While it may seem like the easier route to simply buy a pre-built home, there’s nothing quite like moving into a home that you know is 100 percent unique to you and your family’s needs. The only drawback of building a custom home is that the timeline can be unpredictable.
But with the right team, and a few key factors in place, you don’t have to wait two years for your home to be built. With Idaho Impact Homes, it can take as little as 6 months following the initial design process.
If you want to build a custom home, here’s what to expect from the timeline.
The Approximate Project Timeline
Most contractors will tell you that it takes anywhere from 10 months to two years to build a custom home. While this might be the case for certain contractors, it really does depend on the type of home you’re building and the expertise of your building team.
With Idaho Impact Homes, the lengthiest part of your home’s construction is the construction process, which can take up to six months.
This is to ensure they get every detail correct according to your exact needs. Only then will they go ahead with the construction process. Let’s take a closer look at what to expect during the entire course of the project:
1. Consultation Phase
Initial conversations during the consultation phase are important in helping both parties determine if the relationship is a good fit. At Idaho Impact Homes, the team is dedicated to learning about your vision of your dream home and methodically piecing the elements together to bring that dream to life.
2. Customization Phase
No custom home is complete without its customizations. They will discuss floor plans, timelines, and more during this phase of the build process.
3. The Design Phase
This is probably one of the most important parts of the entire project and one of the most exciting for custom homeowners, too.
During this process, you will work closely with a team of designers and select your finishing touches. They work closely with you to add personalized touches to suit your family’s needs both functionally and aesthetically.
They generally cover these key aspects: your home’s exterior and interior design, appliances, paint and Millwork, landscaping, and more.
While your contractor works on the final design of your home, their team gets to work obtaining all the correct permits and documentation for the build. This can take up to two months.
Before pre-construction begins, the build team scopes out the land and site. During this phase, they look at the following:
Site Resources
This includes the local climate and position of the sun and how that impacts natural light filtering into your home. They also assess access to water, electricity, sewer lines, and gas lines.
Conservation Areas
The team ensures that the site does not fall within any specific conservation areas as specific rules and permits apply.
For example, if they needed to cut down certain trees to continue with the build, they’d need specific permission to do so. If this is the case, your contractor should take care of it with the local authorities.
Land Consideration
Your contractor will also take the time to assess the quality of the land and soil. There’s no use building on land with unstable soil, as this can result in an unstable foundation.
If extra work is needed to establish a solid foundation, the team will advise you on how to achieve this through the right steps.
4. Construction
Once your contractor receives the final sign-off on the design, site preparation for construction begins. This includes excavating the site or the land to ensure it’s ready for laying the foundation. After this, contractors lay your foundation — usually a slab or basement foundation.
During this phase, contractors construct the basic shell of your home, known as framing. They also install HVAC systems, complete electrical installations, and do plumbing, installed within your walls.
Home Construction and Finishing Touches
Once the framing is complete, your contractor moves on to the actual build of your home. From here, you can expect the following steps:
- Home exterior finishes — this includes installing drywall, caulking, and finishing off with paint, stone, brick, or siding
- Material and flooring — your contractors move to the inside of your move, installing wall trim, and flooring, and finishing off with paint and other details
- Mechanical installation — electricians and plumbers return to finish off the installation of light switches and plumbing fixtures
- Appliance installation — your home then receives its appliances, which electricians will wire up for you, too
- Carpet installation goes ahead in your selected rooms
After this, your contractor does all the final touch-ups and a thorough walk-through of your home. They conduct an inspection of all the essential elements to ensure everything is as it should be.
You are then invited to do the same walk-through before the final sign-off.
What Impacts Build Time?
As with any home build, there are always certain factors that can impact the build time and cause delays. Some are completely out of your contractor’s control, too.
For example, the weather is a factor that has a huge impact on the timeline of any home build. Any experienced team will keep a close eye on the weather and try to include weather precipitations in their estimated timeframe.
They will also keep a close watch on weather forecasts and update you on any possible delays in build time. Unfortunately, the weather is something your contractor cannot control, but they should do their best to accommodate your timeline and budget as much as possible should you experience delays.
Another factor that can impact your project timeline is permit delays. If your contractor has to wait on certain permits and their approval, parts of your construction will remain on hold until then. Again, this is a factor that’s out of their control.
But with enough planning and foresight, your contractor should apply and organize build permits so that they do not impact your construction timeline.
Build a Custom Home with the Right Team
Building the home of your dreams in a decent timeframe is all about choosing and working with the right team. If you’re looking to build a custom home in Treasure Valley, Idaho, we have the exact team you’re looking for.
If you’d like to learn more about our custom design and building process, get in touch with our team. We’d love to discuss and bring your vision to life!
