In this series, the professionals at the B.O.L.D. Company will take you through the process of building a custom home in the Greater Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. From plan and lot selection, to mortgage approval, to the actual construction, we’ll take you behind-the-scenes each week for an inside look at a different part of the process.

 This week, we take a look at the decision so many homebuyers face:  Build or Buy?

 The advantages of building a new home are many:

•  New homes are increasingly energy efficient and low-maintenance. New homes can save you up to 30% annually on utility costs. All components of the home are new and are of the latest design. Also, new homes are subject to the latest and strictest building codes and industry standards.
• You choose the features that are important to you. Instead of choosing between House A with this feature you like and House B with that feature you like, when you build your own home, you can include all the features you like, and leave out the ones you don’t. This brings us to our next point: 
• Times change, and with them, colors, designs, and lifestyles. Like the boxy cars of the 1980s morphing into the sleek aerodynamic designs of today, homes and their component parts face style and design changes. Floor plans change with lifestyle changes. Today, new home customers are choosing to phase out formal living and dining rooms, while phasing in first floor master bedrooms, convenient laundry rooms, and a more open design overall. New home buyers are also more aware and concerned about issues such as environmental impact, indoor air quality, and the ability to gracefully age in place. The latest technologies found in a new home address each of these issues, and more.
• See the house go up, inside and out. When you build a new home, you are there for the whole process. You see the empty hole in the ground, the framing and wiring prior to the drywall; you smell the brand-new paint and shiny new flooring. Are there curtain blocks over the windows? Are there electric plugs where you want to put your coffee table? There is a greater feeling of pride and of ownership – it is YOUR house, built for YOU based on YOUR wants and needs.  BECAUSE:
•  Custom homes are all about YOU, not about the sale. The difference between purchasing a new CUSTOM home and a new production home is the quality and the focus. A custom home is focused on you and your needs. A production home is directed at a large group of potential customers, both in features and in price. While a custom home will include higher quality products, a production home will have more builder-grade-quality products, to keep the price in a range affordable to a greater number of people. And because you may not be around at the time of construction, you may not even be aware of many of these quality concessions hidden behind the finishes—but many of the concessions you WILL see and experience every day you live in the home. 
• New homes come with extensive warranties – not just from the home builder. Many of the components of the home have manufacturer’s warranties, from faucets, to doors and windows, to appliances, and more.
• New homes are built in new communities, which tend to rise in value faster than older communities. Like home styles, community styles change. Home buyers begin looking for different features in their communities, whether it is pools, tennis courts, or walking paths, or convenience to the newest shopping centers and restaurants.

 Of course, there are two sides to every story. It is important that you are aware of the challenges, as well as the benefits, and determine if they can be overcome:

•  Construction of a home takes TIME. The resale of a pre-existing home can close within thirty days, while construction of a new home takes four to six months, depending on the time of year and the kinds of weather and scheduling delays that can be expected.
• Construction of a home also takes EFFORT. You may not be laying the bricks yourself, but you you WILL have to select the brick and color you want, and you will have to meet a deadline for the decision to avoid extra costs and delays. There will be lots of decisions to be made, large and small, throughout the process. An experienced professional, however, will prepare you to succeed and make each step as easy as possible– they know how early to begin making each decision, they can guide you toward the best products for your needs v. budget, and they can answer your questions each step of the way.
• Unexpected costs get you overbudget easily if you are building a house on the side (in your spare time?) or if you are building a home for the first time. With an experienced professional home builder, staying on budget should not be an issue.
• Financing can be difficult to obtain – possibly more difficult than for a pre-existing resale. Due to the current mortgage and economic conditions, financing can be a hurdle, but a professional homebuilder can help. We have the experience, knowledge, and contacts to help turn this “hurdle” into little more than a “speed bump.”

 Contact The B.O.L.D. Company today for more information on why and how to build a custom home in the Cincinnati – Northern Kentucky area. The B.O.L.D. Company has design/built over 400 new custom homes since 1986, and no two are exactly alike. Our commitment to quality and craftsmanship are reasons why we have had the distinct privilege to build for some customers over again, and to build for relatives and friends of customers. Our participation in the EPA’s Energy Star Program and the NAHB’s Green Building Training Program keep us at the forefront of technology and innovation. But most of all, we owe our success to our desire to serve our customers and put their priorities first. After all, our most popular floor plan is called “You draw it, we build it!”

CONTACT THE B.O.L.D. COMPANY FOR MORE INFORMATION ON BUILDING A CUSTOM HOME