How to Control Your Budget When Building a Custom Home

There was recently an article published by CNBC titled “Home remodeling during Covid-19 – ‘expect it to cost 50% more and take 50% longer’, says finance expert” – well, how does an expert construction firm respond to that sentiment politely? Let’s try this: what a crock!

For sure, there are a lot of construction outfits out there that do more harm than good. Having said that, there are construction firms out there that only do good. That “finance expert” made one large, entitled mistake: he disregarded the fact that he is not a construction expert.

As the owner of a construction firm, let me tell you that this industry is a humbling one and I learned one of the cardinal rules of construction very early in my career: there is no room for ego.

The second a builder starts thinking that he or she knows better than the other team members, things go south…rather quickly. Whether you are a homeowner, architect, designer, builder, vendor, or consultant – running projects while eating a big slice of humble pie is always a good idea.

This is because it takes a small village to design, price, and execute a custom home project.

That small village is chosen by the homeowner. Ultimately, the homeowner is in control of their own experience – and, you know what’s coming – with great power comes great responsibility. How do you ensure that you get the home of your dreams while maintaining your budget?

You hire the right team.

You thoughtfully choose your architect who will serve as your visionary, your sounding board, your fearless leader, and your advocate. You thoughtfully choose your builder who will serve as your backbone, your manager, your realist, and your advocate. You choose experts and trust us to do our job…which is to “wow” you.

When you commoditize your architect and your builder – well, it costs 50% more and takes 50% longer…for what’s most likely an inferior final product. When you have thoughtfully chosen your team for the right reasons, you will have a superior final product with a predictable construction budget.