What does it mean to you to have a certified green builder build your home? It means that your builder has earned the "Certified Green Professional"  designation, and that he is committed to incorporate green building principles into your home without driving up the cost of construction. A Certified Green Builder has been trained and has demonstrated experience in:

• Choosing products and practices for greater energy efficeincy
• Indoor and outdoor water conservation practices
• Preserving indoor environmental quality
• Identifying and choosing sustainable building products
• Understanding green building benchmarks found in the Build Green program

Your green certified builder can help you determine which features are appropriate for your home and your budget. He will be able to guide you through the cost-benefits of building an energy efficent home and  can guarantee a home that will deliver years of comfort and cost savings on energy.

Bill Epstein, PDL Properties principal builder, is a recognized Certified Green Professional. He is a North Carolina custom home builder.

Unscrupulous Builders During Tough Economic Times

 

So what is a Ponzi builder? It is a builder that would make Bernie Madoff proud. And this is how it works.

 

Mr. Unscrupulous Builder is desperate for work during these troubled economic times, so he promotes himself by advertising, “I will beat any builder’s price, guaranteed!”  Wow, that sounds really good, right? But wait.

 

Mr. Unscrupulous Builder asks you to bring him the written proposals you have received from other builders. He takes the lowest bid and beats it by $10,000 or $20,000 or maybe by 2, 3 or 5 percent. (And who wouldn’t want a good deal like that, especially to build your dream house?)

 

But watch out! To accomplish this, his most important job during the building process is to keep his eye on the bottom line—HIS BOTTOM LINE.  This does not necessarily equal quality materials and craftsmanship. It does not often provide for unsurpassed service, especially after closing and you move into your home. And it certainly does not guarantee that this builder will be in business for the foreseeable future.

 

Remember, to guarantee to beat any other builder’s price, Mr. Unscrupulous Builder is not working off of a set of quality standards that he builds into each of his houses. Rather, he is just looking at another builder’s quote and simply beating the price to achieve his goal—“Get the job.”  Price cutting means the builder MUST cut something. This is the classic lose-lose situation. The homeowners loses because something (most likely quality) has been cut from his new home, which will cost him more money down the road. And the builder eventually loses because he is either barely breaking even or he is losing money. This is no way to run a successful business.

 

But Mr. Unscrupulous Builder is more than willing to “beat any builder’s price” and even lose money to get the job, actually to get the lion’s share of jobs. Watch out, here comes Bernie, and his Ponzi scheme. Mr. Unscrupulous Builder does not just want to get jobs, he NEEDS to get the jobs. Why? Because while he is busy beating everyone else’s prices he needs to get the next job to keep paying for the job he already has. Simply put, he is not making enough money to build the house, pay all bills associated with the house, pay his staff, pay his personal bills and make enough to stay in business.

 

So when you sign a contract with Mr. Unscrupulous Builder, he is secretly planning to take your money and use it to pay bills he has accumulated on the house or houses he already has under construction. In then end, after he has beaten every other builders’ price, and the bills are higher than Mt. Everest, and his credit is maxed out—Mr. Unscrupulous Builder will be forced out of business, leaving suppliers and subs unpaid and his last set of customers with half built houses and cancelled checks that were never used to pay for materials for their houses.

 

Tip: Beware of any builder who guarantees, “I will beat any builder’s price.” It may be Mr. Unscrupulous Builder, and it will ultimately cost you more.

Deciding on a builder is probably the most important decision you will make in your quest for your dream home. Why? Because your builder will become your partner for as long as it takes to build your house--plus for another year or more as he continues to provide service after you move in. He or she will be involved in every aspect of your new home. He will touch every part of the project from the plans, to the dirt, to the foundation, to the framing, sheetrock, plumbing, electrical, and trimwork. He will be the person you need to trust to keep the project on schedule, order the materials, pay the bills, and oversee the subcontractors to ensure they do the job right.

The builder needs to be a knowledgeable craftsman that brings his building expertise to the job.  He needs to be a negotiator who can effectively communicate with his vendors and subcontractors. And he needs to be a smart businessman who has had experience and has been able to successfully stay in business both in the good times and when the market has turned down.

