Monday, November 19, 2007
Model Houses
Model houses are another great way to find the home of your dreams. Model houses are a great opportunity to see all of the different amenities you've read about during your planning (read: dreaming) live and in 3-D.
For those of you who haven't been dream home shopping yet, I should describe the model home tour process. You'll find model homes in most new communities. Sometimes there will be two or three models; other times you'll see more like ten or fifteen. These homes are built so that potential homebuyers will have the opportunity to view the builders' finished products as well to help homebuyers who are going to purchase a home in that community choose the model that will suit their family's needs.
When visiting model homes, sometimes you will have to enter what I call "Model House Row" through the sales office at one of the models. After answering some standard questions from the salesperson, you will have access to the rest of the houses. You can look at each one, or skip any that don't interest you. When Husband and I first started looking at houses, we only looked at 1 1/2 story and 2 story homes because we knew we didn't want a ranch. Later, as we worked to ironing out more details related to interior design we looked at all of the houses. Pick whatever system works for you.
At other model home communities, you won't ever even see a salesperson, unless you want to. In these communities, the sales office is still housed in one of the model homes. But entering through that home isn't required. In these settings, if you're "just looking," you could just avoid that house. The model homes in these communities are sometimes dispersed over a slightly large part of the community.
I do have to mention a little bit of model home etiquette, though. First, come prepared to do something with your feet. Either take your shoes off or use the booties that are usually provided at the front door. Eventually someone will be purchasing that model home and they don't want to have to immediately replace the carpets.
Second, as you inspect the home feel free to open drawers and cabinets. I like to see how things work. But remember that this isn't your home. So treat things gently.
If you're even just starting to think that purchasing a custom-built home might be for you, I would strongly suggest checking out the local model home communities right away. Nowhere else will you able to see so many design options in one location.
For those of you who haven't been dream home shopping yet, I should describe the model home tour process. You'll find model homes in most new communities. Sometimes there will be two or three models; other times you'll see more like ten or fifteen. These homes are built so that potential homebuyers will have the opportunity to view the builders' finished products as well to help homebuyers who are going to purchase a home in that community choose the model that will suit their family's needs.
When visiting model homes, sometimes you will have to enter what I call "Model House Row" through the sales office at one of the models. After answering some standard questions from the salesperson, you will have access to the rest of the houses. You can look at each one, or skip any that don't interest you. When Husband and I first started looking at houses, we only looked at 1 1/2 story and 2 story homes because we knew we didn't want a ranch. Later, as we worked to ironing out more details related to interior design we looked at all of the houses. Pick whatever system works for you.
At other model home communities, you won't ever even see a salesperson, unless you want to. In these communities, the sales office is still housed in one of the model homes. But entering through that home isn't required. In these settings, if you're "just looking," you could just avoid that house. The model homes in these communities are sometimes dispersed over a slightly large part of the community.
I do have to mention a little bit of model home etiquette, though. First, come prepared to do something with your feet. Either take your shoes off or use the booties that are usually provided at the front door. Eventually someone will be purchasing that model home and they don't want to have to immediately replace the carpets.
Second, as you inspect the home feel free to open drawers and cabinets. I like to see how things work. But remember that this isn't your home. So treat things gently.
If you're even just starting to think that purchasing a custom-built home might be for you, I would strongly suggest checking out the local model home communities right away. Nowhere else will you able to see so many design options in one location.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
A Pro's Take on Working with an Architect
Finding out What Your Dream Home Looks Like
The first part of purchasing your custom-built dream home is figuring out what that home looks like. There are lots of ways to start seeing your dream home take shape. You might start completely from scratch and hire an architect to design your home. You could browse through house plan books or web sites and find your dream home there. Another option is to start with a builder’s model home and make adjustments to suit your needs. Over the next few days, I’m going to cover the different avenues that are available and hopefully give a little insight into each one.
Hiring an architect is one way to be certain that you get exactly what you want in your new house. You’ll be able to start completely from scratch and specify every detail in the house. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Be careful what you wish for, though. The design process takes more work than you think.
We hired an architect for our home. And we’re glad that we did. However, don’t think that you’ll have a couple of meetings and then the architect will do all the work. You have to be prepared to do your share, too. Often the architect will give you a draft and then you’ll take it home and start examining it. It amazed me how long my husband and I could debate about the placement of one door. Don’t be discouraged if there are lots of revisions needed before you get to your dream home. Each time you make an adjustment, you’ll have narrowed down one more aspect of your house to match your vision.
When you first meet with your architect, be ready to spend a little time with him. Here are a few things you may want to do at your first appointment.
1. Bring pictures of things you like with you. We took pictures of houses that we liked from around our neighborhood and model homes that we visited.
2. Talk about things that you hate. This could be just as important as the things you like. I’ve always hated ultra-modern looking things, so I made certain that we told him that, too.
3. Talk about how you live in your home now and what changes are coming up the road. In my case, my husband and I want to start a family in the next year or so. So, although a small house suits us now, we wanted our dream home to have a couple of extra rooms to grow into.
4. Be honest about who you are. This is not the meeting where you want to start imagining that your lifestyle is different than it really is. My husband and I watch a lot of television. I know, in some circles, that isn’t always easy to admit. But if that’s how you and your family spend your evenings, don’t try to pretend that you do something else. Go ahead and plan a spot for that TV.
Dreaming about your custom-built home is a lot of fun. Seeing it come to life is even more fun
Hiring an architect is one way to be certain that you get exactly what you want in your new house. You’ll be able to start completely from scratch and specify every detail in the house. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Be careful what you wish for, though. The design process takes more work than you think.
