Getting caught up in the excitement of building your dream home is easy. You’ve saved for years and finally have enough money to put down a deposit on a house, so you’re ready to start designing the perfect place for your family. But before you can even start building, some decisions need to be made—and they’ll affect every aspect of your new house.
This is especially true when choosing certain materials (such as brick), contractors, or even architects involved in the design process. Here are some of the most challenging choices you’ll have to make:
Table of Contents
Contractor
Selecting your contractor is one of the most complex decisions you’ll have to make when building a new home. You can start by asking friends and family.
If you’re lucky, you may already know of a reputable builder to recommend, but don’t take this person’s recommendation as gospel—ask around to make sure they won’t just be happy with your decision and won’t pressure you into a bid that could result in overspending or poor work.
Next, use Google or Yelp to look for reviews about contractors in your area, but don’t rely solely on reviews. While testimonials can be helpful, there are plenty of sites where anyone can post a review about anything. You also want to make sure the contractor you choose has experience building the kind of house you’re looking to construct.
Financing
One of the trickiest (potentially most expensive) things about building a home is deciding how to finance it. That’s because you must consider how much money you’re putting down, then you’ll own the property, and how all that relates to your overall financial goals, including retirement.
Building Site
The location of your building site is a big deal, and you should ensure that it’s where you won’t have to worry about traffic or noise pollution. You may also want to consider whether or not there are nearby parks, playgrounds, and other recreational facilities.
If you’re building a house with an attached garage or barn, remember that these must all be within 1 mile (1.6km) of each other; otherwise, they’ll all be too far away from each other when finished!
Design
Design is a big decision. It’s not just about the look of your home; it’s also about its functionality. If you’re building a new house, design is probably the most significant decision you’ll have to make—so do yourself a favor and get some help!
There are lots of different ways to go about this process: You could hire an architect or interior designer to help guide your vision; alternatively, if money isn’t an issue for you (or if there are other reasons why hiring someone else wouldn’t work), then perhaps consider taking classes at local colleges or community colleges so that by the time construction begins on site (assuming there isn’t already something already built nearby), everyone involved knows precisely what they’re doing when it comes time for actual construction work itself!
Roof Design
The roof is one of the most important aspects of a home. You want it to be durable and watertight but also attractive and functional. Choosing the right roof design can make or break your house’s aesthetic appeal. Here are some tips for choosing popular roof designs:
- Make sure you know what kind of material you want on your new home’s roof before buying any materials or doing any work on it (that way, there won’t be any surprises after installation). For example, if you’re going with metal tiles, make sure they’re compatible with whatever else might be installed in addition (like wood shakes).
- Check out how much maintenance is involved with each type of material before committing yourself financially—some materials require more upkeep than others do!
Foundation
The hardest part about building a house is not sourcing materials and finding qualified people to do the work; it’s making the decisions. The process is more straightforward if you have a solid foundation and plan. You need both to make good decisions. A faulty foundation will give you trouble with every decision you make, while a solid one enables you to make good decisions and stick to them, even when they’re not popular.
It’s tempting to skimp on the foundation. You have contractors throwing up walls while figuring out what flooring you want. However, the foundation is where you can save yourself a lot of trouble later on.
Countertops, Appliances, Fixtures
Choosing countertops and appliances are critical decisions you’ll need to make as part of your new home re/model. But what exactly do they mean?
Countertops are the tops of your kitchen or bathroom cabinets, which hold everything from food prep tools to cooking utensils. They can be made out of marble or granite but are typically solid surfaces that have no seams or joints between them (they all fit together like puzzle pieces). You want something durable so that it doesn’t chip easily—but if it’s too thick (and pricey), then there may not be enough space left over for other features like backsplashes.
Appliances are similar to countertops in function: they’re where things go! Appliances include washers/dryers/stoves/ovens/refrigerators…the list goes on forever! Like countertops, appliances need ample space around them because they take up more room than just about any other piece within a house besides the walls themselves; plus, some people think differently about how they want their kitchen to look aesthetically compared with others’ design preferences.
Color Of The Exterior
We don’t know where to begin with this one. Maybe it would be easiest to say that you should pick any color and go with it. Maybe you’ll have a one-of-a-kind house that deserves a unique color. Or maybe your contractor will push for something safe and boring like tan, grey, or white.
Wrapping Up
If you’re considering building a new house, these seven hard decisions might weigh on your mind. But don’t worry—we’ve got you covered! The most important thing is to make sure that your decisions will help your family be happy in their new home for years to come. Good luck with all of this!
