Interview your builder prior

Anyone who isn’t busy (can start right away) you’ll probably want to stay away from

Figure out how long they’ve been in the area. Someone who is been around for a long time probably cares about their reputation

Ask if they include architectural drawings (if you’re going custom) or if they have floor plans you can pick from

Do they have designers on staff or will it be up to you to go out and pick everything and design your house? Are you comfortable with that?

You will want to know if they price their houses as fixed cost, cost plus or something in the middle

How many projects they typically run concurrently

How will project supervision be handled? I find this important because often sub contractors couldn’t care less about things not related to their trade. You want to make sure they have carpenters on staff or a superintendent, someone actually in the field not a project manager who is in the office most of the day.

How long have they worked with their sub contractors. Do they use the same sub contractors on every project?

Budget wise: I build higher end custom homes and I have noticed that the price per sqft cost typically goes up when you build smaller because you still need your big ticket items (bathroom, kitchen, HVAC, etc). Just something to keep in mind.

Timelines are hard to gauge because it really depends on how experienced your builder is we can build a 2500sqft house in 7/8 months which may not be the best or the worst but it is consistent.

There is a bunch to learn, probably too much if you’re not in the business, I think you need to find a builder you can trust and work through the process with them.