After developing your short list of candidates, review your basic information. Are they licensed if necessary? Many home builders list their license number on their website. At the very least, it should be in your marketing materials. Is it the local builder? Many buyers prefer to hire local builders who know the area and employ local people. How is the reputation of the builder? Thanks to the Internet, you can easily check a builder’s Yelp or Google reviews, Facebook page, and other social media pages to see what others are saying about them. Finally, you can always call the city hall and speak to someone in the building inspection or economic development department. They should be able to tell you if the builder has been doing a good job or not. Make a visit to www.ibuiltmyhome.co.uk for the perfect result now.
Visit construction sites
Find active construction sites for builders you’re interested in and visit them. Look for signs of quality materials and safe work practices. Stop at a model house for more information and tour the house. You like what you see? How they treat you? What does the finished product look like inside and out?
A custom home builder in your area will also advise talking to homeowners in the communities you’re interested in, and consulting the builder’s providers:
Before hiring a builder, go through your previous jobs and talk to homeowners. Ask if the builder had a good follow-up, if the job was completed on time and on budget, and if he was satisfied with the quality of the job. Also, check the builder’s relationships with subcontractors and supply houses basically, find out if they pay their bills. A builder who is behind on payments will likely encounters delays in receiving materials and will have difficulty maintaining quality equipment.
Interview your short list
Now that you have narrowed your selections even further, schedule times to meet with each builder or builder sales representative. This is your opportunity to ask questions, see how the builder treats customers, and request referrals. Use this link from the National Association of Home Builders to start brainstorming your questions. Be sure to ask about the typical process and time frame for completion and whether the workers are employees or subcontractors. Builders who use a number of subcontractors may have more trouble meeting the deadline than those who employ their workers. They can also try to solve the subcontractor’s problems instead of dealing with themselves, which can be a hassle for you.
Let the builder ask questions too
Don’t dominate the conversation. Let the builder or sales representative ask questions about you and what you want in a home. This will help them determine if they would be a good fit for you or if another builder or even one of their communities would be a better fit. Conversations like this help builders to match buyers with the best solutions and can help avoid headaches due to miscommunication or misunderstanding later.
Don’t ignore your gut
It’s great to check credentials, check references, and visit model homes, but just because everything looks good on paper doesn’t mean it’s the right thing for you. You need to feel comfortable with the builder. You must be able to ask questions freely and receive satisfactory answers. The more transparent a constructor, the better it is. However, different people require different styles of communication. Make sure yours and your new builder’s mesh.
