Generally, there are seven steps for financing the construction of a new home using most construction/perm loan programs.
1. Initial Stage – Prequalify with one of our lenders
You’ve looked at some of our house plans on-line but have not had the first consultation meeting with our design team. Even though you don’t have much finalized, now is great time to start to get your financing in place. We’ll put you in touch with one of the lenders that we work with at this initial stage. This is the time to pre-qualify with our lender.
2. Application
While we are designing your home the plans are starting to solidify. And since we are designing and pricing in-house this happens very early in our process. The benefit to you is you’ll know the amount of money you’ll need early on. This allows you to start the formal loan application early on.
3. Approvals
Our lender will work with you to get your permanent loan approved. We’ll also get the final plans and specs so that the lender can order an appraisal.
After the lender has the appraisal and a fully executed purchase contract, they’ll submit the entire package for construction loan approval.
4. Construction Closing
After the lender has all the necessary approvals, they’ll close on the loan that will finance the construction of your home. A settlement agent will give you specific instructions about the amount you’ll need to bring to closing, and in what form. As soon as you close on the construction loan, we may begin building.

5. Draw Process
During construction, the lender will send out a construction inspector to inspect our work and to approve our requested draws from the construction fund for work that has been completed.

6. Completion of Construction
A final inspection will determine that the construction on your home is complete.  We’ll get a Certificate of Occupancy (or its equivalent) from your local authorities.
Then our lender will also work with you to ensure that you’re ready to transition into your permanent loan product. They’ll schedule a modification of the construction loan to the permanent mortgage.
7. Move In!

People sometimes comment “they don’t build them like they used to”, referring to houses that were built decades ago.  And I usually think to myself – Thank God!!

There are alot of charming older houses in the DC area, but the fact is design and construction methods today have advanced over homes that were built 10, 20 and over 50 years ago.

Here are some benefits today’s advanced methods and technologies bring to homes built now:

* Designed for You You can get a custom home, designed with your needs and tastes in mind. Or, if you’re buying a newly constructed home, you can have your builder add personal touches, such as higher countertops or a preferred bathtub style.
* Greater Safety There is less risk of fire in today’s new homes. Many new homes have hard-wired smoke detectors, with battery-powered backup. Wiring systems have been improved, and new homes have more outlets.
* Easier Maintenance Many new homes are constructed with siding, window, and trim materials that never need painting. New roofing materials are denser, longer lasting and many have fire-retardant features.
* Greater Energy Efficiency Improved heating and cooling systems and better insulation techniques offer efficiencies. Many homes built before the 1950’s had no or hardly any insulation. Today homes have a minimum R13 in the walls and R30 in floors and ceilings.  Additionally, there are many other options today to add more and denser types of insulation if you want.
* Structural Strength In areas subject to inclement weather or earthquakes (yes even the DC area has some of these design requirements), builders now use extra bracing and framing systems to better withstand exterior stress. Soils are tested and foundations engineered to resist or accommodate movement. New drainage devices collect rain from gutters and slopes, then deliver water directly into storm drains. Roof and floor trusses enhance structural strength and create new interior design options.
* Better Health – Today, asbestos and lead have been completely eliminated from materials used in new construction. Formaldehyde emissions from products such as particleboard and plywood have been substantially reduced as well. And new control systems are available for areas where radon could be a potential problem.

There are several benefits to purchasing a pre-construction home. Brand-new homes do not come with repair costs since nothing in the home has ever been used and the structure has not been subject to the elements.

When you have a new home built, you have the opportunity to choose the look and feel of your home, and personalize it to suit your tastes. Some home builders, especially in hurricane prone areas like Florida, are now building homes above hurricane code with extensive safety measures to protect the homeowner in the face of severe weather.

But not all home builders specialize in high quality homes, or offer buyers the chance to personalize their home. That is why choosing the correct home builder is such an integral part of a positive home buying experience.

A tale of two builders: tract homes vs. custom homes

There are two very different types of home builders offering their services today. The first, and often cheapest, option is a tract home builder. These builders offer newly constructed homes at the lowest prices, and can be an affordable option for the buyer on a tight budget. Tract homes are not necessarily bad homes, but the materials used to build them are often of much lower quality than materials used by custom home builders.

Tract home builders can offer lower prices because they purchase materials in mass quantity. Because of this mass purchasing policy, they are not able to offer buyers decor options or choices in color scheme, flooring, etc. Tract homes are often referred to as “cookie-cutter” homes because they all look exactly the same. Tract homes are very seldom built above code, and do not usually include options such as safety glass, additional roof truss straps, or solid, poured concrete construction.

