My best advice to anyone building a custom home.
Over the past few weeks I have completed several consultations with amazing families that are planning and entering the construction phase of their dream home. How exciting! There is nothing that I enjoy more than helping amazing people design and build quality homes.
Everyone asks, “is there anything else we should know?” Well, yes there is.
EDUCATION
Over the past few weeks I have completed several consultations with amazing families that are planning and entering the construction phase of their dream home. How exciting! There is nothing that I enjoy more than helping amazing people design and build quality homes.
Everyone asks, “is there anything else we should know?” Well, yes there is.
Let me back track for just a second. If you haven’t read it, I have an amazing free download with the most effective questions to ask your home builder prior to entering a contract. If you don’t have a copy, click here to download your free copy.
I mentioned this free guide because this post is not about the technical parts of building a new home. It’s more about the mindset. Let’s make no mistake about it Despite all your planning, the best resources, and the most qualified home builder; you will experience some pain and discomfort while building your home.
I have been involved in the design and sale of 1000s of new construction projects over my 17 year career. How you plan, how you deal, and how you move forward will dictate your overall experience and potentially the finished product that you end up with.
On a more personal level, here are the 5 tips that I can offer to anyone that is about to embark on building a custom home. Again, this will be a challenge, but for most the rewards are far more worth it.
Plan for the unexpected No matter how much you plan, things will go wrong. You will have deliveries that are delayed. People will not show up when they are scheduled. There may even be days that you need the inspector to come out and he may be a no show. If your builder has a clear understanding of the schedule and a grasp of all the tradespeople that will be working, it will be easier to recover. In your mind plan for damaged tile, broken lighting, lost items that you know have been delivered but magically disappear from the job site. Remember your mindset is important. When you walk away from perfection, you accept challenges and solutions with ease.
Be Patient It will take time to complete your project! Unless you have a limitless amount of money..you will be forced to make concessions. Maybe you will have to forego all the landscaping that you want for now. Maybe the pool will have to wait. Don’t over-extend yourself trying to include everything that you can think of. If you have the money, by all means...get it. If you are like most people, I suggest working with your builder and designer to set the framework for things that can be done later. If you really want an extra detached garage but it isn’t in the budget for now..be patient. Work with your group of experts to determine the best size, location on your lot and elements that will make it compliment your home once you are able to build.
Kindness goes a long way I understand that this is your project and your money. No problem there. If you don’t keep anything else in this blog post, be kind to everyone that works on your project. There are many skilled and talented people that will graciously pour their heart and soul into your home. It is more than a job to them. Just as you may be passionate about art, education, culture, travel and your kids; there are many salt of the earth people from all over the world that love their trade. Many tile layers, plaster experts, electricians, and landscapers can be your best friend. They will share all their knowledge and work tirelessly to deliver work that will blow mind! Don’t fall in the trap of thinking...I am the boss...and what I say goes. Yes..but NO! I have seen aggressive disrespectful people end up with $40,000 in plumbing repairs simply because they felt superior to the workers. This is not a good look.
Stay ahead of the game You don’t ever want to be the reason for delays. Stay in touch with your designer and builder to make sure all the choices that you need to make have been made. If you an item is on backorder or discontinued, as quickly as you can make a new selection. If something isn’t working out the way the builder thought it would work on paper, work with the team to reach a solution to keep the project moving. I am not saying settle for something that is not in alignment with your needs and desires. Ask questions and accept the recommendations of the professionals you have hired.
Don’t sweat the small stuff When problems come up in your project, which they will, everything will seem as though they are the biggest and harshest thing that could ever happen. I always encourage my clients to be solutions based. Let’s assess the situation and determine how we can stay on task, budget, schedule, all while ultimately achieving the predetermined goals. Most likely, when you look back on it, the bathroom fixtures that had to be replaced will all be worth it, once you are finally in your new home.
There you have it. Let’s remain calm and focusing during this process. Building a custom home will be a stressful process, but it doesn’t have to overwhelm you. Try to focus on the things that are within your control, and rely on your team for support with the rest.
