Home Building Resources
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Interviewing Custom Homebuilders
Finding the right contractor is one of the biggest challenges when embarking on a new home construction, addition or remodel. One way of the best ways to meet this challenge is through an interview process.
I developed my interview process as a project manager for a small real estate development company in San Francisco where I was continually evaluating new contractors, craftspeople and artisans. The goal of an interview is to expose an applicant’s weakness with respect to your needs. You want the best applicant for your project. It doesn’t mean the others are not qualified—it simply means they were not the best fit for you or your project.
For our clients at Hoffmans Architecture, we’ve created 8 questions we feel are essential to selecting a contractor or builder.
1) Do you have a management system for managing projects?
Builders, like any successful business, have customized services to best meet their and their
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5 Questions to Answer Before Starting Construction
Successful projects require planning. To help clients prepare for new home construction or a home remodel we’ve developed 5 questions to ask before starting a project.
1) What are my goals and constraints?
Before starting any design work, it’s best to clearly define project goals and constraints. Write them down. This is especially true for residential remodels and additions. If the project scope is not clearly defined, it’s easy to succumb to “scope creep”. Once that happens, your construction budget and schedule can become seriously compromised. We suggest defining as many goals and constraints as possible. Don’t worry if constraints are random or conflicting—your architect should be able to resolve them into a design.
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DESIGN-PRICE-BUILD DELIVERY METHOD
Mh3>DO YOU NEED DESIGN SERVICES FOR YOUR HOME CONSTRUCTION PROJECT?
IF YES, THEN WHICH PROJECT DELIVERY METHOD IS BEST FOR YOU?
For anyone considering a home construction project or simply seeking residential design services, there are essentially two types of project delivery methods. 1) design-build, where the design team is part of the construction team, or 2) design-bid-build, where the design team is independent from the construction team.
At Hoffmans Architecture, we advise our clients on a blended delivery method, which we call design-price-build. This model is similar to design-build, as the designer and builder still work as a team. The difference is contractual. In the design-price-build model, the owner has separate contracts with the architect (or designer) and builder. This allows the architect to be independence, flexible and provide oversight for the owner during the construction phases of the project. It also allows the builder to provide pricing and constructability expertise during the design phase, which can help reduce unnecessarily costly design decisions and provide budgetary feedback during the various design stages of design.
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How to size your home? Use our worksheet!
When planning a new home, determining the right size at the onset can be difficult. Many variables can contribute to its size—including varying homeowner needs, vaulted ceilings, two-story spaces, or outdoor spaces. What’s more, some municipalities or HOAs set minimum and maximum size. Many potential homeowners start with a size in mind based on some external criteria like sizes of homes in the area or recently visited friends’ or family members’ homes. A perceived construction budget may also influence size decisions. To help our clients better understand what’s an appropriate size home, we’ve created an Excel spreadsheet that can be easily modified to meet a homeowner’s particular needs.
The spreadsheet has common room sizes used for homes designed by Hoffmans Architecture over the years. The rooms are organized vertically to accommodate a two-story home with a basement, which is a bit more challenging to lay out than a single-story residence. The spreadsheet also helps the user visualize the floor size relationship between floors. Typically, you don’t want the second floor larger that the main level or the main level larger than the basement.
When configuring a home’s size, it’s important to consider its geometry too. A square shape is more economical than a rectangular, shoebox shape. A 20’x20’ house and a 10’x40’ house are both 400 square feet, but the 20’x20’ house has a footprint of 80 linear feet and 10’x40’ has 100 linear feet. Therefore, the shoebox shape has 25% more foundation and exterior wall materials, which is more expensive to construct. Think of a square house as two-story home, and the shoebox as a single story home.
The goal of this exercise is not to design the house, but to help establish a home size that begins meeting home and room size goals and constraints. You can find the Excel spreadsheet on the main Home Building Resources page under the file download section.
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Does your house have radon?
Radon is an odorless, invisible, radioactive gas that can enter your home from the ground through cracks in the foundation, basement slab and crawlspace. A known human carcinogen, radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer.
New homes like older homes can have high radon levels. Older homes do have more cracks, but radon is a single-atom gas, which can penetrate many materials commonly used in construction. According to the EPA, nearly 1 in 3 homes checked in 7 states had screening levels over 4 pCi/L—the EPA’s recommended action level for radon exposure. The EPA’s website has a map by county of radon levels. If your county is classified as Zone 1 or 2, then I highly advise getting your home checked for radon. Just search for “radon levels by county.” Winter is the best season to measure radon levels. Use an EPA-certified radon detector and have it run a minimum of 24 hours to get an accurate reading. However, I suggest not purchasing a detector because most radon specialists provide this service at little-to-no cost.