You get what you pay for

Custom homes often come with a higher price tag, but you can definitely see where the extra money goes. High-quality materials, custom decor options, and additional safety measures are just a few of the additional features custom home builders offer. Homes built by custom builders are usually much more luxurious in scale, and often include vaulted ceilings and bright, airy floor plan choices. Top of the line paint, appliances, flooring and fixtures may also be offered.

But there are also different levels of custom home builders, especially when it comes to hurricane safety. In states where hurricanes are a fact of life during the summer months, choosing a high-quality home builder is especially important.

Above code construction

One state where additional hurricane protection is especially important is Florida. In 2004, Florida suffered a series of direct hurricane strikes to both coasts. Even inland areas were not immune to the powerful storms, and homes throughout Florida suffered severe damage. Florida was also subject to extensive building code reform after the devastation Hurricane Andrew left behind in 1992.

Despite extensive reform in South Florida, only a handful of additional Florida counties have adopted the strict standards that are currently in place in Dade county (areas of which were devastated by Hurricane Andrew). In fact, the current building code in most counties only requires that new homes be built to withstand a Category 2 hurricane.

That is why a handful of builders in Florida have begun giving their customers an added level of protection. Above code construction is a term used by these builders to convey that their home construction standards exceed what is required by Florida building code. Some of these homes are built to withstand winds in excess of 140 mph, and offer superior protection for homeowners.

It’s all in the details

After deciding which type of home you are looking to have built (tract or custom, standard or above-code), there are a few more criteria you can use to narrow down your list of choices. First, select your top three neighborhood choices and thoroughly explore the housing market in each of these areas. Make a list of builders who have lots available in your target areas.

Personally visit each builder on your list, as you can get a good feel for the company by visiting their sales offices. Take note of your experience with each company. Is their office staff friendly and helpful? Do they have model homes to show? Do they offer a home warranty? What about builder financing? Do they thoroughly review the floor plans, custom features, and available decor options? Trust your instincts and go with the home builder you are most comfortable working with, and who you feel shares your vision of the ideal home.

Considering how fragile the economy is right now and how timid banks are to loan money for new homes I thought I’d share my experience with saving money on new home construction. It wasn’t that long ago when getting loans was really easy and building large homes was the trend. Today banks are less likely to fun new construction because of the premium costs associated with new construction.

In most real estate markets today you can purchase an existing home for quite a bit less money than a comparable new home. Because of this banks are much more likely to focus their loans on very good customers with plenty of equity (skin in the game!) and homes that will hold their value in this turbulent real estate market.

Having said that if you’re really set on building a new home there are ways you can keep the budget down and the banks more likely to fund your project. Here are my top five ways of saving money on new home construction.

1. Square footage is the name of the game. No matter how you slice it every square foot you add to the footprint of your new home is going to cost money. It affects every aspect of the construction from the foundation all the way to the finish coat of paint. I tell customers to start off with a floor plan that has everything they want and all the room they want. Then you need to take the time to analyze each and every room and see if you can make them smaller and keep the functionality. If you take a simple 30 foot wide home and remove 2 feet of length you can save 60 square feet. 60 sq. ft multiplied times an average cost of over $150 equals $9000. Now you might be saying $9000 is nothing….but I say that will pay for over half of your flooring. So if you want to be serious about keeping costs down then always keep the square footage to a minimum.

2. Choose a home that is 2 stories if at all possible. This concept is pretty simple yet some people never realize how effective it can be. Let’s compare two homes; home A is a 2000 sq. ft. ranch style single level home, home B is a 2000 sq. ft. colonial two story home. Both homes have 2000 sq. ft. so you might say they would cost the same. I would argue the opposite and heres why. House A has a foundation that is twice the size as House B. House A has a roof twice the size of House B. This simple example can easily save you $10,000 to $20,000 yet you end up with the same livable space.

3. Instead of having an attached garage you can save a large sum of money if your house lot topography will allow for a drive under garage. In this scenario you use a portion of your basement for your garage and you can easily save $15,000 to $25,000. Now this option won’t work well for level lots or areas of the country that build home on flat slabs but it’s still a great money savings idea.

4. Ask your builder if there are any simple, safe construction tasks that you could do to reduce the costs. Many customers end up doing their own painting, cleaning or even final landscaping. These tasks could save you anywhere from a few thousand dollars up to tens of thousands of dollars.