I hope you found this article interesting and helpful. Wanna keep in touch? Consider joining my weekly newsletter. A weekly newsletter keeping you up to date on the latest of all things real estate, interiors, renovations, and custom home building.
Join our community of over 5000 readers and receive a well curated mix of inspiration, education, and resources on all things related to curating the home of your dreams.
How soon should I order furniture for my new home?
Wow. I am so proud of you. It is time to start thinking about furniture for your new home. This is another of the many steps you will take to create the home of your dreams. I want to be very direct and clear right out of the gate. Very few furniture stores carry inventory today. What am I saying? It is very unlikely that you will pull up to your local furniture store and be able to purchase the exact sofa that you really want. The exact arms, legs, depth, length, and fabric. In order to get custom furniture...you have to order custom furniture. It is that simple. This takes time.
EDUCATION
Wow. I am so proud of you. It is time to start thinking about furniture for your new home. This is another of the many steps you will take to create the home of your dreams. I want to be very direct and clear right out of the gate. Very few furniture stores carry inventory today. What am I saying? It is very unlikely that you will pull up to your local furniture store and be able to purchase the exact sofa that you really want. The exact arms, legs, depth, length, and fabric. In order to get custom furniture...you have to order custom furniture. It is that simple. This takes time.
Let’s go a step further. Yes, there are opportunities to purchase off the floor or even samples. In addition, there are some furniture companies that will pre-order a certain number of pieces in predetermined fabrics and finishes. No problem. The challenge is, you will be purchasing what the buyer for the store thought most people would want. Not, what you may really want. Again, in most cases you will have to order custom or at the least wait for production pieces to be delivered.
In my professional opinion, quality furniture will usually take a minimum of 12 week to 24 week to arrive in your local market. There are many factors that will go into this. Where is the furniture produced locally or internationally? If the pieces are coming from overseas...what isthe point of entry for the vendor. Once the furniture reaches the port..usually Savannah or Los Angeles...it will have to travel across the country to your local market.
When you see in stock this doesn’t mean in your city. If you are shopping in a national chain the piece is most likely in a local or regional warehouse. The furniture store will work with you to coordinate delivery. My rule of thumb is that if furniture is in stock--unless its cash and carry allow 30 days for white glove delivery and set up in your home.
If a vendor is saying Quick Ship with a set number of fabric or stain options for case good--this could vary vendor to vendor. In terms of time this could range from 14 days to 6 weeks. Let’s be very clear this is usually the estimated time from completion of the furniture until it leaves the warehouse. Another important factor is that all furniture companies don’t ship every day of the week. For example, a sofa company in Hickory, North Carolina may schedule pickups 1 or 2 days a week from their chosen freight company. Keep in mind that the furniture is usually traveling on pallets or huge boxes on an 18 wheeler. Most likely the freight company has dozens if not hundreds of pieces on the truck. They aren’t going to just pull up at your house. The 18 wheeler will need a loading dock to unload. Upon inspection and unpacking by the receiver, your furniture can then be directed to your new home.
When purchasing production pieces that are in production that have to come from Asia, again there are many varying time frames. If the piece is in a shipping container en route when you order it can be in your home in as little as 2 weeks. This is very optimistic but possible. Let’s just hope there are no issues at customs! If the furniture pieces are on order but haven’t left the production facility please allow 4-6 weeks comfortably. On- order can meet the furniture company has asked the manufacturer to make a batch of said items..or they are already made and they want them to pull and add to the next container that will be sent. Finally, if you hear that an item on-order the production facilities are in Asia, please know that conservatively you can expect 8-12 weeks. This is willing there are no production strikes, shipping or customs issues that may arise.
There are many National Brands that I enjoy sourcing from the manufacture in North Carolina and Los Angeles. When time is of the essence, I highly recommend using these types of companies. I want to point out that if you want to run to Restoration Hardware and let them “design” your entire home..no problem. I will not begin to speak of the quality but I want to make sure you understand this. RH is a curator and marketer of furniture. They don’t really make anything. It is important to understand that if you order 15 pieces for your home. They will probably be coming from 15 different production facilities in Asia, on 15 different cargo ships, and 15 different 18 wheelers to then be repackaged and sent to you. Allow time!
