Building a House – 12 Important Steps
Once you have considered all of the pros and cons of building your own home and you see this happening in your future, move very cautiously straight ahead. After you have settled on a budget and a floor plan, you are now ready for the real work and the many decisions in this process.
You will be interviewing and hiring sub-contractors all the way from the preparation of the foundation to the eventual laying of the carpet. Be sure to get references on each one and do not trust someone just because they have a friendly face. The biggest problem you have to guard against is hiring someone only to have them not show up on time, drag out the job, and do below-par work.
Here are 12 important steps you must take in order to achieve the well built and beautiful home you desire:
- Be certain that this a well known and reputable company which you can always locate in the future in the event that you have a warranty claim.
- Establish good communication; making sure you both understand the scope of work. To achieve the optimum goal a synergistic relationship between both of you is essential. As the work progresses, keep in mind that the best job depends on what is inspected rather than what is expected.
- If you hire a sub-contractor on price alone you will be making a huge mistake. A low-ball quote today may mean costly “Change Orders” tomorrow.
- Once you have agreed to a price, be sure you enter into a written contract geared towards sub-contractors. If you don’t have a written contract, this person could be deemed a general contractor with all of the lien rights, accordingly.
- This sub-contractor’s contract should be a well written proposal describing the scope of work in detail and a price, dated and signed by all parties.
- Change orders are mutually beneficial; insist on them. The contractor doesn’t have to worry about being paid for over-runs and you don’t have to worry about getting charged for a surprise over-run.
- Try to stay away from cost plus work agreements unless both parties are truly comfortable with each other. On small jobs, cost plus material sometimes will get you the most economical price.
- When you are selecting materials and services, it will pay you to do some comparison shopping; however it should be based on reputation, reliability, experience and price value, not just the lowest price of all proposals presented.
- To be properly insured, deal with an agent that handles builder’s risk, general liability, and worker’s compensation. A good insurance agent will be able to advise you on some of the pit falls that can wipe you out.
- Require each sub-contractor to verify liability and any other applicable insurance prior to starting.
- Depending on where you build, you will be required to attain a building permit, and in a lot of cases each sub-contractor is also required to pull a permit on his particular craft.
- With vendors as well as sub-contractors you need to establish the warranties in writing if at all possible.
If you adhere to these basic suggestions and steps, you should be covered on the pragmatic part of this exciting experience that you are about to undertake. The rest is watching your home grow out of the ground right before your eyes. If you should have any doubts about the task you are considering, see my article on this site, “Should I Build My Own House?” This is a very serious undertaking and you must consider all of the pitfalls that could be facing you before you begin.
Category: New Construction, Uncategorized
