Maybe you really wanted to build a custom home but you aren’t fully ready to take the plunge. You’re waiting for just the right time and you need some things to come together first.
What can you do to begin moving toward building your dream house even now?
Thankfully, there are plenty of things you can do right now to start the ball rolling toward the building process with a trusted home builder.
11 Proactive Steps You Can Take Now to Get Ready to Build a New Home
If you are ready to start thinking about building a new home, here are some things you can do before you have to commit a lot of financial resources.
1. Research home designs and floor plans that interest you.
- Consider open floor plans.
- Think about how many stories you would like.
- Evaluate whether you want a basement, a slab, or a crawlspace.
- Decide what number of rooms and what kinds of rooms you’ll need.
2. Think about how many people will be living there at various stages of life.
- Decide on the size home (square foot) you’ll need.
- Narrow down the style of architecture you’d prefer.
- Think about your family’s particular needs now and in the coming decades.
3. Study the principles of universal design, aging-in-place, accessibility, child and senior adult safety.
Think about which elements you will want to include in your design.
- Wide doorways.
- Accessible bathrooms.
- Walk-in or roll-in showers.
- Reducing fall risk.
4. Consider whether your family may want to do multi-generational living with a large family home.
Perhaps you’d like to combine your finances to make a bigger luxury home for several generations to enjoy with adult children or with your parents or in-laws.
- Research the benefits and challenges for everyone in the family.
- Consider different styles and living arrangements.
- Think through each family member’s needs.
- Allow all of the adult generations who are sharing in the financing to have input in the design.
5. Develop a realistic budget that you and your family agree to.
- Cut out unnecessary spending now.
- Begin saving money toward your downpayment.
6. Consider how easy it will be to sell your custom home later.
- If you think you may want to sell your home in the future, remember that it may be easier to sell a more conventional home than one that is extremely specialized.
7. Research property you may want to buy online.
- Thankfully, you can do much of your research on the internet and narrow down your choices.
8. Interview realtors if you plan to buy your own lot first.
- A good realtor who specializes in property in the area can be invaluable to help you determine which lot is best for you.
9. Study the architects you would like to consider and set up consultations.
- If you decide you want to work with an architect or designer, look at their work and check out reviews and customer referrals.
10. Talk with a custom builder near you that you are interested in.
- Find out what their schedule looks like.
- Get information about their process.
- Ask about any setbacks they may anticipate.
- Ask for guidance and suggestions about what work you can do now based on your budget and timeline.
11. Make sure your family is ready for a realistic timeline and the stress of building a new home.
- Evaluate your family’s current stress level financially, emotionally, and schedule-wise.
- Agree together about if you can handle the timeline.
- Begin to build relationship skills to help your family communicate well and handle stress well together.
- Educate yourselves on the kind of stress you will face during the home building process.
Even if you can’t sign a contract today, you can start getting a firm idea of what you want and don’t want in your dream home. You can also do a lot of research and planning to pave the way to make building a house easier in the future.
Related
How Long Does Building a House Typically Take?
Is Now a Good Time to Build a New Home with COVID-19?
Top Six Reasons to Choose a Custom Home Builder
