Building your dream home will give you an incredible amount of flexibility over everything from the floor plans to the materials that are used. While having a home built is extremely satisfying, it can also be quite a lengthy process. Many buyers find themselves struggling with dozens of minor hiccups that keep them out of their new homes for months. Here are three steps you can take to make sure that you get into your new home as quickly as possible.
1. Work Closely With The Pros Whenever You Can
Throughout the course of your home construction, you’re going to need to work with a number of different companies including home designers, general contractors, and land developers. No matter whom you’re working with, stay close to the projects. When you choose a professional, make sure you select someone who keeps the lines of communication open.
That means that before signing any contracts with these companies, ask for recent referrals and check them out. You should also make sure that they are fully bonded and licensed for whatever field they are working in. No one wants to get to the final stage of building only to realize that a small component isn’t up to code.
2. Create an Emergency Fund
It is an unfortunate, but inevitable, fact that you will run into some mishaps during this process. No matter how much time you spend planning and preparing, there may come a point when you find yourself dealing with a problem that is completely out of your control. In order to quickly overcome these issues, you will need to have a small emergency fund.
There is no set amount of money you should keep in reserve, but many specialists suggest having an emergency fund of around 10 or 15% of the material costs. At the very least, that will help you cover price fluctuations and the occasional broken material.
3. Skip the Last-Minute Changes
Because you are having your home built from the ground up, you most likely want everything to be absolutely perfect. Having a home built gives you quite a bit of leeway on the alterations and upgrades, but there will come a point when you need to let the professionals do their jobs. You might think that a slight change to the floor plans is not a big deal, but it could actually put multiple teams behind schedule. These delays can be especially overwhelming if you try to make larger changes to the home after the foundation is down. Once a single step is taking longer than expected, it is going to have a major impact on every subsequent step. If you end up deciding that you would like to make a few cosmetic changes to your home, then you might want to save those projects until after you move in.
Many people come to the conclusion that they will have to build their own home if they want to get everything exactly right. Your dream home can include practically any feature you will ever need, but you should also realize that you might have to make some sacrifices if you are on a tight schedule. This process can be lengthy, and every new upgrade will add quite a bit of time to the build.
This guest post is written by Emma Sturgis a freelance writer based in Boston, MA. When not writing, she enjoys rock climbing and reading. Say hi on Twitter @EmmaSturgis2. Informational credit: New home builders in Utah
