Blog
CHECK OUT OUR HELPFUL ARTICLES
We strive to be a valued and ongoing resource for our clients and all those considering building a custom home. You’ll find our blogs to be educational, informational and extremely helpful to you as you consider building a custom home.
We invite you to receive our monthly blog/newsletter, click here.
Hidden in Plain Sight
Intelligent universal design fades into the background and makes everyone happier
Today’s biggest demographic trend poses a challenge and also presents an opportunity. That’s because more and more working-age people are asking for a home with space to accommodate senior parents with age-related mobility or physiological issues.
A Touch of Drama
Outdoor lighting is a real art, and the best result comes from planning ahead.
A beautiful custom home represents a huge investment of time, care and money. Someone who has decided to make that investment most likely wants the home to present its best face to the world. During the day, that face is the architecture and landscaping, but after dark, it’s largely determined by the outdoor lighting.
How to Use Online Contractor Reviews
Trust? Maybe. Verify? Definitely.
A September 2011 Business Week article reported on a Texas home improvement contractor that hired a writer to post 200 positive reviews on sites like Yelp and Google. The story went on to cite other examples and estimated the percentage of fake online reviews at close to 30 percent.
Such articles have been multiplying, with a Google search for “can you trust online reviews?”
Making Sense of Allowances
For best results, narrow down the options up front
Allowances–that is, budgeting general costs for items before the specific items are chosen–are a fact of life on many projects. Some homeowners have trouble making decisions before work begins, most commonly for appliances, cabinets, floor coverings, and plumbing and electrical fixtures. In those cases, the builder can allocate a dollar amount to each category and let the homeowners choose specific products later.
Is Voice Control for You?
More and more home systems are adding voice control technology. Let’s look at the pros and cons.
The star of this year’s International Builder’s Show was a smart lady by the name of Alexa. As you know, she’s the personal digital assistant that lives inside Amazon’s Echo smart speaker, and we seemed to bump into her around every corner.
Better Than Bidding
Identifying the best pro to build your new home starts by clarifying your wants and needs.
Should you heed the conventional advice about getting price bids from three builders? Maybe, but once you understand the complexities and uncertainties that go into a bid, you will see why there may be a more effective approach.
Have Questions? Ask the Builder
It’s natural to have questions and changes when building a custom home. Prevent surprises and delays by getting answers from the top.
There are lots of things homeowners can do to keep their building project running smoothly. Number one is making timely product choices, but another key action is to direct all change requests and questions, no matter how small, to the builder or the builder’s representative (usually the project superintendent).