.Building a home is one of the biggest financial decisions you will make in your life, so it makes sense to invest the time and energy into researching what you want for your custom home.

Some things that you will want to take into consideration when deciding if this is the direction you want to go with:

• Choosing a builder: Not all builders complete custom homes, so it is worth looking around to find a builder who does this type of work. Some things to look for might be, previous projects, client testimonials, availability, and price point.

• Design: This is one of the real advantages of building a custom home! As it is custom you can create the home you want. When starting the design process, it is important to find a good Draftsman or Architect with whom you feel comfortable and confident that they can portray your ideas. Once you have found who you are going to work with, this is a good time to involve your builder as this is where your budget will start to come into play. There is no point trying to build a $1 million house if your budget is only $500K!

• Lifestyle: Does the space work for how you want to live? Do you like your family to all be together, do you spend most of your time outdoors, do you want an office space? These are important things to consider when in the design phase. Think about how you want to live and what you want from your home!

• Quality and Budget: They are a key factor in the building process and in deciding what level of finish you are looking for in your new home. It is important that you are clear in your budget and the desired outcome you are looking for. Your builder and designer can assist in getting this balance right where quality and budget align to create your dream home.

• Involvement: Building a custom home with a custom home builder will allow the owner to be more hands on during the process compared to using a Project builder. The owner will generally be much more involved during the build process as they will be selecting almost all their finishing items from a budget rather than from a builder’s standard range. This will also mean more visits to site and a lot more communication with the builder.