.
Include a furniture plan in your floor plan
Don’t set up a floor plan until you’ve also drawn up a furniture plan. You don’t want to discover the floor space is too small for the furniture you want, regardless of whether it’s the dining room, kitchen, or living room. Carefully measure your floor square footage and furniture, ensuring everything fits as you intend.
Have no defined end date
Delays happen, and you don’t need to rush your home build. If you’re trying to get the house completed by a specific date, don’t bother. There is no guarantee that the house will be done at a certain point. You don’t want things done fast on something as significant as a house. You want things done right. There is no reliable end date.
Communicate honestly and directly with all parties
Be kind but direct and honest with any architect, designer, builder, or craftsperson involved. If there’s something you don’t like, you don’t have to compromise or go along with it. Building a home is a personal project. Take ownership that it will be your home and ensure what’s being created excites you.
The home should be built for you, not for a future owner
Don’t build your home for resale unless that’s its purpose. If you want wild designs, build the home yourself. If it’s your forever home, give it the most value it could have for you. Making decisions based on resale value will leave you with a boring house that doesn’t inspire you. You may not even like all that much.
