All buildings are not created equal. There are many options available to a South Florida custom home builder when constructing a home. The blueprints he works from specify only featured materials to be used, leaving much of the rest to the contractors discretion. Something seemingly as minor as the caulking on your windows can cost as little as $3.00 per tube and well over $20.00 per tube. Which one do you want on your windows? Multiply this by the hundreds of products used to construct your home and you can begin to see that all homes are not created equal and all builders are not equal. This is not to say that you must spend the most to get the best. A good Fort Lauderdale custom home builder does his homework and finds the products that bring you the best value within your budget. Whether your budget is $200 per square foot or $800 per square foot, a careful Fort Lauderdale custom home builder will get you the “best bang for your buck”. Someone exploring contractors to build their home should be leery of a low bid or they could be weary when the process is over. All too often, the horror stories you hear in construction begin with a low bid. If the price you get to build your home seems too good to be true, then it probably is. Ultimately, you get what you pay for and in many cases even less. This is why it is also the home owner’s responsibility to do their homework. You must take the time to find out a Broward county custom home builder with a reputation for quality work and who is a “good fit” for you. Find a builder with longevity in the business who is familiar with South Florida’s unique building conditions and building codes. You will be spending a lot of time with your builder and you should have an honest and comfortable rapport. This will give you the confidence in knowing that your Broward county custom home builder team has your best interest in mind. This translates to a better quality product. Good communication is key to getting what you want within your budget. There are many decisions to be made and this can be overwhelming for most people. This is why a good interior designer and landscape architect are as equally important as the architect. They explore what you want within your budget and find the best materials to help create your dream home. A good contractor then will shop for the best price for their client. It takes a builder who will not only take the time to do this but who also has established a network of sources to get the best value for their client. This takes years of experience and hard work for any builder to sort the wheat from the chaff. In the end, taking the time to focus on a quality South Florida custom home builder, one that brings lasting value to your new home, is time well spent!
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While we would like to think that all builders are equal, the simple truth is that they are not. The competitive bidding process assumes that all bidders are of equal quality and so begins a process filled with false assumptions. The first problem is that we can’t “kick the tires”. We can’t see the finished product and make educated decisions based on the quality of one finished product over another. With most products, we can make comparisons based on the physical evidence that we can see and touch. When appointing a Fort Lauderdale custom home builder, we are buying a product that has yet to be built. We may be hiring the best salesman rather than the best builder. Blueprints rarely, if ever, specify each and every element that goes into the construction of a building. Each and every item not specified is left up to the contractors bidding the project to specify. Knowing that the low bidder is often awarded the project, it is not likely that they will consider products that may inflate their price. Major items may be specified, such as plumbing fixtures, roofing, flooring, and appliances etc., but this leaves literally hundreds of products of varying quality left solely to the discretion of the bidding contractor. The contractors who regularly use cheaper products and cheaper labor are likely to give a lower price to build. This is not in the unsuspecting client’s best interest. In the long run, this can lead to years of costly repairs and maintenance. As the job progresses, the low bidder either uses the cheaper products or offers the client upgrades through change orders, thus adding to the cost. In the end, the price differential between the low and high bidder is usually much less than it appeared at the beginning. There is also the assumption that all of the bidders have included everything in their bid. It is not uncommon that the low bidder has left something out of his bid. This may come to light at the contract stage when the client may feel that he has already committed to this builder and does not want to “start over” with another builder. So the client accepts the additional costs. It may also come to light during the construction process and the dreaded “change order” raises its head. Even if the contractor is forced to absorb the loss, the client may ultimately pay because the contractor may look for and find other ways to cut corners to make up for the loss. While price is important, you do not always get the best Fort Lauderdale Luxury home builder or the best deal based solely on price. The “best value” is not likely to be the “lowest price”. A building is like anything else you buy- you get what you pay for! |
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March 2023
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