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With so many details to think about, where do you start the
custom home process?  While it’s easy to get overwhelmed, we
like to simplify the custom home process by starting out
just looking at only two things.

What are these two things?
I can’t tell you because that would give away our
competitive advantage.

All right. You twisted my arm. Here they are:

Our process starts with two things:  1) you and 2) your lot.
That’s it. Pretty simple.

So I like to start things off playing Columbo.  When we meet
I’ll ask you questions that fall into just a four
categories. Here’s a small sample of our routine:

A.    $MONEY$ category

–    How important is resale to you?
–    Is return on investment your number one motivation
or is it a lower priority and you just want to
make sure you don’t do anything someone else would
think odd when you sell?
–    How are you going to finance your new home?
–    If you are going to use a lender, is a construction
loan, new first mortgage or new second mortgage best for
you? Can you use collateral of other assets to improve
your options?
–    How much cash do you have to put into your new home?

–    How much cash do you want to put in to the new home?

–    Have you spoken with a lender (we prefer you use ours I’ll

explain some advantages in future post)?
–    What tax bracket are you in? There could be some tax benefits

related to the project that may apply to your situation.

B.    Lifestyle category:

–    How long do you think you want to live in your new
home? This usually factors in to energy efficiency
and “green” options and calculating the pay-back period.
–    Are you there for 5 years and then on to the vineyards
of Oregon or is this your last home and you want us
to design a master suite on the first floor or an
elevator to get to the 2nd floor?
–    When do you want to see the home started by? This
can be a big factor when jurisdictions like Arlington,
D.C. and Montgomery County are constantly changing
zoning and building codes. Montgomery County just
passed a law that takes effect in four months
decreasing height and density in many neighborhoods
& sprinklers will be required in all dwellings in
two years (I’ll verify the exact date).
–    When do you want to move in to the home?  – “by Christmas”
is always a lofty goal and as long as you don’t
mind me asking “which one?” (I couldn’t resist)
we’ll always hit it.
–    Where will you live during the construction
(we have sources for short term rentals, but ask
me early since they go fast)?
–    Do you plan on in-laws or relatives coming back
for any period of time? What bathroom will they
use? What kitchen will they use? We just finished
a home in Silver Spring with three kitchens – one
for the kids with 5 kids of their own, one for the
parents and one for Aunt Lee, who visits during
the summers.

C.    Your Future Home (and little bit about your
current home) category

–    What are the features and amenities that you must
have, or the project just isn’t worth doing?
–    What are the features and amenities that would
be nice to have?
–    What style home do you love?
–    What style home do you hate?
–    What bothers you about your current home?
–    What do you love about your current home?
– How important are energy efficient features?
–    How important are green features?
–    Do you like open plans with a ton of natural
light and views from front to back or would you
prefer something more intimate and cozy?
–    What ceiling heights do you want? How do you feel
about two story spaces?
–    Do you want a basement? If so do you want it
finished?

D.    And Last but not least – Your Lot category – this
is always a biggie, so big I’m adding these extra
few sentences before I get to the.

It always surprises and shocks me, like a slurp
of Red Bull, when people don’t call us prior to
buying a lot (I bet you can tell, it especially
upsets me).

There could be so many restrictions on lots, for
instance: easements, setbacks, alleys, lot coverage,
height, etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., which you
would never know just by looking at a piece of dirt
with your eyes.

We just completed two subdivisions, on two separate
projects, that probably added six (unexpected)
months to each project. And added thousands of
dollars in engineering and permitting fees.
In each case the owners were not aware of the
restrictions until we performed our zoning analysis.
And in each case they had owned the lots for many years.

So checking the “buildability” of your lot is one
of the very first steps we take.
IF YOU’RE PURCHASING A LOT, please call me before
you pull that trigger!

Here are some things we look at (this is so
critical I’m tossing out the regular bullets):

• Zoning category
• Public utility easements
• Building restriction lines
• Established front yard building line
• Setbacks on all sides of the property
• Floor area ratio
• Year the lot was recorded
• Is the lot a conforming or non-conforming
• Specimen tree issues
• Tree Save issues
• Water Run-off
• Wetlands

Due to the complexity of some of these issues,
complete research and answers may be a few steps
into our process. And to paraphrase a soon to be
ex-senator, this stuff is way beyond my pay grade,
so, Kevin, our excellent and unflappable architect,
handles most of this.

Well that’s a brief primer on how we start the custom
home process.  It all starts with you and your lot,
as it should be.

Next time I’ll give you an idea of what we do once
we get your answers. But it’s 12:08 a.m. and I need
to take out the garbage so I can earn my keep.

Please keep the comments and critiques coming
and let me know what’s on your mind. And I’d appreciate
if you could tell me:

• What would you love to see during the home building process that would make your life easier?

• What frustrates you the most about the home design and building process?

