Who are we

It's too easy to plan on paper.  We have gone around and around with what we want, without realizing who we are.  We've discovered that our style is exactly that.  We started with Tuscan - an Italian farmhouse.  It's very trendy, and can be pretty slick.  It can also work with modern touches.  Then we opened it up.  In discussing it with an architect, he suggested that we look at British cottage.  My wife feared that this would lean toward Tudor and get too formal, then they suggested American Arts & Crafts Style.  Little did we know, that is our style.  We went here http://architecture.about.com/od/housestyles/tp/housestylesindex.htm and started researching.  Sure enough, it fits us.  The words we were using to describe what we wanted and knowing us led him to direct us to this style.  After picking up a few books, we found that the touches we had added to our current house, as well as a lot of our furniture are arts and crafts style.  Some great examples are the style in the Greene & Greene Gamble House, as well as the furniture work of Gustav Stickley.

And the budgets come in....

And we are ridiculously over-budget.  Apparently, this castle is going to cost a king's ransom.  Off we go to start cutting.....

Still waiting - and design inflation

Still waiting to start.  Even with knowledge of parts of the construction process, I feel pretty lost and helpless.  It shouldn't take this long to get going.  I know I could go with a "package deal" and get what they have - but that is definitely not what we want.  As a matter of fact, I think that it is completely wrong that the largest investment most people make is made on a sheet with a list of options by builders who are trying to save every cent possible.  You can see it in the endless neighborhoods that sprawl out from the city centers.  House after house with the same plans; the siding on the back and brick on the front; poor quality trim lumber; and inefficient layouts.  It's more of the same for street after street, cul-d-sac after cul-d-sac.  Because we have seen these as well as true customs costing millions of dollars, we are suffering from design inflation.  Those poor details, lack of good finishes and poor design are beginning to stand out.  If only we could afford the multi-million dollar custom....

What NOW?

Well, we have fought our way through the plans...for the most part.  As an engineer, things just can't get square enough for me, but I'm working on it.  We made some tweaks to the plans as a result of comments from EVERYONE.  You have to be very cautious about this.  If you show your plans to too many people, you may be again left wondering which way to go.  So now what?  Well, we chose a builder first.  That means we are not competitively bidding our project, just negotiating terms with one builder.  A lot of custom home contracts have gone to cost + format.  This great, as long as there is trust and accountability.  Our builder was selected based on our ability to get along with him as well as site visits to review his work in various phases.  In short, he was a good fit for us.  Considering a one year build, finish warranty for a year and structural warranty for 10, this is a long term relationship.  I believe you should be comfortable calling your contractor and discussing anything regarding your home with him or her.  That is more important than the bid, because you can then work with your contractor to get the house cost within budget.  And wait for pricing......

In the beginning

Well, in the beginning....we were thinking of doing a remodel.  I am a structural engineer who works on a variety of projects, including custom residential design.  Yes, this makes me incredibly dangerous.  Much like my spouse, who started by making finish out decisions by walking multi-million dollar homes, my experiences are out of my price range.  It may be that everything is out of our price range, but we will see.

Back to the beginning, first things first, I know the value of good design.  Without it, companies like Apple and Ferrari would be nothing.  So, we have the presence of mind to start with a designer.  We began working with someone that I know pretty well and work with frequently.  There is a huge range of options here, as residential design can go from a cad jockey to a very high end designer.  Fees for the same size house can range from $500 to $50,000.  Here comes the first major decision.....I work with a bunch of different architects and designers, so where do we go?  We were able to "compile" input.  Using a designer who is relatively low cost, has done work we like, and doesn't have the artist ego worked well for us.  We also ran the plans through another architect, just to make sure the flow was going to work out well.  It costs so much per square foot to build, that I believe you are better off extensively planning and even paying for redesign if it doesn't work.  There is value in good design because it should cut the size required to construct, condition and maintain, but when is someone worth twice or even ten times as much, especially when they are creating a sprawling monstrosity?  In the end, you need someone who will work with you, be responsive, and provide a design that reflects your values.

In addition to architecture, of course, you need good engineering.  I get to see plans from other engineers periodically, and can attest to the fact that you can get good and bad engineering.  Without simply recommending the company I work for (we are the best!), I recommend looking for a project history and discussing client base, design philosophy - especially for foundations, and project history.  There are a lot of different products in residential construction.  If you hire someone who typically designs for production housing to engineer your custom home, you will likely get a minimal design.  Minimal design can result in finish cracking and issues that are not out of tolerance.......but present continued maintenance for the life of the structure, i.e., you have no recourse but have problems.  The building code is the minimum, the force of production housing continues to push design closer to that minimum.  Is your home minimal?  Anyway - pay for a good engineer with a good reputation.....and we're off the soap box.