Having a custom home built in Long Beach, California is a dream come true for many Southern Californians. However, this dream can easily turn into a nightmare when you choose the wrong custom home builders in Long Beach. What could go wrong, you ask? Your custom home build could go wildly over budget, take months or even years longer than you anticipated, and then not even turn out how you had hoped as far as the quality of the construction is concerned. In addition, your custom home builders could be difficult to work with, have poor communication skills, and not understand the vision of the type of home you are hoping to have built.
Because so much could go wrong, it’s important to take your time to interview various custom home builders in Long Beach, CA to find the one that’s right for your project.
The first thing you want to look for is a general contractor with extensive experience with custom home builds in Long Beach. Building a home from the ground up is a much different type of project than something like a kitchen remodel or a room addition. Custom home builds require top notch project management skills. The contractor you hire will have to work with multiple subcontractors, materials suppliers, and other industry professionals, as well as work with city employees for approvals and inspections. A contractor without great project management skills will struggle to keep a project on schedule and may also have issues with cash flow.
Next, you want to find a custom home builder with whom you can communicate easily. Someone who brushes off your concerns or who won’t provide you with regular updates on your project will be a constant source of frustration during the entire construction project. Before hiring a contractor, ask to speak to former customers to find out more about their communication style. Ask about the frequency of the updates they received, as well as how they communicated with other professionals such as architects, interior designers, and city inspectors. You should also ask if the finished product met their expectations. If it did, this is a good sign that the custom home builder was receptive to feedback and took the homeowners wants and needs into account.
Getting quotes from several different custom home builders in Long Beach is always recommended. However, don’t just choose one based on the bottom-line price they give you. Take all of the above into consideration as well, so you don’t end up disappointed. Keep in mind the age-old saying, “Cheap work is rarely good and good work is rarely cheap.”
