Our Process

You could either find a suitable building lot and then a plan to suit the lot, or if money is not a problem and you have your heart set on a specific plan, first get your plans and then a lot to suit the plan.

* Before you choose a plan, take into account your lifestyle and your budget. It is very easy to go over budget or choose a plan that looks ideal on paper, but does not suit your family.

* There are many design books on the market or you could hire an architect or a home designer to design a house for you.

* Make sure you have enough copies of your plan, 10 would be really nice. Your building permit will take 2 or 3 copies and you will probably have to leave a plan at your place of lending. That leaves you with 6 or 7 copies left. Many of the sub trades need a plan to price out their work, make sure you remember who has a plan and get it back when they are finished with it.

* Most subdivisions will require a set of plans.

The developers often control many aspects of what goes into their subdivision. You must decide if their building scheme is within your budget and lifestyle. Most subdivisions will have to approve of your building plan before you may apply for a building permit.

* A building scheme is when the subdivision owners or the city have placed restrictions on the type, color, roof style, size, basically it could include anything to do with the house or the lot. Some subdivisions have many restrictions and others have none.

Get cost estimates from all the sub trades needed to complete the job.

* Make sure that you get several quotes from each sub trade, at least 3 or more, stick to REPUTABLE companies and you will be able to ELIMINATE a lot of problems afterwards. Compare all the quotes to make sure they include the same materials and work, and of course the quality of the material. Cheaper is not always better. Have the material list checked by someone who knows a little about it. Do not be afraid to ask questions.

After your plan has been approved by the developer of the subdivision take your plans and a Plot Plan to City Hall for the building permit.

* A Plot Plan is a drawing of how and where your house will be placed on the lot.

* Depending on the time of year and how busy they are it could take from 2 to 6 weeks before the permit is ready to be picked up.

* When you receive your building permit, you will receive a list of conditions that must be met. Example: some beams must be engineered or the soil must be tested.

While you are waiting for the permit you have time to get organized and start arranging for:

* If you are your own General Contractor the first trades to contact are the Surveyors, Framing crew and Excavator.

* Contact the electric company to get temporary power and if this takes to long, there is usually a friendly neighbor who will let you use their power for a small fee.

* You should contact all the trades you have selected to confirm their availability, when confirming ask each trade during what stage of construction they need to come in to do their job.