When you shop at a higher end more custom value point, you will most likely have your furniture made in our country. The vendor may have their own fabric selections or you may use your own fabric(COM). They have to get the fabric if you are sending directly or from a fabric supplier. In addition, if it’s their fabric..it has to be in stock. Even with casegood, most likely they are made to order. In my opinion, I would again suggest 12-16 weeks for delivery.
Construction times will vary for your new home. Some people will be ready to move in 120 day from the pouring of the slab. Others new builds could take 18 months. I think for the average custom home project under 1 million dollar in most markets in the country 6 to 8 months is a comfortable construction time frame. Your home will most likely have a mix of custom pieces, made to order casegoods, and production pieces. I highly recommend trying to have furniture in storage weeks prior to your intentioned move day. Items will come in damaged. Something will break in transit. No matter how organized you try to be...you will never be able to coordinate everything to arrive at the same time--picture perfect and ready on move in one day. Order the key pieces, spaces and items that you know will take longer and take it from there. Upholstery and casegoods first!
Whew, this is a lot! I pride myself on being open and transparent. Selecting furniture isn’t as simple as going into a store and saying, “I will take that one.” I highly recommend working with a trusted interior designer when planning your furniture order. Most designers do select product or procurement as we say. Even if you want to pick every single item yourself, it is worth the money to have a professional opinion on quality, warranty, and basic space planning before you spend $10,000 on a sectional that you aren’t even sure will fit in the front door.
I invite you to gain clarity, focus, and direction before you start ordering furniture. When you order furniture on your own, most often you will be required to coordinate delivery and inspect each piece of furniture yourself.
I hope you found this article interesting and helpful. Wanna keep in touch? Consider joining my weekly newsletter. A weekly newsletter keeping you up to date on the latest of all things real estate, interiors, renovations, and custom home building.
Join our community of over 5000 readers and receive a well curated mix of inspiration, education, and resources on all things related to curating the home of your dreams.
11 Reasons reasons my clients choose to build custom homes
I love everything about amazing spaces! Luxury hotels, quaint inns, charming Spanish resorts in small beach villages, in Mexico..you name it! Much of my design work is greatly influenced by travel. In my career, I have honed my area of expertise to helping amazing people design and build amazing custom homes. Some of my clients are living on luxury waterfront lots in Miami, while others are in Texas hill country. What I have learned from working with countless families is that most people want tailored experiences and homes. Unfortunately, most people don’t know how obtainable these things are. In order to understand what my clients want, it is important to understand what they don’t like in their current homes.
EDUCATION
I love everything about amazing spaces! Luxury hotels, quaint inns, charming Spanish resorts in small beach villages, in Mexico..you name it! Much of my design work is greatly influenced by travel. In my career, I have honed my area of expertise to helping amazing people design and build amazing custom homes. Some of my clients are living on luxury waterfront lots in Miami, while others are in Texas hill country. What I have learned from working with countless families is that most people want tailored experiences and homes. Unfortunately, most people don’t know how obtainable these things are. In order to understand what my clients want, it is important to understand what they don’t like in their current homes.
Most of my clients have lived in at least 2 homes prior to designing to build custom. In most cases at least 1 home was a resale that they opted to renovate along and along. The other house was a production built new construction home. I have created 15 of the most common reasons my clients ultimately decide that a quality custom home is the best option for their families.
Overlooked cabinetry designs Most production builders overlook not only the quality of cabinets they use, but don’t think of function. Rarely will you find drawers for pots, ideal spaces for spices, or soft close doors. Typically, production builders overlook space planning and function completely. Your kitchen cabinets can be totally customized to your needs. Yes, you can have cabinets that are taller than 42”. Yes. Shelving can be used in lieu of upper cabinets. Crown Molding and spacers are just a couple of the ways that you can make your kitchen look more refined and custom. Custom cabinets are expensive, but if you are going to pay for cabinets why not purchase cabinets that support both your design style and function needs.
