The First Step to Planning New Home Construction

The First Step to Planning New Home Construction
The First Step to Planning New Home Construction

Many families dream about building a new home for years before they actually do it. It is not unusual for families to research building new homes for several years. It’s never too early to start thinking about the type of house you want to build; the earlier you start your research, the more you will know what you want at home when the time comes to move forward.

Here are some tips on how to start your journey to build a new home:

Finding Land

One of the first steps to building a new home is finding land. It is highly recommended by many building professionals that you find your land before starting the design process. Your land can influence the overall design of your new home. For example, your land can influence the way you position your new home and what views you want to maximize. Maximizing natural lighting is important for the energy efficiency of your new home. Also, your lot size can affect how much you can build your house, especially if you have small lots with restrictions. If you decide to build a garage right away, where you position your garage depends on the layout of your land as well. When the time comes, your land will play an important role in how you design your home.

Finding Mold

If you want to build a wooden frame house, paneled house, or another prefab house, the next step is to find mold. With so many types of building styles and manufacturers out there, it can feel amazing. It is important to discuss and perhaps make arrangements to see samples at home directly. There are many online tools today to help you build connections if you live far from the manufacturer.

Design Process

The next step is to start the design process. Many mold manufacturers offer design services or you can work with an independent architect or designer. Once you own the land, starting the design process is one step closer to building your new home.

The Timeline

To help you know the timeline, you must allow at least one year from start to finish to build your new home. The design process can take three months or nine months, depending on the number of changes you make and the complexity of the design. The construction process can last an average of 9-12 months. Your timeline can be less or more depending on the size and complexity of your design. Also, some construction methods are a faster and more efficient way to build like prefab houses made in several sections rather than sent to your site and assembled.

Updating the kitchen and/or bathrooms

Anyone who has been in the real estate market for a few years knows that the best way to increase the value of your home is updating the kitchen and/or bathrooms. The reverse is also true if your intention is to decrease building costs. New home-builders have begun to scale back the size of kitchens. Bathrooms are losing square footage as well, but they are also decreasing in numbers. Homes, previously having two or three bathrooms, will now have one or two depending on the number of bedrooms. The kids’ exclusive bathroom or a downstairs’ powder room is no longer the trend. Most often there is the main bathroom for guests and an ensuite half bathroom for those who occupy the master bedroom. Resort-style door-less showers are now a rarity in new homes. Instead, there is a built-in linen closet. The kitchen is smaller but as the most used room in the home, it is constructed with practicality in mind. Traditionally, this is a multi-use space so new home-builders are adding features for those uses. Perhaps, there will be a charging station for cell phones and laptops. Or the ability to sit in multiples ways; at a breakfast bar, at a kitchen table or at a built-in desk area.

Laundry Facilities

In Europe, laundry facilities in the home are traditionally located in the kitchen. In North America, we do not see that too often. However, the practicality of the arrangement is pleasing and perhaps new home builders will catch on at some point. For now, there does seem to be a trend towards building a dedicated and organized laundry room on the main level of the house. Instead of sticking the washer and dryer in the basement or a closet, home-builders are creating a dedicated space. Now the never-ending mundane task of laundry can be completed without bumping elbows with the furnace or closet doors. Plus if space allows, the laundry room can double as a mud-room.

As the US continues to struggle with recovery from the infamous economic downturn of 2007, home-owners will continue to seek ways to lower the cost of living. Foreclosure sales are great if you have the cash in hand but those homes do not necessarily come with the components to make the cost of living less. Rooms will usually be larger and more expensive to heat. More bathrooms mean a higher water bill. Most homes are not properly insulated, which is a huge factor in energy consumption. Windows today are far more energy-efficient than even five years ago. If you are looking to get into the real estate market, take a good hard look at new home construction. After all, practicality is key.