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Building a Home

What do we ask potential builders?

9 years ago

Land- check
Blueprints- check
Downpayment- check
A positive attitude- check
Bids- check
Now we've got it narrowed down to two builders. What in the world do we ask them? The bids are very close and both builders are personal friends. We're meeting with each of them individually to try and determine who will build our home, but I'm afraid we don't know the right questions to ask! Please help!

Comments (11)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 years ago
question one:

how will our friendship be affected.. when you screw up my house????

i really dont know.. if i would do biz.. with friends ...

ken
renais1
9 years ago
Personally I would look for other builders unless you want to lose a friend. Building is a stressful time for any relationship; why risk a friendship?
Renais
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Aims
9 years ago
Hubby's BFF was supposed to build our house. It did not end well and we eventually went with someone else. I wouldn't do it.
mrspete
9 years ago
I've gotta agree with the friend thing. At the very least, since BOTH are personal friends, you're going to make one angry when you choose the other.

Beyond that, I'd like to see a list of questions to ask. Clearly you've already spoken to them since they've given you bids.
MFatt16
9 years ago
Don't do it. Its too much strain on a friendship and business needs to be kept separate in my opinion. We too have friends who have gone this route and even the ones who just did a bid from a friend, are no longer friends. Not worth it.
GreenDesigns
9 years ago
Here's the first question that will alienate your friends right away. "Show me a bank balance or letter of credit from your bank Let me talk to your major suppliers about how you pay your bills. How many bounced checks have you had in the last 12 months?" Too many builders are on the verge of financial run after the last few years. You do not want one who will go out of business during your project or will rob Peter to pay Paul.

There's probably a more diplomatic way of asking about financial solvency, but it's something you simply cannot ignore.
JHester
Original Author
9 years ago
Oh no! You all are scaring me! Maybe I should clarify; they are more like acquaintances. My husband is a loan officer and nearly every builder in our somewhat small town is an acquaintance of his. These aren't people we vacation with, but I do see your point. My husband's step-father (who is now deceased) built our last house and we survived that.
Aims
9 years ago
Oh, I see!

Have you looked through any of their previously built homes? I would and just kind of see the attention to detail. We did that when we hired our builder. I would also want to talk to previously clients as well about their experiences.

I like what GreenDesigns said about asking for financial clarity.

From my first time experiences thus far...

I would ask about their communication skills. Do they like text messages, emails, or phone calls? I personally prefer text and email because you can keep track of what was said easier. My builder is a little older so text message/email aren't his strongest suit, but he still uses them.

How many houses is he currently working on? You wouldn't want someone who Is stretched so thin that he can't give an appropriate amount of attention to your needs.

I would hope they would also ask you about your preferences. I don't think it should be just you asking them questions.
Michelle
9 years ago
Who do you feel more comfortable with? You'll be spending a lot of time with the builder and good communication is very important.
renovator8
9 years ago
I would carefully review each contract with special attention to quality control and assurance procedures (often entirely missing in contractor written contracts), termination process, and contractor responsibilities and find out what their markup is for change orders generated by allowances, unforeseen issues and owner changes. I would also ask for a list of the subs and from what suppliers allowances can be selected. Also who will be supervising the work on site and how often that person will be on site. Will they provide temporary toilet facilities, what is the proposed date of substantial completion?

If they haven't already given you this information in writing I would be worried about using either of them.

You didn't mention who will be responsible for the design documents so it's not clear what the responsibility of the contractor will be in that regard.

This post was edited by Renovator8 on Tue, Dec 30, 14 at 14:36
IamLizzieH
9 years ago
Hi there! I've been trying to read some books on the home building process and took some notes. Here are some of the Builder Considerations I noted:

BUILDER CONSIDERATIONS
1. Who and what experience does the site supervisor have?
2. How many houses will he be managing during construction period? What is the limit?
3. Meet site superintendent before signing contract.

Questions for superintendent:
Thoughts on hiring private inspector?
Has superintendent run other projects for this firm? Where?

5. Considerations when comparing builders:
A. Drainage away from house
B. 4 in vs 2 in window/door trim?
C. Stair-railing spindles 1 3/8 in or 1 3/4 inch: extra 3/8 inch give railing more strength.
D. Condition of worksite/cleanliness, materials stored/protected?
E. Quality of finishes
F. Engineered floor joists? These are actually better.
6. Does builder have a variety of home styles he completes?
7. What size house does he usually build. If your house will be bigger/smaller than this, how would he handle a difference of this magnitude.
8. If considering a home-plan service, ask if heÃ¢ÂÂs built homes from a home-plan service. Which one?
9. Does builder have a portfolio of plans? Using a builder plan may have advantages, as costs will be more known.
1. How soon can he start job?
2. Does he carry liability insurance that includes errors-and-ommissions coverage? Stipulate that an insurance policy be maintained for the duration of the project. IMPORTANT.
3. How many houses does he build at a time? How many people working for him?
4. Ask each builder for a standard specification sheet.
5. What kind of allowance items you can expect with your budget.
6. Does builder help in making selections? Accompany you to the suppliers?
7. Warranties and guarantees- what will he come back to fix after completion?
8. Can you meet with builder/architect before you sign?
9. How often will he be onsite to check job?

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