Unused room for the sake of tradition Many production builders are still building with formal living and dining rooms that flank the front door. Really? I am all about balance and symmetry in design. Unfortunately, this is usually wasted space that most families will never use. In addition, you end up paying for square footage that you aren’t using and you may spend 10s of thousands of dollars to furnish. When you opt for custom floorplans, you can literally recapture 300-500 square feet of usable space!
Limited cabinet heights If you are lucky, you will find a production that has 42” cabinets are a standard over 36”. You can go taller!
Limited Ceiling heights and finishes In some parts of the country production builders still offer 8 foot ceilings as a standard. 9 feet if you are lucky on the 1st floor. One of the simplest ways to make any home feel more luxurious is increase the ceiling height to at least 10’ and add 8’ doors. Talk about luxury and openness. I promise, this will immediately make any floorplan feel more luxurious. In addition, many builders don’t offer coffered ceilings, tray ceilings with built in lighting, or vaulted ceilings with rustic trusses. Again, these are great ways to add architectural detail and character to your home. Most likely, your production builder will not offer this as an option. Funny, sometimes they will include them in the model.
Not enough planned storage for guests coats and shoes Most of my clients dream of sharing their home with family and friends. This is only of the driving forces that causes them to build. Sadly, most production builders don’t have thought out floor plans that consider where you will store your guest coats and shoes. Imagine buying a production built home in Michigan...1 small closet near the front door in a 5000 square foot home. There will probably be cold weather or snow most years for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Where will you put your guests coats? Please don’t say on the back of the sofa or on a bed in the spare bedroom.
Poorly planned outlet placement When most production builders plan out outlets they think only about reducing the hard wiring cost of the home..not how you will live. Imagine moving into a new home and there are no outlets where the nightstand and tv would naturally go? Let’s take it a step further. The cable hook ups are behind the bedroom door and you want to center your 70” tv on the longest wall in the master bedroom. Crazy huh? It happens. When you build a custom home, you get to decide where you want your outlets and cable connections.
Too few (or too small) windows Yes, windows are expensive, but so is therapy. Natural sunlight is one the best natural mood enhancers on the planet. Most people grossly underestimate the value of large windows to make their home feel larger and brighter. Careful consideration should be given to privacy in relation to neighboring houses. Production builders will also argue that homeowner’s should limit the number of times the “envelope” of the home should be cut or have entry points. I have my thoughts on this. We will discuss in a later post.
Ignored future of load of electrical panels Most builders will only build to the minimum electrical standard in the region they are actively building. This where things can get tricky. Houses are becoming more technologically advanced. If you have large computer systems and servers in the home, this should be considered. If you have a lot of media equipment; think about it. Let’s say you plan on having the brightest house in the county during the holiday season with all your dancing lights and christmas trees, please don’t skimp on your electrical panel. Usually, a $4000 upgrade can save you so much trouble. Oh, don’t forget about the Tesla? You are gonna wanna charge it at home. Make your sure house is ready!
Poorly designed laundry rooms For most modern families the laundry room is a mini hub. Builders typically view that laundry room as an empty room with a washer and dryer. Cabinets, hanging rods, sinks, counter space, and an ironing station are what families of this century require. If you have outside help with daily chores and cleaning your helpers will be grateful. It is no longer cool to fold clothes in the living room on the floor.
Upgraded didn’t mean higher quality Most people quickly release that just because the builder offered it as an upgrade, doesn’t mean it’s a quality product. Upgraded carpet, hardwood, lighting packages, and counters are usually marked up heavily and are just a bit nicer than what the builder may offer as a standard. There are many quality vendors for everything you will want to include in your home. With production builders you are usually limited to their selections and vendors. Ultimately this comes back to their profit margins and perceptions of taste. Imagine paying $700,000 for a house and having to choose between 4 types of level one granite. Trust me? It does happen.
Kids not considered Most people that are building custom homes have kids or grandkids. They want everyone to feel welcome and a part of the family. Well thought out floor plans should offer kids rooms that can become teen suites the kids become older. What about dedicated kid friendly playrooms that can become the hang out space for teens? In my experience, most people that build custom homes want their kids to feel as special as mom and dad.
