FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
We've received lot's of questions from our customers over the years. I have tried to list some of the more common questions and their answers on this page. I hope that you will find some useful information on here.
1. What is my first step to building a home?
So your going to build a new home and your wondering what your first step should be? Well, the very first step to getting your home built is to stop by and visit with your banker to see what kind of budget you will have to work with. He'll be familiar with the current building market and will understand the amount of money you will require to build your home. After you've spoken with your banker, and if you don't already have a piece of property, the next step is to find the property on which you plan to build. This gives you the 2 main parameters around which your entire home will be designed and built, budget, and size. You will also use your property location to determine the layout of the home, and possibly help decide the style. The next step is to find a good building designer.
2. Why do I need a Building Designer?
Many people go to a house plan magazine or website featuring hundreds of other people's custom designed homes. But that's just what they get, someone else's dream home that's not perfectly suited to their property or lifestyle. With a custom designed set of home plans, your home will be just what you want. One more reason for a building designer is that the only other person who can make your home exactly what you want is your homebuilder. The problem here is that the builder's time is too valuable to be spent trying to figure out exactly where and how you want the walls, doors, windows, cabinets, appliances, plumbing and lighting fixtures. The time to change these things and make decisions is not during construction. So a custom designed set of home plans saves time and that equates to money.
3. Why not use a cheaper house plan drafter?
Many people are trained to "draw house plans", and while this is truly a valuable skill, It's not enough to properly design your home. Most house plan drafters lack the knowledge to properly size footings, design foundation systems, design and size structural beams, or even basically layout a design based on your instructions or desires. Many do not have any knowledge of architectural styles or history. And many do not have knowledge of current building codes or state architectural statutes governing home and building construction. While their services may cost little more than a box of doughnuts, you'll still be left with a less than satisfactory set of home plans.
4. How does it save money to use a good set of plans?
The cost of custom home plans will be less than 2% of the final construction cost of your home. The time savings to the homebuilder will be at least 15% because of proper material ordering, and quicker framing with fewer changes. A good set of plans will also provide better communication between all trades involved in the construction of your home. This again saves time and money. The experience and guidance of a building designer will add to the over-all satisfaction in your finished home because of the communication of your exact wishes to your builder, and because you will be able to know far in advance what your finished home will be.
5. What will it cost me per square foot to build my home?
This answer depends on a lot of factors. In fact, most builders won't quote you a per square foot bid. Lucky for you, I am not a builder. The cost of any construction depends on many factors. Obviously, you can't build a Cadillac for the price of a Yugo. Size and complexity of construction are some of the main factors to framing costs, while millwork, fixture, and finishing qualities are the main factors to finish costs. Labor remains fairly constant depending on the level of craftsmanship desired. The most skilled craftsman in any market will always earn a higher wage.
Small homes with simple floor plans, no large ceiling spans, built with low quality - off the bottom shelf fixtures, lower grade materials and average workmanship could cost around $45 to $55 dollars per square foot.
Larger homes with larger spanning ceilings, mid range quality - off the shelf fixtures, higher quality materials and moderate craftsman ship could cost around $60 to $70 dollars per square foot.
Homes of medium to large size having complex roofs, high quality and custom fixtures, highest quality materials, extra craftsmanship and many details could cost from $70 to $100 dollars per square foot to build.
All in all, the price per foot is only valid for trying to determine the size of home you can afford, and is only valid for very preliminary planning purposes.
6. How can I save money when building my home?
Do you own a hammer? Seriously, the only way to really save money on your home without compromising material quality is to do some of the work yourself. It is not recommended that you do any of the electrical, plumbing, or foundation work unless you are licensed to do so. It would probably not be a good idea to do much of the framing either. All of these feilds are not really the high cost side of the project anyway. The best things to try on your own would be things like dry wall, paint, trim, flooring, door hanging, etc. The interior finishes can be done fairly easily with a little help from a local home center, some good friends, and a LOT of time. Custom cabinets are great but pre-manufactured cabinets are very nice as well. They can usually be custom ordered from the factory and hung very easily on your own. Ask your builder BEFORE the contract is signed about any jobs that he can let you do yourself. Most contractors handle these requests and will write a contract that outlines owner responsibilities and contractor responsibilities.
7. Are 1-Story homes cheaper to build than 2-Story homes?
Again, this depends on many factors. Basically it is a matter of which style do you want to live in, and are you willing to pay the extra cost, if any. Each one has it's pro's and con's. I will list some of them for you.
2-Story homes typically require smaller foundation areas and therefore require less concrete. However, 2-Story homes also require larger floor joists above the first floor that cost up 3 or 4 times as much as the typically required ceiling joists of a 1-Story home.
1-Story homes typically have larger roof area which require more labor and material. This can also make higher maintenance costs.
2-Story homes typically have more exterior wall surface area. This means they require more material to clad the exterior, may have more windows, and have higher heat losses through the exterior walls.
2-Story homes require stairways that consume 50 to 60 square feet of space in both the first and second floor plans. That's giving up 120 square feet.
2-Story homes can be harder and more expensive to maintain due to the higher walls, windows, and eaves.
1-Story homes require more lot space since each square foot of house equals one square foot of land. 2-story homes can give you more land to enjoy, which is important since lots seem to be getting smaller and smaller.
8. Would I be better off renovating an existing house or building a new home?
That depends on the house, and your needs. The best way to approach your new home, is to sit down with your family and make a list of all of the things that you will need or like to have in your new home. If, and that's a big if, you can find an existing home that meets most of your needs and will require as little effort as possible to meet all of your needs, then it may be better to buy a home and renovate it.
If you do find a home that meets most of your needs for a good price, don't buy it. That is, not until you've had it inspected by a professional building designer or professional home inspector. Try to find someone who does not work for the realtor. The designer or inspector will be able to show you any problems the home may have and let you know of any pitfalls or money traps.
After you find the almost home of your dreams, then go to your designer and let him help you turn it into your dream home. A good designer will help you define that dream home while maintaining the architectural style of the home.
9. Can you design my home with a storm shelter?
Yes we can design your home to accommodate an in-residence storm shelter. What we will do for you is designate an area in your home as a storm shelter following the fema design guidelines. Then we will provide you with the necessary technical drawings from FEMA to build your storm shelter. Many area contractors THINK they know how to build an adequate storm shelter. Don't let any contractor build by any standard except that of FEMA. Much research has gone into these designs by both FEMA and Texas tech. University and have been proven in both hurricanes and even the F5 tornado that struck Oklahoma City on May 3rd, 1999. Read more at these sites -
FEMA storm shelter web site. Here you can get a copy of the Publication 320 including plans in Acrobat Reader format or order it for free by mail.
Texas Tech. wind research institute home page. This site has a lot of useful information about tornadoes and wind research.
Do you have a question for us?
e-mail your questions to me
I will try to respond to your question promptly and probably post it here
for others to reference.
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