Looking for Mr. Right (home Builder), and What Will He Do?

LOOKING FOR MR. RIGHT (BUILDER) - Okay, this is important…you have to do your homework on this one. Not all builders are built alike! Just because one company builds large homes doesn’t make that builder a good one. I once designed a home where a “big-time” builder was hired and you just wouldn’t believe all the elementary mistakes that were made.

Sometimes builders will come with the land that you buy. Builders often buy a group of lots within a new development, then they sell the lot with the stipulation that they will be the company to build the home. If you are in this situation, where you like the lot but you don’t know the builder, you better find out about the builder before you buy the land. If the builder turns out to be bad, you’d better look for a different piece of land.

To find out about your builder, be sure to take the time to visit some of his homes; be sure to visit four to six homes at different stages of completeness. Look at how the job site is maintained; a neat site shows organization. Look for a portable toilet on the job site; this is rare, but if you find a builder with a portable toilet on site, it is probably a good builder. Why you ask? Easy…if you were working on site all day and had to use the restroom, what would you do? There are two choices: one, you leave the site which takes time and reduces productivity, or two, you go on site. I don’t want to get too graphic here, but you need to know what kind of things can happen.

One day I was laying stone on an expensive home when I came across a five gallon bucket in an upstairs closet full to the brim with…well, you know. I guess all the other trades had been using this bucket for a long time, and nobody was in charge of it, if you know what I mean. It was so bad that the sheetrock around the closet had to be replaced because the porous material had absorbed the odors. I just couldn’t believe it; what kind of builder allows this nonsense to occur on his work site? Obviously, this was one of those sites where the builder’s supervision was to simply drive by and never enter the home.

WHAT A GOOD BUILDER WILL DO - A good builder will do four general things: 1) take care of their clients, 2) keep very good records and provide final papers for you, 3) take good care of their subcontractors, and 4) run a well-organized job site on schedule. Look at their job sites; if they are trashy, then they are not focused on quality. Talk to some subcontractors and ask them how they feel about working with the general contractor. Is their scheduling with the other trades smooth? Is the workforce working and coordinating together in a proactive manner? What complaints do they have?

Find a home where the new owners have already moved in and talk to them about their experience. How was the builder to work with? Did he listen to them or did he just want to do his own thing and force it upon the buyer? How was the builder when the home buyer wanted to make a change? Were the suggestions of changes by the buyer received in a positive manner by the builder or with a negative attitude? Though this building effort is indeed the builder’s livelihood, it is still YOUR HOME…get what you want.

Ask the builder for some of his completed projects finished five or more years earlier. Drive by to see how they are holding up. Are there cracks in the concrete or in the brick? Does the home look old before its time? Are there stains coming down from any metal items or white chalky stains (efflorescence) on the brick work? If the home looks like it needs remodeling already, beware! Is this the same quality you expect for your home? Chances are that if you use that particular builder, then you will be facing the same situation in a few years.

Haven "Muskrat" Mankin
Author of "How to Find and Work with a Home Builder" at Muskrat Books.