Choosing a Builder for Your Custom Home.
If you have not been able to find the perfect house on the market and you decide to build on a vacant lot, you'll be faced with a very important decision - choosing a builder. Your builder is someone you are going to have an ongoing relationship with for about 12 months. Start your search by asking your real estate agent for a few referrals. Once you have some direction, here are a few basic tips to help choose a builder and keep your project on track:
Get references - and don't hire a builder until you have visited 2 or 3 other houses completed by the builder. Ideally, get the address of every house the builder has built in the last 2 or 3 years and contact several of the owners randomly. Don't expect a perfect report card. Building a house is tough business and it is almost impossible to make a homeowner happy at every turn.
Pick a day and time to meet with your contractor each week and in person. Don't ever miss this meeting - it will keep the project on track, keep costs and changes to a minimum and establish a great working relationship. Make sure that all "change orders" are reviewed and signed during the meeting.
Visit the builder's other working job sites to make sure that they run a tight ship. Specifically, look to see if unused materials are organized and protected from the weather. Make sure that there is some evidence of a temporary workspace to review plans.
Make it clear to your builder that you expect progress every day of every week. Your money is being used to build a house that you cannot move into until it is completed. A day of inactivity at the site costs you money and you deserve progress in exchange for that money.
Don't expect your builder to have a crystal ball. Do expect some minor deviations from what is planned. You will have fewer surprises cost-wise if you take the time to make sure that every possible item is included in the construction price.
Building a house can be a great experience. Chances are, if you take this advice, you will move into your new house on time, within budget and as a happy customer. The builder will be happier at the end also.
For more tips on real estate related topics- http://www.mcdevitttownandcountry.com
Noel McDevitt is Managing Broker/Owner of McDevitt Sotheby's International Realty in Pinehurst & Southern Pines, NC. He is also a licensed attorney with nearly 20 years of experience in real estate and construction law.
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