It’s fun to dream about building a new home. You can easily picture the end result—enjoying family dinners on the back patio, planting flowers in front of the porch, and retreating to your master suite at the end of the day. What you might not be able to clearly envision is the process it takes to get there, especially if you have never built a new home before.
Working with a trusted partner is critical when building a new custom home. You want to feel supported throughout the process and know that your budget is being respected. You want to know that somebody is available to answer your questions and put your mind at ease when you have doubts. After building more than 20,000 homes in over 50 years, we can confidently say that the Adair Homes process works. Here’s a little bit more about the before, during, and after of building with Adair.
Before Building with Adair Homes
There’s plenty to think about when you decide to build a new home. Where will it be located? How will you pay for it? What features do you need?
Finding land
Although you might not think about going to a builder to help you find land, Adair Homes can help you with this important step in the process. We work closely with Realtors in the areas where we work and can often connect you with an agent who specializes in land sales. We also provide local land listings on each of our local office pages, so even if you’re not quite ready to build, you can still get started with Adair.
We can also provide a site visit to help you evaluate a lot that you are considering or one that you have already purchased. We’ll help you decide the best placement of the house, estimate site development costs, and highlight any potential challenges with the site.
Securing financing
Unless you plan to pay cash, you’ll need to determine how you will be financing your new home build. Because this is such an important step for most people, we created a sister company, Alliance Financial Services, to help our customers get construction loans. Of course, you can always work with your local bank or any other lender, but by specializing in construction loans, AFS is able to offer more options, including both new construction and land loans.
Finalizing your budget
Once you know the costs of purchasing and developing your lot, you can get a better idea of how much is left in your budget. The experienced professionals at Adair will help you work through this process so you can be sure that you’re not leaving anything out. If you’ve never built before, there will likely be some costs you haven’t thought about, such as installing a driveway or getting a permit for your septic system. Not to worry—we have been through this enough times to know what needs to be included in the overall budget.
Choosing a layout
With your budget in mind, it’s time to choose the floor plan that best matches your family’s needs. Think about how many levels you want, whether you need a master suite on the main floor, how many bedrooms you will need, and what types of flex spaces you might want. With dozens of floor plan options to choose from, you’ll probably be able to find the perfect solution. If not, you can customize an existing layout or start from scratch with our custom home design services.
Selecting features and finishes
One of the most enjoyable parts of the process for many people is selecting the features and finishes. These are the items and materials you will interact with every day, including flooring, tiles, fixtures, and paint. After all of the technical behind-the-scenes decisions you have had to make, this is when the dream starts to become more real. This is when you can envision walking across the kitchen tile in bare feet or opening the blinds to a bright, sunny morning with your new favorite view.
During an Adair Homes Build
After you’ve made more decisions than you ever thought possible, the physical work begins. Adair takes care of all the heavy lifting, but there are still a few items for homeowners to handle.
Securing permits
Every new home build requires at least a construction permit, but in most locations, several other permits are necessary. This depends on factors such as the site; whether a septic system will be installed; and any state, county, and municipal regulations. Adair Homes will help you navigate these sometimes murky waters so the project stays on track.
Building equity
One of the unique benefits of choosing to build with Adair is that you have the opportunity to generate equity by participating in certain parts of the construction process, and you don’t even need power tools or technical skills. If you take care of coordinating subcontractors, painting, cleaning up the site, and other tasks, you can save money and build equity at the same time.
Performing inspections
During the build process, there are a few points when the work will be inspected. Adair Homes does both a midpoint and a final inspection with you to ensure that the plans are being executed as you envisioned. We also coordinate the inspections that are required for local regulators, ultimately resulting in a certificate of occupancy, which means it’s move-in day for you!
After Building with Adair Homes
Most of the time, when you move into a new home, it’s smooth sailing. All of the appliances are brand-new, the paint is clean and fresh, and you don’t even have any clutter yet. However, occasionally, you find imperfections. Fortunately, Adair Homes will still be there for you, even when our work is done.
The warranty
Adair Homes offers an industry-leading warranty that includes coverage for one year of workmanship defects, two years of systems defects, and 10 years of structural defects. We are also committed to customer satisfaction, so if something goes wrong, we want to be the builder you turn to for help.
A lifetime of making memories
We don’t want you to forget about us, but after just a short time living in it, chances are that you’ll be focused on life in your new custom home and not on the process it took to get there. This is when the dream truly comes to life. You can host family dinners in your new formal dining room, have a game night in the great room, or luxuriate in your spa-like master bath at the end of a long day.
It might feel like a long road to get there, but the end result is worth the effort. Every day, you will enjoy the little details that make your house a home. The backsplash tile that you agonized over will be the backdrop to your daily coffee routine. The fireplace in the great room will be an anchor for childhood memories. Even practical details such as the easy flow between the bedrooms and the laundry room will feel extra special because you had a hand in planning them.
Building Your Dream Home with Adair
It’s natural to feel some uncertainty about building a new home. It’s a major financial commitment, and for many people, it happens only once in a lifetime. You want to get to this important milestone the right way, but there are countless paths you can take.
Adair Homes gives you the benefit of thoughtfully designed, customizable layouts that can be tailored to your family’s needs. Because you get to make all the decisions, you can optimize your budget by choosing the features and finishes that best support your lifestyle, and save money by leaving out those you don’t need.
The best part is that you don’t have to do any of it on your own. Our Home Ownership Counselors walk you through every step of the process, even before you have land, so you always have a trusted resource to turn to when questions come up. If you’d like to learn more, contact your local Adair Homes office to schedule a free consultation.
