Get a Perfectly Built Home the First Time Around
Yes, you can have a new build you’ll love right off the bat. Consider learning about yourself a bonus
Bud Dietrich, AIA
March 10, 2014
Houzz Contributor. My name is Bud Dietrich and I am an architect located in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. I am licensed to practice architecture in Illinois, Florida, New Jersey & Wisconsin. Since 1996 I have worked from my home office and provide full architectural services exclusively to the single family residential market. My passion is to transform my clients' houses into their homes. I strive to have the "new" home accommodate my clients' lives without fighting them at every junction. I look to add curb appeal to encourage a beautiful streetscape. And I design any addition to look and feel like it has always been there.
Our projects have won numerous design awards as well as having been featured on television (CBS News Sunday Morning, HGTV, CLTV, etc.), in magazines (Better Homes...
Houzz Contributor. My name is Bud Dietrich and I am an architect located in the Tampa... More
There’s a myth going around to the effect that you’ll never get your house built just right. There will always be something you forgot, something you’d do differently, something that’s just not quite right. I’ve heard folks tell me time and again that that’s just the way it is. There’s just no getting around the simple fact that the house you build just won’t be 100 percent right.
Well, I have to say that this is simply not true. There are steps anyone can take that will ensure that a house will be perfect, with no regrets. Here are some of them.
Well, I have to say that this is simply not true. There are steps anyone can take that will ensure that a house will be perfect, with no regrets. Here are some of them.
Know thyself. Who are you? What do you like? What do you hate? What is your ideal living arrangement? What is your favorite season?
What do you enjoy doing?
These are some of the many questions you’ll have to answer to create the perfect home. You see, we simply don’t live in a space bounded by four walls, a ceiling and a floor. While we all share a lot of common traits, each of us is unique. So yes, start with a room count and a square footage and a style, but then take that to the next level by tailoring the plan to you and yours.
What do you enjoy doing?
These are some of the many questions you’ll have to answer to create the perfect home. You see, we simply don’t live in a space bounded by four walls, a ceiling and a floor. While we all share a lot of common traits, each of us is unique. So yes, start with a room count and a square footage and a style, but then take that to the next level by tailoring the plan to you and yours.
Hire a professional. Just as there are benefits to hiring independent counsel rather than representing yourself in court or going to a doctor to diagnose and treat an ailment, you’ll likely benefit from hiring a professional. Be it an architect, a kitchen designer, an interior designer or another trained — and ideally licensed — person, a professional can help you in countless ways, including:
How to hire the right architect for you
- Helping you get to know yourself and what you want
- Guiding you to the best solutions for your particular issues
- Asking you things that you never would have thought about
How to hire the right architect for you
Make a plan. While you can go grocery shopping without a list, chances are you’ll forget something or buy something you don’t need. So just as having a shopping list comes in handy at the supermarket, having a plan will come in handy when you create a new home.
6 Steps to Planning a Successful Building Project
6 Steps to Planning a Successful Building Project
Think big. Daniel Burnham, the great 19th-century Chicago architect, once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood and probably will not themselves be realized.”
Don’t think “big” relates only to size; it doesn’t. Big ideas are what count. So think of how your home relates to and becomes a part of the landscape, how your home will meet the ground, how your home will meet the sky and how your home is a reflection of you and who you are. Just remember that big idea is what will give your home its overarching and defining character.
Don’t think “big” relates only to size; it doesn’t. Big ideas are what count. So think of how your home relates to and becomes a part of the landscape, how your home will meet the ground, how your home will meet the sky and how your home is a reflection of you and who you are. Just remember that big idea is what will give your home its overarching and defining character.
Think small. Designing and building a home, or just simply remodeling a kitchen, involves making many, many decisions. Some of these will be big, but many, many more will be of the small-detail variety. Making all of these decisions can be daunting, and the help of a design pro will come in handy. And while you can avoid having to make these decisions by limiting your choices to just a few, having a universe of options available just might mean you’ll select the perfect detail.
Architecture: Details Make all the Difference
Architecture: Details Make all the Difference
Think in between. From the scale of the big idea to the smallest detail, it all comes together somewhere in the middle. This is where you’ll live, where you’ll enjoy the warmth of a plaster wall, a comfortable patio, a counter at just the right height and more. You don’t want to skimp on the amount of time you’ll spend on the planning or designing of this middle ground.
Enjoy. It will take longer than you plan, and you’ll invest more than you expect. But in the end you’ll have a home that will fit you and yours like no other. You’ll revel in the touch and feel of everything, and you won’t be able to wait to be home to enjoy how the light falls across a wall or how that little extra storage space has made all the difference. You’ll have a place that you won’t feel the need to change, to expand, to redecorate, to remodel for many years to come, if ever.
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I am an appraiser who does lot of plans and specs custom builds. I generally go back when construction is completed to sign off. In 25 years, I have seldom met the owner of a true custom home who did not at least have a couple of minor things they would have done differently. Building is stressful and you can put undue stress on yourself to assume that everything will be "perfect." Sure, put as much preplanning and care into it as possible. Sure, check into the project frequently and ask questions sooner rather than later. But unrealistic expectations (like perfection) lead to more stress. Be prepared for reality. The imported tile you spent 4 months picking out will come in damaged beyond use and your builder will tell you he needs a decision on something else within the week. Preferably this afternoon. At least one thing you wanted will prove to be technically impossible or at least very impractical. I don't think you are doing new homeowners a favor to tell them perfection is possible. Like many people, we love our "imperfectly perfect" home but we had to make compromises along the way.
This article is three years old now, so perhaps someone else has commented similarly. I read the Article and it makes excellent points and I read a few comments and the one from jashumbert hit the mark, as well.
In his article, the author, citing the possibility of "perfection" never discusses cost except to say you will spend more than you planned, thus perfection is missed already; the budget missed! Remember the Golden Triangle: Quality (the measuring stick for Perfection) is linked inexorably to Cost and Time.
In Theory, if you have a triangle that is a line, you can achieve Perfection, but then the Cost and Time are Infinite. I have always remembered a particular Specification written by an Architect, saying the wall finish will be perfectly smooth. I put a Proposal together for the project but first I took the opportunity to explain to the Owner this example of the Specs his Architect issued and if he wanted that Spec met, the Cost would be Infinite...he understood my point, I won the job because I understood and admitted reality would rule the day.
I have spent over 25 years in the Residential Construction Industry at a company whose product was sold on Quality and when the budget allowed (and frankly even when it didn't), we strove to achieve as close to perfection as possible. As jashumbert has pointed out....it is unattainable, like with anything else with a level of complexity to it.
I now only assist Clients in pre-construction, part of the service I provide is developing the understanding the concepts of navigating Turning Points in the Construction Process and the Golden Triangle (or depending on their level of interest), how the Golden Triangle is ringed by the circle of Scope. If you are interested in knowing more reach out to TpcInc07@gmail.com.
Insert the words "close to". No matter the resources, no matter the time allowed. It's as "perfect" as you will ever get. Now........ let us define "close". : )