It is often a much better idea to make your dream home by starting from scratch instead of trying to modify the existing house. A knockdown-rebuild project will give you a new home designed the way you want and built with the latest technology and materials possible. It will not only provide you what you want, but it will also give you a home designed to last for your lifetime and the lives of your grandchildren.
It is not as simple as charging in with a bulldozer and taking everything out. You should go through some steps to ensure your knockdown-rebuild project’s success.
Let’s Take a Look at Knockdown-Rebuild Project
- Get Your Design – Do not wait until the last minute to have your house designs created by a professional. Depending on who you use to draw the blueprints, you may have to wait several months to get the finished design. The bottom line, hire a professional and have the blueprints made up before you start taking steps to knock down your home.
- Check Your Soil – The foundation is the aspect of the home that holds the entire structure up. Before you destroy the current building, you will want to inspect it. See if there are signs of the ground settling in extreme amounts in one area of the house compared to the others. If there is, you have a good indication of a problem with the ground that needs to be addressed before building. It is a good idea to have a geological survey of the area, but a good general contractor can give you a basic rundown of what you may need to do.
- Choose A Home Builder – Once the basics are out of the way, you will want to find a home builder that can do the knockdown rebuild without causing you any headaches. Do not ever accept one bid for the job. You want to contact many builders and compare them, not just by the lowest bid. Usually, one of the bids in the middle range will be your best bet, but you need to research the companies and make sure they have a good reputation with their customers and that they have a business license and insurance coverage.
- Home Loan – Now that you have chosen the home builder you will be going through, you should have a good idea how much money you will need for the project. You will want to bump that amount up to ensure you have enough to cover any of those little surprises you always have to contend with. You need to get your loan squared away before you sign any contracts or give the go-ahead to start the work. You want to make sure that you are financially covered to pay the costs that will be required. You do not want to be digging in your own pocket simply because you started before the loan cleared your bank.
- Sign Contracts – The contracts are the final stage that you need to complete before you are ready to start demolition. It is a good idea to have a lawyer of your own go over the contract to ensure everything is legal and fair, and then go ahead and sign on the dotted line. If you are familiar with contracts or have a friend who is good with them, you can avoid the cost of a lawyer, but if not, do not take any chances. Always ensure that the contract is what it is supposed to be, with no extra surprises.
That is it. You are ready to start knocking down the existing buildings and get the ground prepared for the new construction. The best part of the process is when it gets completed, but throughout the project, you can watch as things go torn down and walls start going up. Nothing is as exciting as watching the dream of your own home come to life.