Building a home (HOA, appliances, how much)

[ButterFly32]

I am thinking of having a new home built in the area. I am completely new to this. For others who have built a house, how long does it take? I know there are many factors that go into this answer, such as, the builder, size of house, weather, etc. I just want to get a general idea.

[sneezecake]

Custom home or tract/development?

We were quoted 6-8 months by our builder in a development but not a little cracker-box total cookie cutter home...I guess you'd say high-end tract?

[stinegirl]

If you or the builder already have the land and the house plan, it takes about 6-7 months to build a custom home.

[ButterFly32]

I would say that it's basically a tract home in a new neighborhood, with some upgrades...around 2000 sq. ft. The land is already aquired.

[sneezecake]

If its a production builder, they should have this answer for you at the tip of their tongues, but typically from what I've gathered you should allow 1-2 months for permitting and 5-6 months build time...most of the homes I looked at quoted this 6-8 month timeframe and were all production builders (large and small) in developments with homes ranging from 2500-3500 square feet.

[dansdrive]

First I will preface this with Good Luck! And I don't mean that in a negative way at all.
I think everyone should be involved in building a house at least once. How long does it take? That is the $200,000 dollar questions and up! Our home was started in February and we closed in July for a custom home. However, let me qualify that answer.

This information is about 4 years old now so in today market it may be very different.
Our builder was building the home anyway so he already had the plans approved, the lot bought, and the permits completed. This process in itself can take several months so it depends what kind of lot you will build you home on.

From there being it was custom we changed about everything but the location of the front and back doors. But, and this is important we DID NOT change the basic plans of the house that were already approved. If you need a change to the basic plans you may have a delay while the plans get approved. We were also very fortunate the weather was good in Feb and March so they worked almost everyday those two months. We also had a builder that was committed to our home and only had a handful of homes being built so he was ALWAYS available for our calls and changes. This is important question to ask your builder, how do you contact them directly or via his office.

The next important thing was picking out the 'BASIC' changes. Exterior coverings, colors, and textures. Yes before they even put the foundation in they wanted to know what the outside would look like as the HOA needed to approve what the outside looked like. (I was really hoping based on them having final say they would pitch in with the cost part too, no luck ) We then had to pick the inside colors, had 3 inside paint colors to work with anything over that was an adder. Then came the floor coverings, moldings, light fixtures, kitchen cabinets, appliances, door knobs, cabinet handles, bathroom fixtures, and on and on....it really is mind boggling.

That is actually the easy part. The toughest part is trying to do all of the above within the allotted amount the builder gives you. So you MUST plan for contingency and overages. How much should you plan for overages that all depends on if you are a person that has to have what you see or can balance upgrade with budget. Believe me this is harder to do than it appears on the surface! Its only a $100 here and a couple of $100 there and at the end its in the thousands! Be careful.

Also, be prepared for delays, things not going exactly as you planned. and for the unknown. Also, I would suggest you visit your home being built as much as you can, daily is suggested during the construction cycle. It is amazing how much you will learn about your house while its being built plus the level of quality that is being built into or out of your major lifetime purchase. It is also advisable to bring someone that has some building experience with you at least weekly as the building is going on who could highlight potential problems early so its better for you and the builder.

I also recommend having a Buyers Agent involved and work for YOU. The builder and on-site community agent have their own priorities and needs. You need someone committed to YOU and YOUR NEEDS first and foremost. I am very happy we had one and did not use the communities agent.

Oh yea I almost forgot just about the time you figured you picked out everything you possible needed to out comes the landscaping!

It seems overwhelming and at times it certainly is but if you plan right and can clearly define your needs from wants you can have the home you need that is within your budget. Will it be on time? Well 2 out of 3 is not that bad!

Best of luck with your decision!

[annesg]

We were told 4-5mo from permitting to close, and I am hoping that's the case!!! Permits are in, framing is finished, roof is set to go on tomorrow, and we were told last of july/first of august for completion. It's a tract home so I'm really, really, hoping that's true!!! they have to pay us $250/day plus storage for our furniture if they're not done then, so they have a lot to lose!