Getting Started

1. Determine your budget - Determine your price range – getting preapproved can help

Once we know your budget range, we can make recommendations that are meaningful to you.

2. Get your lot/land assessment

We'll meet you on site at the place where you'd like to build and provide guidance about what you can do and what you can't – whether you already own a lot or are still weighing your options.

Our assessment will help you find out more about:

  • Lot characteristics – and what it takes to build there
  • Potential problems, and what you can do about them
  • Suitability for the design you have in mind – and its building envelope
  • Utilities (Power, Septic/Sewer, Well/Meter)

3. Choose a house plan/floor plan

We work with plans from virtually every architect, and draftsman. Our team can also design and draft a completely custom home.

4. Customize your floor plan

We'll listen to your ideas and sketch up some concepts to get started with – or we'll modify a design you already like (that needs a few changes or many) such as:

  • Rearranging kitchens
  • Moving walls, windows or doors
  • Expanding or decreasing rooms
  • Adding additional living area
  • Making more space in the garage
  • Or just about anything else that will make your floor plan a better fit for your lifestyle

There's no need to purchase blueprints up front – make sure it's what you want, with our initial consultation and initial custom home cost estimate before you purchase anything.

5. Receive personalized interior designer service

Check out your price breakdown for all the standard features – like premium materials, granite countertops, hardwood flooring, custom tilework, built-in storage, majestic archways, barrel vault ceilings, trey ceilings – the incredible amount of upgrades and our attention to detail in our handcrafted homes are more reasons why we have been chosen as one of the area's top builders.

More Tips

  • Contact at least (4) customer references and (4) business/subcontractor references
  • Compare bids – line by line – before committing to a new home contract
  • Ask for tours of homes in progress – so you can see how the builder creates real homes for real people. Contact us for our builder's perspective about the concepts you have in mind.

Money Matters

  • Get prequalified for a loan: Ask us for recommended lenders - there are a wide variety of programs available.
  • Tell us what you have in mind: The estimates we prepare are based on the requirements you give us. We'll spend a few minutes on the phone listening to what you have in mind, such as a high end kitchen, custom master bath spa treatment or sound-proof music room - so the loan you apply for can be appropriate for the finishes and features you're planning to include in your custom home.
  • Get up to date on the loan process: Your construction to perm loan can be rolled into the same transaction as your lot. Ask lenders how that works - it can be very easy and seamless.

Different Kinds of Homes Have Different Prices per Square Foot

  • The cost per square foot is often higher for a smaller home than for a larger home. (Kitchens and bathrooms are the most expensive rooms in your home to build, and the size usually doesn't change much in a smaller home - so your savings with less square footage are typically in rooms that cost less to build.)
  • The cost per square foot is often higher for a one story home than for a two story home with the same square footage. (A two-story home will have a smaller roof and foundation, which cuts down on costs.)
  • Porches, decks, patios and land improvements also drastically affect cost per square foot.
  • Factors such as how many windows and doors, what the roofline is like, how many cutouts the house has, whether there are curved stairways, and other architectural elements can make a big difference in how much it costs to build a floor plan. We'll give you more tips about how to choose your plan when we talk about your ideas.