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Asbestos and Older Homes
Due to the fire and corrosion resistance of the naturally occurring mineral, Asbestos was used in a wide range of home products until the 1970s. Undisturbed, asbestos poses no threat. However, the minute the owner of an older home decides to drill in to drywall, remove floor tiles, remove their popcorn ceiling or complete various other DIY projects they are putting themselves and their families at risk of exposure. Asbestos was widely used in products until the late 1970s. A few very common products used are Zonolite’s vermiculite insulation in homes from 1950 to 1970, pipe insulation used for hot water and steam pipes in homes prior to 1980, vinyl tiles and linoleum sheet flooring, and cement roof and siding shingles.
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Installing Radon Mitigation System
If you live in the Midwest, Northern Plains, or Mountain West states, the odds are fairly high you need an active radon mitigation system installed. For existing homes, if you are located in a Zone 1 or 2 county, the odds are very high it has unsafe radon levels. Call a radon specialist and get your home tested. You may need to install a system. The good news for new construction, installing a passive radon mitigation system is fairly easy and inexpensive. However, most builders don’t proactively install these systems, so 1) check if you live in a county classified as Zone 1 or 2, and 2) have a discussion about installation before construction starts.
Following are issues to be aware when interviewing a builder or radon system specialist.
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HOME STANDBY GENERATOR
The recent power outages across Texas and the work-from-home trend highlight the need for a home standby generator. Home standby generators (HSG), like AC units, are installed on a concrete pad exterior to a home and provide emergency power when electrical service power is cut off. In the late 1990s, HSG products were very expensive, but over the last several years prices have dropped considerably as more businesses and homeowners embraced the infrastructure. For most homeowners, the install cost would be in the $5,000 to $10,000 range. Following are a few items to consider when purchasing a standby generator.
Manufacturers
We suggest starting your research with these manufacturers: Kohler, Honeywell, Generac, Cummins
Building Beyond Code Minimum
Don’t settle for constructing your custom home to minimum building code standards—go beyond the code and consider these additional factors.
Custom homes become forever homes for many homeowners. So it’s important to consider additional standards beyond the minimum building code standards—used by many home builders to price and construct custom homes—that provide longevity to the structure and for the users. Before finalizing a construction budget, discuss with your builders these items as part of the baseline budget.
Accessible Clear Width
Accessibility codes generally don’t apply to single family residences, but the design and construction industry over last few years has been incorporating universal design standards and constructing adaptability provision into homes.
Efficient home design and lessons from the Foursquare Farmhouse
Efficient home design and lessons from the Foursquare Farmhouse.
Three years after the 2008 housing crash, builders started building homes again—but with fewer workers. Ten years later, the residential building industry still hadn’t fully regained its pre-2008 labor force. During this period, material costs slowly increased—and then dramatically climbed during the pandemic. The decreased labor force combined with increased material costs have dramatically increased overall new home construction costs—a reality which has fostered a renewed interest in finding ways to reduce them.
The custom home-building process is focused on first meeting a homeowner’s goals and constraints, before seeking design efficiency—leading homeowners to manage their budgets based on the home’s overall size and perceived per-square foot costs. This is a fine place to start, but the best way to reduce cost—whether constructing a house or manufacturing a car—is finding efficiency in both design and construction.
Constructing a new home or a major renovation to an existing home can be a daunting task. Just understanding where to start can be a challenge, causing delays.
Anxious to get going when embarking on such a project, many start by contacting an architect, designer or builder referred by a family member, friend or neighbor. They may immediately hone in on a design or finished product, and hope to replicate that for their own project.
However we advise potential clients to, first, establish a plan based on their needs and goals before contacting anyone in the design and construction community. With that in mind, we have created a page dedicated to providing ongoing resources for homeowners (and potential homeowners) considering constructing a new home, creating an addition to an existing home or doing a remodel.
During our years of experience serving various types of residential clients, it became clear to us that homeowners often need more information about the home building process. They often would benefit from understanding what types protections are needed, what kind of services should be considered, and how to prepare for a project.
Our goal for here is to provide resources for these individuals to confidently move forward with their project, knowing they are making better-informed decisions—and ultimately have a more rewarding and successful project.
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