5. Another recent option is to consider using certain Energy Star appliances, furnaces and air conditioning units. By using some of these products you may qualify for substantial government tax credits that can help offset some of your construction costs. My only word of caution on this item is that some banks are still trying to figure out new technologies like geothermal heat or solar panels. So they may be less interested in funding these types of products.

There you have it my top five money saving ideas for new home construction.

Clients always ask us about what their choices are when it comes to countertop materials. Well, when it comes to bathroom countertops there’s no limit to how creative you can be, because most countertops are custom-designed for each installation. There are hundreds of colors, patterns, and materials to choose from, but not all of them work well in the bathroom where water and condensation are a constant concern. Your best choices are marble, granite, ceramic or porcelain tiles, solid surface materials and cultured marble.

Cultured Marble is the most common and least expensive countertop material, by a considerable margin and is available in many colors. A nice feature with cultured marble tops is that the top and the sink bowl are one piece. This is called a top with an integral bowl.

Ceramic & Porcelain Tile are very versatile materials that you can use on your countertop to create a specific style or look. Contemporary, retro, traditional, rustic, country, and everything in-between is possible when working with ceramic tile. The only drawback to using tile is the grout lines, because nobody wants to invest the time and energy necessary to keep grout clean, especially in the bathroom. And don’t be fooled – tile grout requires regular maintenance and lots of elbow grease. On the flip side, the tile itself is easy to clean. Cost is between $50 to $80 per linear foot, installed. Plain-colored tiles cost from $2 to $40 per tile with hand-painted tiles running from $5 to $75.

Corian and Solid Surfacing is made of either a pure acrylic product or a polyester-acrylic mix. The most widely available and widely known 100 percent synthetic countertop material is Corian by Dupont, but other manufacturers including Wilsonart, Formica and Avenite also make it in a wide range of colors and textures. Some of the materials are solid colors, but most have flecks that give it a textured look that resembles real stone (that will run the cost up). Cost is between $75 to $150 a linear foot, installed.

Granite slabs are the most expensive of all countertop surfaces, but this is one product that holds its weight. The expense of granite will vary greatly, depending on the type, quality and availability of granite that you select, as well as the finished edge that you choose. If you just can’t resist the look of granite and your purse is stretched, try going for granite tiles. Cost is between $75 to $200 a linear foot, installed.

Composite Stone is the hot new surface when it comes to tops and a big rival to granite. It is a stone-synthetic composite made of about 90 percent quartz particles and 10 percent acrylic or epoxy binder. Some of the composites look like natural stone, but not one that you could identify. Others are so close to real granite that you’re left wondering if it’s real or not? Since the composites are man-made materials, they do not have the unexpected variation of granite or marble and they do not need to be sealed. The four major choices – Silestone, Okite, CaesarStone and DuPont’s Zodiaq – all use the same process. The only differences between them for the end users are the colors and textures offered. Taken together, the four companies offer more than 130 countertop choices. Cost is between $110 to $250 a linear foot, installed.

The first sustainable solar community development in South Africa was one of 15 projects worldwide selected for presentation at the UN Global Warming Conference in Kyoto, Japan. It was chosen as an example of how developing nations can grow and prosper while minimizing emissions of greenhouse gases, and is known as a “no regrets” project because it created sustainable economic growth and stable, healthy communities while costing no more to implement than a conventional development.

The Solar Village development addresses the physical as well as the social and economic needs of the people. The community plan employed a participatory design process where future residents took an active role in community design. The plan incorporates cluster housing, shared garden space, footpaths and parks, and a town center. The town center accommodates the central business district, churches, schools, and public buildings, as well as a community soccer field. The town center is within easy walking distance of all 200 homes in the development. The homes are naturally heated and cooled and maintain comfort and good indoor air quality year round with no mechanical systems of any kind. All waste is composted, and gray water is used for irrigation.

Rather than using outside contractors, future residents were trained and hired to build the homes using housing subsidy money from the South African Government. This provided a relatively large infusion of cash that served to jump-start the local economy. To date, over 200 homes have been built in Kimberly and Cape Town, and a new Solar Village is being started in Ugie. Projects such as these provide economic opportunity and a large degree of self-reliance through the use of solar and natural energy flows and sustainable community design.

* Homes are comfortable year round with no mechanical systems or energy costs
* Homes are healthy and safe
* Homes are clustered in groups of six to share gardens, compost, and gray water
* Household sewage is composted on site and used in the gardens
* Gray water is filtered on site and used to irrigate the gardens
* The Town Center is within easy walking distance of all the homes
* The Town Center has: A village green and soccer field, a common village house for multipurpose activities, churches, schools, and shops and markets surrounding the village green

The homes are clustered in groups of six around a cul-de-sac. The six-home cluster facilitates the natural organization of a community unit and was a result of extensive discussions with community representatives. Each cluster shares a common garden area. The homes face the street and have good solar orientation toward the north (Southern Hemisphere).

