subject: 5 Steps to Consider Before Building [print this page] 5 Steps to Consider Before Building 5 Steps to Consider Before Building
Many people hope of owning their dream home. They want a place they can truly call their own that has been designed and built to their own desires. Following this route requires the services of architects, contractors and other professionals in the building industry and a lot of planning. Before jumping in and building your dream home, take a moment to consider these five important steps.
The first step is your budget. Building a home from the ground up is no small task and requires a lot of money to accomplish. You need to pay the architect for the plans and changes; builders to do the work and you have to pay for all the materials that go into building the home. Knowing your budget will make it easier to find architects and contractors you want to work with and how much is actually possible. A strict budget will also ensure that you do not spend more money than you have.
Next you have to decide where to build your dream home. Architects need to know what sort of conditions they are working with in designing your home. Contractors need to be able to get to the location to do the actual building. Things like soil condition, drainage, land stability, building codes and zoning will all play a role in what can be built on the land you have chosen. All these factors can affect the cost. Will the architect have to design specific elements to take advantage of geographical features or design around them? Can the builders get easy access to the building site? These are just two of the many questions that are sure to crop up concerning the lot.
The team you have to build your dream is also rather important. The contractor and builders are obviously the most important but you have to decide how to set up your team. Many architects, for example, are more than willing to design the home and to hire a building team to build for you. The same applies to contractors who hire certain architects for their jobs. The important thing to remember is to choose a team that fits your budget but that is also reliable.
While it may seem strange, choosing the plan for your dream home is step four. Only after you know where to build it and who is going to build it can you ask the architect to design what you are going to build. There are two choices: stock plans or custom plans. Stock plans are homes that have been designed and that can be customised to suit specific needs. These are much more affordable and architects can make short work of plans like these.
If your budget allows it then an architect can create a custom plan for your dream home. In this case the architect creates and entirely new plan from scratch from your needs and the architect's imagination. These plans take a little longer to complete and cost more, but get you that much closer to the dream home that you have always wanted.
Finally you need to have a solid contract. The contract should contain all the details of the project you are undertaking including who is responsible for what, when the project is to be completed, how much materials are to be used and that sort of thing. It is advisable to get a lawyer experienced in building contracts to draw this up and most architects and contractors can suggest a few trustworthy lawyers for this case. The contract protects you and the team that is building your dream home so be sure to take extra care with it.
Between architects, builders, contracts, zoning laws and all sorts of other considerations building a home from scratch may seem to be a bit of a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be. With correct planning and organisation, building your dream home can cease being a dream and become a reality.
