Establishing a Custom Home Building Timeline (Part I)

Planning a custom home: budget, design, permit

One of the first steps to building a new house is establishing a comprehensive and accurate timeline for completion. And if you’re planning a new custom home, you should think high-performance from the start.

With all of the new green, sustainable technology available, you have an incredible array of options for building a new home that will greatly reduce your energy and water use. Plus, high-performance homes are healthier, smarter for the environment, and a great long-term investment.

A number of factors before and during construction can create uncertainty and complexity in the custom home building process. So it’s important that you select an experienced and knowledgeable builder to guide you through the process.

There are two distinct phases to consider when establishing a homebuilding timeline: pre-construction and construction. High-performance homes present unique challenges and require greater consideration and specific expertise from your builder and design team.

In this post, we give you an overview of what to expect during the pre-construction phase, and how to streamline the custom home building process from your end.

We’ll cover the construction phase in Part II, so check back soon!

Custom home building: Pre-construction phase

You may be surprised at how much work has to happen before construction. Pre-construction components like budgeting, financing, property selection, topographical surveying, permitting, planning and design require a significant amount of time.

Planning and design are especially rigorous for high-performance projects. During this time, your builder and design team will lay the course for your custom home, analyzing site characteristics and developing a waste-efficient construction plan.

Below is a typical timeline for the days leading up to the construction phase for a high-performance home. Keep in mind that every project is unique and subject to its own set of challenges.

In particular, the complexity and duration of the permitting process can surprise future home owners. Your builder will package and present your plans to a number of governmental organizations for review, revisions, and approval prior to starting construction. So having a design professional and a contractor who are familiar with the local planning and building departments, in addition to the latest in green-building technologies, can make a big difference.

How to speed things up from your end…

Careful preparation on your part can expedite the pre-construction phase. Determining your budget early will help your builder and design team determine your options for the size and style of your home. When determining your overall budget, be sure to include a percentage for unexpected expenses. Figure in at least 10% to cover unforeseen items.

Part II: Construction phase timeline

Click here to go to part 2 of this series and learn about the construction phase timeline, what you can expect for a high-performance home, and why the right builder can be your biggest asset!

Want to learn more about the home building process? Check out the free, step-by-step High Performance Home Building Guide that we’ve put together to make your journey easier and help you prepare for success.

If you’re interested in learning more about how we build new custom homes, call Clarum Homes at 650.322.7069.