The cul-de-sac street layout:

* Encourages community organization in natural, manageable groups
* Reduces the total road area when compared to a grid pattern
* Lowers cost
* Results in less disturbed land

At the center of the Solar Village is the village square. The village square is a large grassy area the size of a soccer field which serves as a gathering place for the whole village. To the south of the village square is the community center: a large, open building that can be used for meetings, events, entertainment, worship, training workshops, and community office space. On the other side of the green is space for one or more churches or places of worship. The concept of the village square is to create a focal point that helps give the village an identity. Creating and maintaining a strong sense of community is vital to the success of the village and the prosperity of the people.

The homes themselves are designed to replace the tin and mud shacks in which more than half of the people currently live. Since the majority of people in this community are unemployed and could not qualify for a mortgage, the basic home costs no more than the subsidy. The home is 570 square feet and contains two bedrooms, a kitchen, bath, and living room. The direct gain passive solar heating system provides 100% of the heating. Shading, coupled with good ventilation and thermal mass, keeps the home cool in the hot summer months. Cooking is done in a solar oven built into the north-facing wall. Passive solar heating and the solar oven helps reduce the need for traditional kerosene heaters and cook stoves, which emit dangerous levels of carbon monoxide. Optional passive solar water heating and PV systems are also available.

The insulation, mass, and solar window area were optimized using Energy-10 Version 1.2 energy analysis software, an 8760 hourly simulation program. Since hourly weather data is not currently available for South Africa, ASHRAE design data (maximum and minimum temperature and RH) were used for the location and compared to U.S. cities with the same latitude (north latitude) and the same design conditions. The closest match to Cape Town was San Francisco, CA. As a result, the winter and summer months on the plots are reversed for South Africa. The base house was run changing one building element per run. Changes were made exploring variations in wall insulation, roof insulation, thermal mass, and window size and type. The objective was to achieve comfortable indoor conditions (minimum 60° F [16° C] in winter and maximum 80° F [27° C] in summer) without a mechanical system and at the lowest first cost.

The resulting design is as follows:

* Walls are brick outside, 3-inch EPS foam and brick inside
* Roof is a structural panel of corrugated aluminum, 3-inch (72mm) EPS foam, 0.5-inch (13mm) OSB and 0.5-inch (13mm) gypsum board Slab on grade
* 542-foot (5812m) single-glazed north window
* 16-inch (406mm) north roof overhang

Additional features include:

* Local materials used in construction insofar as practicable. Candidate materials include soil cement blocks and bricks made on site and rammed earth.
* Well-ventilated for indoor air quality
* Passive solar heating. All homes are oriented to the north and have large windows on the north side. The homes remain warm all winter with no supplemental heat.
* Natural cooling. Homes are well shaded in the summer with a combination of overhangs, arbors, trees, and other shade devices. Most of the lots around the houses are shaded in the summer to create cool islands around the homes. All rooms have flow-through ventilation to capture the summer breezes, so the homes remain comfortable all summer.
* The house plan is easily expandable to adapt to growing family needs.

Optional features include:

* Solar water heating
* Through-the-wall solar cookers
* Waterless composting toilets and urinals

As the primary source of food, the gardens in the Solar Village play a very important role in the self-reliance and prosperity of the community. Because six families can agree and work more cooperatively than 600, the cluster concept divides the community gardens into groups of six homes that share one community garden. The cluster groups can then agree on shared crops, livestock, and composting.

Composting is an important component, not only of the productivity of the garden but also for the waste management system. Waterless composting toilets turn human waste into compost that returns to the soil to enrich the growing crops. The compost from the composting toilets can not be used directly on food crops, so it must first go through the outdoor compost pile. By recycling all organic waste through composting, the villagers will build very rich and productive gardens. As the yields increase, many villagers may start growing commercial crops to generate income. This system also dramatically reduces the per-household potable water requirements. Replacing the flush toilet with waterless composting toilets eliminates the need to use potable water to water the gardens. Thus, the central water purification plant size and associated costs are dramatically reduced.

Over 200 homes have now been through a full winter and summer cycle. The indoor comfort was as predicted, although a few houses that were not sited properly showed some overheating in the summer. This pointed out to the builder the importance of orientation. The Kutlanong community in Kimberly was developed as a sustainable community and has considerably improved the quality of life for its residents.

