Building Your Dream Home - STEP 2
By Lucas on Oct 09, 2012
By Daniella Battaglini, B.A.
By now, you should have a good understanding of what you want. If you are really eager, you will have your building lot as well.
When you are searching for a lot, you may notice that a lot of builders already own the vacant properties; which may help when deciding on a builder. Some builders have architectural plans that you can use, and alter to your own liking. Or, you can work with an architect and designer to come up with something from scratch.
Architects and designers draft the plans for the house. Architects are licensed by The Ontario Association of Architects and must have a Certificate to Practice. They will co-ordinate technical specifications such as trusses, load bearing walls, support beams etc. These plans will need to be designed to code and submitted to the town for approval.
There is a lot of technical work being done now, and you need to decide how involved in the process you want to be. Do you want to be in charge of the entire operation or have someone else take the lead? There are several advantages of hiring a reputable professional, especially if this is your first custom home.
Choosing a builder/contractor is a crucial decision. There is nothing worse than firing someone halfway through a project, especially such an expensive one!
Ask around. Family, friends and neighbours. Don’t be afraid to approach strangers who the builder has done work for. Referrals are huge in this entire process.
Whether you’re taking full control of the building and design process or hiring someone else to do it, you should look into Tarion.
What is Tarion?
Tarion is a new home warranty program designed to protect the buyers. All builders in Ontario must be registered with Tarion, and take courses on building code, ethics, dealing with buyers, etc. Tarion Registrants must register and enroll every new home prior to the start of the construction.
Tarion.com offers a “Licensed Builders Directory,” aka The Little Black Book on Builders in Ontario. You can search builders, based on name or location, and find information such as date of registration, number of homes built per year, and claims filed against them, as well as contact information.
Be careful though, certain homes may not be covered under Tarion. If you, as the homeowner take control over the project, the warranty is no longer valid!
By this point, there are a number of people that you will need and encounter, such as:
- Lawyer
- Lender- Surveyor
- Architect- Builder or General Contractor
- Planning and Building Department- Building Inspectors
- Material Suppliers- Subcontractors/Trades People
The beginning stages of building a house require the most crucial decisions - but the planning is almost done!
Next Month: Preparing to Dig
Daniella Battaglini has been exposed to all aspects of real estate since a young age. Her entrepreneurial parents have developed a subdivision and continue to construct custom luxury homes, which has given Daniella much hands on experience. She has always taken an interest in the homebuilding process from start to finish, and has a keen eye for details. Daniella Battaglini currently works at Royal LePage, Your Community Realty in Aurora.
To connect with Daniella Battaglini, email daniella@dbrealty.ca, or visit her Facebook Page.
