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Why Build a Custom Home
Are you trying to decide between building a home and buying a home? Every situation is different. Move-in-ready homes certainly have a place in the market, but if you are looking to hit specific wish lists, custom built is the best way to make sure you get everything you want.
Yes, designing and building from scratch is a big process, and one that often comes with a lot of questions. First and foremost, people often wonder whether building a custom home is worth the wait.
We believe it is 100% worth the wait to custom build your home.
Doing custom design builds is our specialty, so we know that we may be a little biased, but we’re also experts. In a custom-built home, you can determine the design based on your preferences, prioritize what matters to you, and make conscious choices about the things that will impact your space and your budget. An experienced design-builder knows how the design translates into reality and has knowledge of the cost of the options and features.
First, think about the purpose of the home.
Is it a primary dwelling you intend to live in for many years, a vacation home built to entertain, a starter home with an intent to upgrade in a few years, a home with a legal suite for a mortgage helper or retirement plan for aging parents, or a home you intend to rent out as a source of income? Each situation is unique, so each home should be as well. Your design builder can sit down with you and make sure to ask you the right questions to get your home designed for YOU.
Plus, when you build custom, you can plan ahead for any changes to the purpose of your home in a way that can make renovations later a lot easier and more cost effective. If you think there are features you might want to save on now but prep to add later, this is worth knowing, especially if they may have electrical or plumbing needs.
Second, know what you want in your home before you meet with a professional.
How many bedrooms and bathrooms do you want? How much room would you like in your kitchen and dining areas? What rooms would you like to have the view? What will be your main access point in the home? Do you want several floors or all one level? What options do you want to prepare for in the future? These are just some of the questions to ask yourself.
One owner’s bonus storage area may be another owner’s wine room. Others may need space for a hobby or home office, or an extra living area for their kids. Also think about what features you want your bathrooms to have. Customizing gives flexibility to decide where you want a shower or a bathtub, how much counterspace is ideal in each bathroom, and if you want to incorporate storage or laundry features.
After all, a custom home means you get to decide the items that make a difference to your personal enjoyment. You can add the luxuries, conveniences, or unique features that you want while also limiting the costs in any areas that aren’t the focus. One family may want an expansive primary bedroom suite with an equally spacious bathroom, whereas another may decide that a smaller bedroom and bigger kitchen makes more sense for the way they use their home.
This is truly up to you and a good design-builder can help you decide what will work best for your needs and how you can incorporate it within your budget.
Third, plan the details before you start building.
The more decisions that are made before the building process begins, the smoother things will go. Sometimes as you see and learn things through the build process, you may want to make a change. While changes and extras are normal and good custom builders will accommodate your requests, keep in mind that including something later that wasn’t initially planned can add time and cost to the process.
Being clear about your priorities and understanding what your role is makes custom building more approachable, so don’t be afraid to ask questions! You can’t know what you don’t know, and it’s your contractor’s responsibility to make sure you understand what’s happening and what’s expected from you as the owner, especially if it could affect the quality, timeline, or cost of your project.
An experienced design-builder will be able to work with you to customize your plans exactly as you want them before ever breaking ground on your project. Sometimes having so many choices and options can be overwhelming, but an experienced and attentive contractor will be able to help you with making the right decisions at the right time.
What can ensure you are happier using your custom home is the small details, because these really influence flow and function of your space.
Kitchen optimization is crucial. Talking with your builder/contractor to discuss how you use your kitchen will help them customize to suit your specific needs. Some people love the big corner cabinets to put all their large rarely used kitchen items in, other people find a pull-out organizer makes their life easier. Are you left-handed? Maybe you want to position your dishwasher on the OTHER side of the sink for once! Will you have multiple people cooking at the same time? Space it accordingly so there are multiple kitchen stations. Are there any conveniences or accessibility features you want to add? Consider under-cabinet lighting, a toe-kick vacuum, an island with seating, or a pot-filler at the stove. Don’t forget to consider non-essential things like heated floors, fireplaces, smart home features, or powered blinds, as these can make a big difference to how comfortable you are in your home.
Fourth, know your budget, and check-in as you go.
Are all your wants and needs possible within your budget? Will any changes you want to make increase the overall cost? Do you feel like your contractor understands your budget and your priorities, so they can give you options that reflect that? Are there any unpredictable costs or potential challenges to manage to build on your lot in your area?
The budget may be listed as the fourth point, but really, this is something you will be doing all along. It’s important to keep your budget in mind right from the start, and make sure your design is done with this in mind, too.
With a custom-built home, you control the size, placement, and final costs. Having an expert design-builder you can trust makes all the difference. Weninger Construction focuses on bringing your vision to life, and we have experience working with all different budgets and types of projects to do this well for many years. We use online platforms to keep owners up to date with progress and selections, so that even if the owner doesn’t live locally, they have the comfort of always knowing the progress and the costs. There is no reason you need to be out of the loop on your project throughout the custom design-build process.
In short, a custom build can be an amazing journey. With a trusted builder, you can turn your vision into reality and truly create a space that works for you and your future.