One of the most sustainable aspects of the project has been economic development. In most other subsidy projects, a builder/developer from outside the community comes in and builds the homes. By hiring members of the community and training them to build the houses, $3,100 per house went directly into the community. This represents an overall infusion of approximately $625,000, which in time could result in $1,875,000 in total economic activity for the community. The traditional approach would have resulted in zero economic benefit for the community. We have also eliminated most heating and cooking costs and created a much healthier indoor environment. The effect on the residents is obvious. They are healthier, they are gaining weight, crime is low, and local businesses are strong. This project demonstrates how solar energy and sustainable community development can not only improve the quality of life for people in developing countries but also for needy people worldwide.

By John Spears

Regardless of a home’s size or style, all construction follows a consistent pattern and pace. Excavation and foundation work will be followed by the framing phase, which will be followed by rough mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work. As soon as those stages are complete, insulation will be installed. These steps follow each other quickly and are easy to see. The progress is exciting!

But when our focus shifts to the interior finishes of your new home, the pace seems to slow down and daily progress is more difficult to follow. To the homeowner, it might seem that we are losing focus or paying less attention to the project. In fact, the opposite is true. The apparent pace of work has slowed because finishing work is much more detailed than the previous stages. We much be more focused and pay more attention to the finishing details.

For example, cutting, building, and fastening the pieces of a complex crown molding profile along the ceiling-wall joint of an upscale kitchen requires several hours of painstaking work by a skilled finish carpenter. Likewise, finishing newly built walls to a smooth, uniform surface is a process that takes multiple cycles of application, drying, sanding, and cleaning to accomplish properly.

There also are more products to install. The number of cabinets, faucets, light fixtures, door handles, and outlet and switch covers in a modern new house continues to increase as homes become larger and more luxurious. To get some sense of that task, count the number of outlets and switch covers in your kitchen and family room alone (or in the whole house, if you’re more ambitious), each of which must be installed by hand before you can move in.

Finally, finish work signals the last stage of the building process. Both we and our homeowners are anxious to finish the job after several weeks of anticipation and hard work, not counting the time spent planning before construction began. It is hard for homeowners to remain patient when the work appears to be moving slowly.

By the very nature of its exacting, hand-applied work, the finishing phase of homebuilding is necessarily slow. That does not mean that the work is being neglected! During this final part of your home construction, remember that we remain focused on the highest quality installation and application of your home’s interior finishes.

By building an addition, you can make your home more livable, while increasing its value. It also allows you to stay in a home and neighborhood you like without incurring the expenses and inconvenience of moving. But before you start, there are many things you should know.

Find out about building restrictions

While you are still in the thinking stage for your home addition, find out from city hall if there are any local zoning ordinances that could affect your project, such as lot setbacks (i.e. the minimum distance required from the adjacent property lines or public right of way to the outermost portion of the structure) and height restrictions.

Additions come in all shapes and sizes

Home additions are becoming increasingly popular across the U.S. to accommodate aging parents (and, unfortunately, in-laws), or even as rental units to generate a monthly income. These additions can include a bedroom, bathroom, sitting room and a private entrance, although the most popular home additions involve adding an extra room onto an exterior wall. Sun rooms, garages and extra bedrooms are common additions, as well as living rooms, dining rooms and home offices.

You may want to consider building up instead of losing lawn and garden space, or building a two-story addition that will accommodate an office or bedroom on top of the garage to maximize space. Other additions, such as carports, porches and decks often require less disruption of your home, yet will still increase its functionality and value.

If you’re adding indoor space, make sure a heating and air conditioning (HVAC) professional is brought in to assess the increased demand on the present system.

Continuity works best

Something to think about with a home addition (and something we specialize in) is consistency – within your own home and with the neighborhood. First, you want your addition to “fit in” with the rest of the house, both inside and out. That is, you don’t want the addition to look like an “add-on,” either structurally or in terms of decor. Similarly, a huge addition to a house in a modest neighborhood will surely give you more space, but when it comes time to sell you may not get the return on your investment you were hoping for, as those who can afford a bigger house will likely look in a more expensive neighborhood.

Consider the costs

When planning your addition, remember that the less impact there is on your present structure, the more cost-effective the addition will be. For example, moving plumbing walls, radically altering the floor plan and making changes to the roof line will all increase your costs significantly.

Assess impact for heating and air conditioning

We will bring in subcontractors for specialized jobs, like electrical and plumbing. If you’re adding indoor space, we’ll make sure that a heating and air conditioning (HVAC) professional is brought in to assess the increased demand that the addition will place on the present system.