So be diligent, and do your homework before selecting your builder. Check references. Ask former customers about the quality of worksmanship, completion time, budget management, and customer service during and after construction. Ask whether there were any unexpected "surprises," and don't forget to ask the most important question," Would you hire this builder again?" But don't stop at customer references, call the builders suppliers and ask whether this builder pays his bills on time and whether they have had any negative experiences when dealing with the builder. 

Afterall, building your dream house is a BIG investment. You need a partner who has an excellent reputation, has integrity and who you can trust.

Now that you have decided to custom build, what is the first step in beginning the process?  Find

A)   An Architect

B)   A Building Lot

C) A Contractor/builder

 

When you have decided that building a custom home is right for you, what should you do first? Find an architect or designer? Buy that “perfect” building lot? Or select your contractor-builder? Although there is NO right answer, having a builder, who you trust, with you from design, to lot selection, to building will minimize disappointment, save time, and increase satisfaction.

 

Cindy and Mike Newbury had purchased a large corner lot in a lovely community of customs homes. They had fun spending numerous hours leafing through pages of house designs, cutting out pictures of homes that caught their eye, and sketching their new home. They hired an architect, shared their ideas, and had their vision drafted into a complete set of plans. All that was left was to hire a builder and have their custom home built. So with a ready-to-build lot and thousands of dollars of blueprints in hand, Cindy and Mike began their search for a builder. What they found were three very reputable builders, but, after walking the lot and reviewing the plans, each told them the same disappointing story. The home they wanted to build was not going to fit within the building envelope of their lot.  Each builder explained that while their building lot was   certainly large enough, between the set-backs and the surrounding wetlands, the buildable area was smaller then the footprint for the total house. The news was so disappointing that Cindy and Mike decided to put the project on-hold indefinitely.

 

It is not necessary to begin with selecting a builder. And every story does not end the same as Cindy and Mike’s. However, if you select a quality builder, he can assist with lot selection, since all building lots are not “good” building lots or suitable for certain home designs. A quality builder can assist with a design that will fit your property or help you find a property that will fit your design. Since he has probably built many houses, he can often make design suggestions and even recommend architect/designers with whom he has worked. He can visualize your home from the blueprints; he can see the best placement and angle of your home on your property; he can tell as he walks and looks at the property the effect slope will have on house design and drainage. The builder is key to having your custom home become a reality, so, if possible, select the builder early in the process.

 

 

 

This is a question that only you can answer. Most people just plunge into the process of building without assessing whether they are ready at this point in their life to undertake a project of this magnitude. However, I believe that building a custom home can and should be enjoyable. I also believe there is a greater chance that the experience will be positive and satisfying if you can definitively say, “Yes, I am ready.” To help you, just answer the following 15 questions. There are no right or wrong answers. Be honest with yourself, and then you decide.

1. Do I (we) comfortably make decisions and stick with them? 
          Yes      No
2. Can I (we) remain calm and rational when something unexpected goes wrong?
          Yes     No
3. Can I (we) give up control when I know someone else has more knowledge and      experience than I do? 
          Yes      No
4. Do I (we) know what I (we) want in a house?
          Yes      No
5. Am I (are we) realistic about my (our) budget?
          Yes     No
6. Am I (are we) realistic about what I want in a house based on my (our) budget?  
          Yes     No
7. Are my (our) family relations strong and stable enough to deal with the added stress of building a home?
          Yes     No
8. Do I work well with other people?
         Yes     No
9. Do I (we) have enough money in reserve to weather some unexpected financial expenses and still be  comfortable with completing and paying for the house?
         Yes     No
10. Do I (we) have the time over the next year or two to devote to working on having a custom home built?
         Yes     No
11. Do I resolve differences of opinion with my spouse easily so that undue strain is not placed on the relationship?
         Yes     No
12. Will I (we) be happy with a house that is well built, an excellent product and exemplifies high industry standards, but is not perfect? 
         Yes     No
13. Do I need to have complete control of projects most of the time?
         Yes    No
14. Am I in a hurry to have this house built? 
         Yes     No
15. Do I expect perfection? 
         Yes     No

If you answered “yes” to the first 12 questions and “no” to the last 3, then you are definitely ready to build.  You may be ready to build even if you had different answers on 3 or 4 questions. But if you differed on 5 or more then consider waiting to build. Or you may just want to buy an already existing home.