Custom/Semi Custom Home Builders (McLean, Oakton: real estate, renting, appliances)

[Stilwater]

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone on the forum had experience with any custom/semi custom builders in the area? We have a parcel to build on in Loudoun so that is taken care of. I've looked at a couple, ANV, NDI, etc. Any comments on the quality of these builders? I see both building quite a bit in McLean so I take they aren't complete junk. Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks!

[robmully]

You may want to contact Reel Homes. They completed a project for me and it was a great experience. You work with the owners of the company and they are with you every step of the way. Reel Homes - Custom Home Builder serving Northern Virginia, Maryland Good Luck

[kiddhan625]

I would also suggest Asta Homes. My uncle is using them for a home he is building in Oakton. It came down to Reel vs. Asta for him. He decided with Asta and could no be happier with the decision. Reel was also competitive but came down to his gut feeling.

The house will be completed in a month or so but the quality of craftsmanship is clearly visible.

[FSBox]

I think threads like these needs to point out the target $/sqft. NDI, Classic Homes, ANV, all build "homes on a lot" with varying degrees of what can be changed or not changed. But they do differ.

[mysfh]

Originally Posted by robmully

You may want to contact Reel Homes. They completed a project for me and it was a great experience. You work with the owners of the company and they are with you every step of the way. Reel Homes - Custom Home Builder serving Northern Virginia, Maryland Good Luck

do you mind to share with me how much they charged you per sqft ? and what are the features came with ?

[mysfh]

Originally Posted by kiddhan625

I would also suggest Asta Homes. My uncle is using them for a home he is building in Oakton. It came down to Reel vs. Asta for him. He decided with Asta and could no be happier with the decision. Reel was also competitive but came down to his gut feeling.

The house will be completed in a month or so but the quality of craftsmanship is clearly visible.

do you mind to share with me how much they charged you per sqft ? and what are the features came with ?

[hp0519]

I used Reel-Homes but if I could re-do it, I'd go with someone else. Seems I may not be the only one who had difficulties. Check out Better Business Bureau (owner, phone, website match): Reel Homes LLC Review - Home Builders in South Riding, VA - BBB Business Review - BBB serving Metro Washington, DC and Eastern Pennsylvania

[epic100]

The trade-off is semi-custom versus custom. If you can go with a stock, off-the-shelf floor plan and exterior design, go with NDI. They are a decent quality builder and will build for around $85/s.f. Keep in mind, however, that almost everyone has SOME kind of modification to the stock plans. The slightest deviations will cost you thousands. ANV has nicer floor plans and designs, but they also have limitations in how much they can deviate from their basic elevations and floor plans. They are around $95/s.f. Classic Homes and Reel Homes are around $95/s.f., but are not as refined as ANV. Pay attention to basic construction, window framing, tray ceilings, kitchen appliances, etc. Classic designs are cookie-cutter stodgy. Reel Homes builders are nice guys but seem to lack extensive experience as luxury home builders.

Here is the big issue: If you do a tear-down rebuild, make no mistake about it, you are about to go into the general contracting business. That's right. You are about to become a general contractor. Are you familiar with applicable county ordinances for building permits, lot coverage, set-backs, sewer, water, electric, trees, and water run-off? Do you really know how much excavators, disposal companies, Don-Jon companies, exterminators, land engineers, and architects will charge you? If you trust your builder to hire these people for you, you could be overpaying by as much as $30,000 to $40,000. A good architect knows this stuff but they will charge you a minimum of $10,000 in order to save you from the $30,000 rip-off. I will say that NDI is the most ethical of the builders that I dealt with when it came to recommending engineers, etc., without getting a kick-back. But go online. Do your research. Pay the Angie's List subscription fee - it is well worth it.

If you post here, I will respond to you individually and help as much as I am able to. Good luck!

[hp0519]

Another website to look at is the "DC Urban Mom forum". Google it, once you are at the forum site, click on "Real Estate and Home Improvement" under non-parenting discussion forums. If you search for Reel Homes, you can get some more information. Warning, there are some obnoxious and snarky comments but there is also some truth if you weed through it.

[norsenva]

epic100...I'm not sure why you feel that a GC charging a fee on top of excavators, disposal companies, Don-Jons, etc is overpaying or a "rip-off"? If the home buyer doesn't want to be their own general contractor, and most don't, then they are hiring a GC specifically for this reason...to manage their project, which includes the items you listed. If the GC is managing them then they are responsible for them and should therefore charge add their 'builder's fee'. If you want to save money and have the time, know-how, etc to do then then by all means cut out the GC and do it yourself. Note, I said builder's fee and not a kick-back...these are two very different things.

Also, I'm not sure why these forum's seem to focus on the bottom-of-the-barrel builders but it seems like a lot of the frustration seems to boil down to people being attracted to the square foot price (which is the worst way to buy a home...do you buy cars by the pound?) and then being upset when their expectations aren't met. I'm not saying anything negative about ANV, Classic, Reel, etc., just that you shouldn't expect first class treatment when you're flying economy.