That’s a lot right? Trust me the reasons can go on and on. Have you purchased a home from a production builder in the past? What are some of your regrets? What are some of your things you promised yourself that will not be tolerated in your next house? Drop me an email. I would love to hear.
I hope you found this article interesting and helpful. Wanna keep in touch? Consider joining my weekly newsletter. A weekly newsletter keeping you up to date on the latest of all things real estate, interiors, renovations, and custom home building.
Join our community of over 5000 readers and receive a well curated mix of inspiration, education, and resources on all things related to curating the home of your dreams.
Allowances: How Do They Work When Building a Custom Home
If you have done any work on designing your custom home, I am sure that you have heard the term “allowance”. What is it exactly? In my opinion this is one of the most important elements in the planning and budgeting process when you begin to work with a builder. In my opinion, most people are unhappy with their builder because they didn’t hire an architect and interior designer to help them pull their vision out of their interior onto paper. These pages will later become the clearly defined instructions given to your builder to build your dream home. Secondly, people run out of money because they grossly underestimate how much things truly cost. Imagine, no plan or realistic budget based on your wants and needs...no wonder you end up disappointed.
EDUCATION
If you have done any work on designing your custom home, I am sure that you have heard the term “allowance”. What is it exactly? In my opinion this is one of the most important elements in the planning and budgeting process when you begin to work with a builder. In my opinion, most people are unhappy with their builder because they didn’t hire an architect and interior designer to help them pull their vision out of their interior onto paper. These pages will later become the clearly defined instructions given to your builder to build your dream home. Secondly, people run out of money because they grossly underestimate how much things truly cost. Imagine, no plan or realistic budget based on your wants and needs...no wonder you end up disappointed.
An allowance is a dollar amount assigned to service or product needed in your home that has not been determined. For example, you may be given a $10,000 budget for lighting. When you go shopping or to a design center you basically have $10,000 to spend on lighting for your home. It is important to understand whether this is for decorative lighting only. There should be a totally different line item for the rough materials and labor that will happen behind the scene. You must also understand what happens if you cover over budget. Is there a reserve fund that is set aside or will you have to come out of pocket.
This topic is very important so I want to make sure I spend enough time addressing the importance of vetting your builder and why working with an interior designer is crucial when building a custom home.
Most builders use allowances when creating a budget. We are all clear there. The challenge comes into place when your builder is vague and prices out the finishes extremely low simply to keep his bid low. Why? Because he wants the job. Once you are in it...you have to figure it out. All builders don’t work in the same price point and few offer the same level of trim. If you want to build a luxury home and you choose a builder that builds entry level homes all day every day his perspective of what hardwood flooring may cost will be warped. He may build for people that are totally content with flooring that is $3 per square foot. What happens if you know you want flooring that will actually cost $15 a square foot. I assure you in most cases the builder will give you an impractical allowance that will leave you in a lurch. This doesn’t make the builder a criminal...while I have thoughts on this. It could simply be there was a lack of information regarding your specific taste levels when he prepared your budget.
Most people have an idea of what they like but no idea of how much it cost. Before you begin to budget or even meet with your builder, I highly recommend working with an interior designer. While your builder may be very skilled at the project management of building a home, he/she may not be skilled at space planning, lighting designing, and material selections. A designer is invaluable at helping you determine your design style and how you want to live in the space. Finally, a skilled interior designer can help you make design selections early on to avoid budget mistakes. If you really want marble, but your builder assumes that granite is what everyone loves..you will have problems. If you are able to present the types of finishes you want early on in the budgeting and bidding process, you are more likely to avoid having issues with covering over your allowances that are set by the builder.
Designing a custom home can be challenging and overwhelming. What are some of your challenges or questions that keep you from moving forward with building?
I hope you found this article interesting and helpful. Wanna keep in touch? Consider joining my weekly newsletter. A weekly newsletter keeping you up to date on the latest of all things real estate, interiors, renovations, and custom home building.
Join our community of over 5000 readers and receive a well curated mix of inspiration, education, and resources on all things related to curating the home of your dreams.