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There is a alot of new home activity inside the beltway of Washington DC. The values of residential real estate in a variety of zip codes in Montgomery County Maryland have maintained value. In fact, there are several zip codes that have probably increased in value. We find that mortgage interest rates are relatively low combined with excellent prices on the direct costs which go into new custom home projects, make this an ideal time to be acquring and building.

Real estate should be looked at as a long term investment. We do not try to purchase real estate and “flip” houses. We believe real estate is a long term investment. Our financial models hold the assets for a minimum of five to seven years.

With this approach, we think real estate in the Washington DC area is an excellent long term asset. An asset which you can create real long term wealth.

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 a lot 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 are 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 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.

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.

In building and renovation, few rules hold true all the time. However, a number of useful notions lead to predictable outcomes most of the time. Unfortunately, many of these notions are forgotten when we concentrate on making ideal decisions throughout the course of the work. We lose sight of how each decision relates to the bigger project picture.

The following is a list of some commonsense ideas that almost always have a positive impact on a construction endeavor.

Maintain the Right Attitude

• Building anything is an act of joy and optimism. It’s also a learning experience. Anxiety is a normal part of that experience, but anxiety must not control the outcome of the work.
• The only adversarial relationship that is productive on a building project is the one that everyone should have with the artistic, technical, and financial challenges that the work itself presents.
• Excellent people make mistakes. Expect that they will continue to do so.
• Building a house is not an industrial process. It is hand labor, at a site, involving dozens of components that have to work and fit together as well as possible. Expectations for the quality of the work should reflect these characteristics.

Choosing an architect and builder

• When selecting a professional with whom to work, the first criterion should be character; the second, competence; the third, dedication.
• Clients are in the difficult business position of dealing with people who know more about design and construction than they do. In this vulnerable situation, the best strategy is to choose professionals of unquestionable integrity.
• To secure the greatest benefit from the knowledge that consultants and builders posses, allow them to do their work in the manner that their training and experience have shown will be most effective.
• Clients who receive the best service are those from whom trust is ample, enthusiasm is overt, information is complete, and payment is prompt.

About Project Costs

• Accurate cost estimates are based on facts; inaccurate estimates are usually the result of guessing. Financial risk in building is reduced by developing as much specific design information as possible before construction begins.
• The complexity of both design and construction work is often underestimated.
• Many people believe that they know a good deal about architectural design. What they do not realize is how much more they need to know to do design well, with distinction, refinement, and grace.
• Architects have the patience to plan. Builders have the savvy to improvise. Improvisation, however, is not a substitute for planning. The purpose of planning is to achieve predictable results. The purpose of improvising is to maintain work progress.
• For construction to be done efficiently, most design decisions need to be made in advance of building. If made during construction, these decisions can interrupt the work flow and increase its cost. Late design decisions are also more difficult to incorporate into the rest of the design.
• A construction project involves people with wide variations in skill, experience, intelligence, and desire. Effective project management optimizes the conditions that allow people to perform at their best.
• Frequent, candid communication is vital to minimize construction problems.
• Good people care. The end result usually shows why.

Should you?

To buy all the parts that make up your automobile, you might have to spend upwards of four times the cost. And then you would still have to put them all together! Custom building a house is not quite as bad as that, but it still costs more than a ready-made builder’s product. So why build a custom home?

If you answer “Yes” to any of the following questions, you are a good candidate for considering a custom home.

• Have you looked for a ready-made home, but have been unable to find one which fulfills your desires and preferences, your family’s needs, and/or your aesthetic sense?
• Do you have very particular and specific desires about what you want in a home? When you look at existing homes, do you seem to want to change everything about them?
• Do you have unusual requirements for a home, such as special-purpose rooms, a particular layout, built in major fixtures or systems, accessibility, an accessory dwelling, or out-buildings?
• Would you like to make use of alternative energy sources, ecologically sound or non-toxic building materials, or any other fixtures, methods, or materials which are not generally found in ready-made homes?
• Have you been unable to find a home which works for you in the right location or neighborhood?
• Do you wish for a home with particular views, water frontage, zoning, or type of trees or vegetation, and have been unable to find an existing home that has them?
• Are you in love with a particular piece of vacant land?
• Are you already the owner of a particular piece of vacant land?
• Do you own, or are thinking of buying, a divisible lot, with an existing home on one part? If so, you might build a custom home on the vacant part, and the sell the existing home.
• Do you own, or are thinking of buying, a lot in a good neighborhood with an existing home in such disrepair that it should be torn down?
• Do you own, or are thinking of buying, a piece of land with a mobile home? If so, you might build a custom home while still living in the mobile, and then sell the mobile.
• Do you want to make sure that your new home is structurally sound and has been built under newer building code requirements, such as those which afford precautions for earthquakes, slides, floods, fire, or hurricanes?

There are many more questions to ask yourself, those are just some of the reasons why you would build a custom home.

Bottom line – If you’re looking at existing homes and you can’t find that perfect dream home – it’s time to think about a custom home.