4 Common Mistakes We See Homeowners Make
When Building Their Custom Home
With 50+ years of experience in the homebuilding industry, we’ve seen it all when it comes to how homeowners deal with the challenges of designing their dream home. With many decisions to make in the process, it can be challenging at times to feel confident that the right decisions are being made.
To ensure smooth passage as you start your home building journey, we’ve compiled a list of common mistakes that we’ve seen, and our professional solutions to help you avoid them.
Mistake#1: Cutting Corners for Convenience
Our first suggestion is don’t cut corners.
When building your forever home you will not want to compromise your vision for an added bit of temporary convenience. This means that you should not make a decision only because it will help you move into the home sooner, or because it will save you money on your budget. Don't move too fast with decisions that seem like minor details. As you go through the design stage for your new home, it’s important to make sure the plans and functionality of the home suit the needs of your lifestyle both now, and in the future (more about that here). Changes on paper are simple and much less expensive than changes made once construction has begun.
Be realistic about your budget.
Balancing features and budget for your new home can be difficult but should be top of mind when looking to design a beautiful home. A lot of frustration and challenges can arise in the home building process for homeowners who do not have a concrete grasp on their budget and what they can afford when making decisions.
Consider if custom home building is actually the right fit for you.
Building a custom home, as opposed to buying an existing or pre-designed plan, is a long process and takes a lot of diligent decision-making. If you think this process might be too much on top of your current priorities, buying an existing home might be a better fit for you.
Solution: Keep the long term in mind
Mistake#2: Thinking an Interior Designer is Unnecessary
Our Carbon 6 Interiors team says it best in this blog post “Why It Pays to Hire an Interior Designer,” but here’s a quick summary for you.
Interior designers use their experience to not only help guide your vision into a reality, but they’ve also streamlined the decision-making process so you know which selections to make and when to make them. This way everything has been chosen on time and is respectful of your budget. Designers coordinate the ordering and delivery of your selections and harmonize the efforts of installations and complex obstacles that can arise. We’ve witnessed first-hand how quickly projects can get off-track because of issues that were not managed efficiently and effectively by an experienced professional designer. An interior designer also has a trained eye and the ability to synchronize all the different materials and selections within your home so that you are left with a space that is beautiful and suits your unique personality - with way less second-guessing.
Solution: Hire an Interior Designer
Tuckborough Urban Farmhouse
Mistake#3: Dismissing a Builder's Experience
It's easy to get caught up in the details and become very narrow-focused in the home building process. Homeowners can face a lot of apprehension and self-doubt. An experienced builder will assist you with the decision-making process and remind you to look at the big picture. In turn, this will help your home avoid major delays in the construction schedule and keep things moving along smoothly.
As a builder, we know what questions to ask yourself during this process and how to narrow down what will work best for your lifestyle and family needs. We’ve established relationships with the industry’s best architects, interior designers, and suppliers, and, believe it or not, we have done this a few times before!
Solution: Trust Our Expertise
Tuckborough Urban Farmhouse
Mistake#4: Choosing a Builder Based on the Lowest Bid
It can be tempting to choose a builder that appears to offer the best price for your dream home on paper, but it’s important to remember a few things about the building process.
Even the most thorough contract leaves plenty of room for changes and additions as the project progresses. It’s important to choose a builder that will be transparent with you and treat your home project as if they are building your home for themselves.
Additionally, building a home is a commitment so choosing the right home builder makes all the difference. Projects can take 10 months to over a year and you need to expect weekly, and at times daily, interactions with the team you are working with. Committing to a relationship with a homebuilder is not something to take on lightly, as you will have an intimate relationship with this team for the duration of your home build, so choose the builder that you trust and enjoy working with the most.
Solution: Build your Dream Home with Swanson Homes
Tuckborough Urban Farmhouse
Why To Partner with Swanson Homes
Swanson Homes believes that the modern luxury dream home prioritizes architectural details, superior design, and a unique story. We look to not only build homes but also relationships that will last long past handing over the keys to your dream home.
If you’re in the market for building a custom home in Minnesota, we invite you to check out our recently built custom homes, current projects, and our credentials here.
Or if you’re ready to start the conversation with our team and see if we are the right fit for you and your dream home vision, click here!
Looking for more of our builder’s expertise?
Your Next Read: The Basics of Building a Custom Home
