Building a new home can be the most exciting activity in your life or it can become the most daunting nightmare you’ve ever experienced. How can this be? Well, if planned correctly the building process can be a joy, but if it is not properly planned then the nightmare occurs. So, what constitutes proper planning for a new home?
First of all, building a new home requires three documents- the plans, the specifications, and the actual building contract. Together these documents form the basis of the new home criteria. For a joyful experience it is absolutely required that the plans, specifications and contract clearly define ALL of the details that you want in your home.
The plans, or blueprints, represent the “picture” of the home. The plans show how the rooms are arranged and sized, the location and sizes of windows and doors, what the house will look like from the outside, and all of the other relationships of the home- stairway locations, ceiling heights, open areas, etc. The plans are exciting. Homebuyers study the plans, imagine their furniture in the rooms, and envision living in the spaces. Plans are alluring but can also be deceptive to the unwary homebuyer.
The specifications are dry, boring and not nearly as exciting as the plans. But the specifications are where the homes’ “quality” is defined. And, for a dream instead of a nightmare experience, it is imperative that the homebuyer understands the specifications completely. The materials “selections” that are going into the home should be clearly stated in the specifications. Then, the contract can accurately reflect the price including the items that the Home Buyer wants. Accurate and thorough specifications clearly define the job for the Builder and the Buyer. Misunderstandings are then minimized (and ideally eliminated completely).
The contract details the cost of the job, the construction and payment schedules, identifies responsibilities between the Buyer and Builder. Detailed plans and thorough specifications lead to clear contracts. Sloppy plans or specifications riddled with “allowances” invite contract disputes, contract overages, and nightmare building experiences.
CBHB offers this note of warning. Builders like to use allowances to speed up the contract signing. But allowances cause most of the trouble for customers. Material “selections” can vary enormously in quality and price. And in order to prepare the job correctly, the tradesmen who work on the house have to know the selections. Since the decisions like kitchen cabinet layout and style, countertops, appliances, flooring, light fixtures, plumbing, roofing shingles, paint colors, etc have to be made by the customer anyway, we recommend these decisions be made PRIOR to signing the contract. That way the prices can be included in the contract, the Builder and Buyer know what is being ordered, and the chance for “change orders” (more $$ to the Buyer) can be avoided.
We know that if you follow our recommendation of making all of your selections and having them put into the specifications and on the plans, and the contract refers to the plans and specifications, then your building experience should be a dream come true and not a nightmare.
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