Steps To Building a House
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he possibility of building a house is very exciting to many individuals. Not only do they get to decide where the home is located, they also get to design how it will look on the inside. They get the thrill of living in a home that no one else has been in before! This could be an option for you to consider but there are plenty of things to learn first.
Location
[imageframe style=”bottomshadow” bordercolor=”#d3d3d3″ bordersize=”2px” align=”left”]
[/imageframe]Where do you want your home to be located? There may be plenty of choices around for you to pick from. Do you want to live around people or have more privacy? What type of commute will you have to work, to schools, for social activities? All of this should play a role in the location you select.
The location should also be a place where it is feasible for construction to take place. There will be plenty of types of equipment and materials that have to get to that destination. You don’t want to choose a location for building a home that makes it complicated or virtually impossible to get those supplies in place.
Will it be possible to get utilities, internet connection, and cable at that location? It can be very expensive if the location requires extra steps to get these necessities in place. The foundation is certainly something to think about. The area for the home should be level or extra time and expense will be required to make it that way so that building can begin.
Design your Home
Working with an architect allows you to get the design for your home completed. Today, most of them use very complex software programs. This allows them to give you different layout scenarios and you can pick the one that is perfect for you. The more you openly communicate with the architect, the easier it is for them to design those images for you. Don’t be shy about speaking up if you aren’t happy with something. You have the final say about what will be built so make sure it is everything you want.
Permits
There may be numerous types of permits that you will need to have in place before the home can be built. Most of the time, the contractor hired will take care of getting them for you. However, you will be responsible for the cost of the permits. Some contractors ask you to get the permits and then they will start the work once they are verified. Make sure you know what your role will be with permits before you hire a contractor.
Some of the types of permits you will need to have can include:
- Electrical permit
- HVAC permit for air conditioning
- Plumbing permit
- Environmental impact permit
Contractor
Depending on your home design and needs, you may have one contractor to work with or several. Ideally, it is to your advantage to hire a lead contractor. They can then subcontract out the other work that needs to be done. This reduces the amount of time you spend involved in the process. It also increases the chance that all contractors can work well with each other and that they can correlate schedules for the work that each is going to accomplish.
There is plenty work that goes into building a home, and you want the best contractor for each step. Some of the contactors can build the entire home for you as they have enough employees for them that specialize in the various areas. It is important to evaluate the reputation of any contractor and to know exactly what they offer before you hire them.
The entire contract with them needs to be in writing and it needs to be very detailed. If you don’t have the money up front, this contract is going to need to be approved by your lender. They aren’t going to loan you the money to have a home built if you don’t have a detail plan of action in place with a certified contractor.
Inspections
Building code laws will require various inspections to be done at the building site. This is for the safety of the home as well as for those that are involved in building it. The inspections ensure that certain elements are in place before the next phase of the home can be worked on. Some of the common elements that will be inspected include:
- Foundation
- Concrete slabbing
- Framing
- Electrical
- Plumbing
Timeframe
The amount of time it will take to build your home depends on many factors. The location of the home, materials to be used, and contractors all influence it. When there are delays due to waiting for inspections or not passing inspections then that adds to the overall timeframe. Delays due to weather can also be a problem. The contractors can give you an estimated timeframe for completion, but add on a few months to that just to give some wiggle room.
Cost
The cost of building a home depends on all the factors that influence it. The materials used to build, the cost of the contractor and more all add into that price. That is why you need an itemized estimate in writing that you can use to determine if you can afford to build a home.