How to Build a Spec House Part II

by Lee Seward Property For Sale, boost real estate earnings, building a house, Construction, construction companies, construction contractor, construction contractors, Contractors, Custom Homes, florida homes for sale, for sale by owner, general contractor services, Home Equity, Home For Sale, Home Remodeling, houses for sale, Housing Market, improve sales in real estate, licensed contractors, local building contractor, local construction company, new home construction, new home florida, new homes for sale florida, Real Estate, real estate agent, real estate commission, real estate license, real estate market, Rebuilding Homes, Remodeling, Renovation, Repairing Home, small construction companies, Subcontractors
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House Design

 On How to Build a Spec House Part I we discussed the math behind selecting the property and sale price. Part II we will go over the house design and how to deliver a product better than your competitors. 

  When you know your targeted market and house size, now you need to design the home you are going to build. Many people think you can have a house design before you have a property in mind and that is not true. 

  Select the house to fit the lot, do not select any house for any lot. An example can be a rear downhill sloping lot, if you select a home that is deep without a basement then you need to build the grade up at the rear of the home to compensate for the lot slope.  This can be extremely expensive and usually when you need fill it is not available. For a down sloping rear lot a home with a walkout lower level is best. Just like a home with one story fits a flat lot perfectly. An uphill lot fits a house with a garage under to cut the vertical angle of the driveway and so on. You need to select something that works with the contours of the land and not against them.   

  Finishes and design are dictated by the comps of your market space. The sales prices dictate what you have to spend and the room for your profit. Colonial style homes have minimal wasted space so the cost per foot is less than something with more angles. Sometimes a home with more angles elevates the design style and sales price so it may be the best fit for your comps. You want to provide a great flowing usable lay out. Family space along with work space as in the Kitchen. Have you ever tried to cook in a Kitchen where the range is sandwiched in a brick or tile alcove?  They provided 6″ of counter for fire protection on each side, it looks nice but really is not suitable for cooking. 

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House Selection

  Put yourself in the buyer’s shoes and make sure your design is family friendly. You also need to design something that works with the budget. Most colonial style homes use square or rectangle layouts that have usable space, some houses with curved rooms have wasted space that incurs cost to build. True Modern homes are minimal, many designers say they are cheaper to build. I have found that is not true, they are beautiful and I love them but typically there are flush beams that limit wires, HVAC, plumbing pipes causing higher install cost. Larger windows are also expensive and especially in hurricane prone areas. 

  Before going to far in design start working your math to make sure you do not over design or over spend on professional fees for a house that blows your budget.   

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You have to Give to Get

  If you build it do they come? That is only in the movies, you need to give to get and finishes are where the give is. Fancy paint colors, design fads, these are items to stay away. Working in the Northeast you see design styles earlier than you see on the west coast or southern states. Black windows for instance or waterfall countertops have been around since the early 2000s and we are 10+ years past that design style, black windows work in a modern design home or in a metal frame older style window. Modern Farmhouse… OMG Stay away! 

  You need a design most people will love, not to heavy and not skimpy. Design style, colors, textures that a majority of people will like. They can customize somethings after the purchase but you want to stay middle so most will be happy with your choices. Busy moldings, weird wood on walls, crazy paint color to create a feature wall, save those designs for your own house. Keep your spec house clean with room to add. Saving money is great and you need to, but keep in mind what your sale price is. Maybe a $1.10 sf floor is not going to look great in a $1.6M home. Same for a $8.50 sf floor in a $300K home. You have to find balance and you should one up your competitors in your price point but just do not over or under do it.

More to come: info@iridiumdev.io