We hired an architect for our home. And we’re glad that we did. However, don’t think that you’ll have a couple of meetings and then the architect will do all the work. You have to be prepared to do your share, too. Often the architect will give you a draft and then you’ll take it home and start examining it. It amazed me how long my husband and I could debate about the placement of one door. Don’t be discouraged if there are lots of revisions needed before you get to your dream home. Each time you make an adjustment, you’ll have narrowed down one more aspect of your house to match your vision.
When you first meet with your architect, be ready to spend a little time with him. Here are a few things you may want to do at your first appointment.
1. Bring pictures of things you like with you. We took pictures of houses that we liked from around our neighborhood and model homes that we visited.
2. Talk about things that you hate. This could be just as important as the things you like. I’ve always hated ultra-modern looking things, so I made certain that we told him that, too.
3. Talk about how you live in your home now and what changes are coming up the road. In my case, my husband and I want to start a family in the next year or so. So, although a small house suits us now, we wanted our dream home to have a couple of extra rooms to grow into.
4. Be honest about who you are. This is not the meeting where you want to start imagining that your lifestyle is different than it really is. My husband and I watch a lot of television. I know, in some circles, that isn’t always easy to admit. But if that’s how you and your family spend your evenings, don’t try to pretend that you do something else. Go ahead and plan a spot for that TV.
Dreaming about your custom-built home is a lot of fun. Seeing it come to life is even more fun
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Woohoo! A Real Groundbreaking
Although this blog was started to document the custom home building process, the process actually started for me about six months ago. Over that time we worked with an architect, found a builder, and arranged for financing.
So...this week we're finally seeing work at the build site. Here is a "before" shot of the field where our new home will be.
They brought out a huge piece of equipment (that I've since learned is called a front-loader) and started digging away. Here's shot of the hole the guys dug for the foundation.
More updates will come as the house progresses.
So...this week we're finally seeing work at the build site. Here is a "before" shot of the field where our new home will be.
They brought out a huge piece of equipment (that I've since learned is called a front-loader) and started digging away. Here's shot of the hole the guys dug for the foundation.
More updates will come as the house progresses.
Friday, November 2, 2007
A Book You Should Read
Ok, I know this is going to read a little like an informercial, but it has to be done.
Anyone who is considering purchasing a custom-built home should read this book. I don't care if you buy it or check it out at your local library, but you have to read it.
This book was written with the average person in mind. It breaks the entire construction process down into pieces that you don't have to be a construction guru to understand. No other book I've found does as good a job at educating people about the components of building a house.
You should know that Mr. Heldmann recommends acting as your own general contractor. After much debate, my husband and I decided that we didn't want to do that. (That decision needs an entire blog post of its own.) However, I feel like I understand so much more of what my general contractor is talking about because I read this book.
Besides this great book, Mr. Heldmann also has a very useful web site. I would recommend adding it to your favorites. I reference it a lot to see how long different parts of the building process should take and what I should be looking for while I'm at the build site.
Here's the web site:
A Ground Breaking of Sorts...
Ok, so the pun is a little cheesy, but this is a sort of ground breaking. Not one with front loaders and big piles of dirt, but instead with my computer and the information I'm gaining along the way.
When my husband and I decided to have a custom home built we had no idea how to get started. I think, in our mind, we envisioned that we had already made the hard choice and now the home building process would begin. Boy, were we wrong!
First, there are tons of options to building a home. I'm not talking about the fun options like picking colors or tile. I mean heavy, important options where to get your home plans, how to choose a builder, or even how to pay for this new project. We had no idea what we were getting into.
So, being the very detailed (read: compulsively anal) person that I am, I went to work. I was certain that my local library would hold all of the answers. You can find anything at the library, right? I'm sorry to say, though, that although I found a few useful books, I did not find the all-inclusive guide to purchasing a custom-built home that I was hoping for. My internet searches yielded the same results: a few good resources, but no step-by-step guideline.
That's when I decided that there had to be other people out there who felt the same way. Maybe they were crying out for information the same way I was. Thus, I decided to start the Dream Home Blog.
Let me say, right off the bat, that I'm not a construction expert. If you're looking for someone to explain the best way to install a floor joist, this is not where you want to be. But I will be sharing the choices that we've made during our little adventure, the benefits or consequences of our choices, and any other helpful information that floats my way.
Let the ground breaking begin!
When my husband and I decided to have a custom home built we had no idea how to get started. I think, in our mind, we envisioned that we had already made the hard choice and now the home building process would begin. Boy, were we wrong!
First, there are tons of options to building a home. I'm not talking about the fun options like picking colors or tile. I mean heavy, important options where to get your home plans, how to choose a builder, or even how to pay for this new project. We had no idea what we were getting into.
So, being the very detailed (read: compulsively anal) person that I am, I went to work. I was certain that my local library would hold all of the answers. You can find anything at the library, right? I'm sorry to say, though, that although I found a few useful books, I did not find the all-inclusive guide to purchasing a custom-built home that I was hoping for. My internet searches yielded the same results: a few good resources, but no step-by-step guideline.
That's when I decided that there had to be other people out there who felt the same way. Maybe they were crying out for information the same way I was. Thus, I decided to start the Dream Home Blog.
Let me say, right off the bat, that I'm not a construction expert. If you're looking for someone to explain the best way to install a floor joist, this is not where you want to be. But I will be sharing the choices that we've made during our little adventure, the benefits or consequences of our choices, and any other helpful information that floats my way.
Let the ground breaking begin!
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