The Construction Process: What to Expect When Building a Custom Home
For many of our clients, building a custom home is a once-in-a-lifetime journey — exciting, but unfamiliar. That’s why we’ve worked hard to create this guide: to help you understand what to expect at each stage of the process, and to show you how thoughtful planning from the start can transform your experience entirely.
Laying the Groundwork: Assembling the Right Team
We can’t tell you how strongly we feel that the most effective way to set your project up for success is by assembling your full team — architect, designer, and builder — at the very beginning. Why? Because a collaborative approach allows every professional to bring their expertise to the table from day one.
Consider this: details like ceiling treatments, mouldings, and architectural style impact everything from HVAC placement to window sizing and lighting layout. Addressing these decisions before final plans are drawn enables a more efficient design process, smoother execution, and more accurate budgeting — all while protecting your original vision.
Designing with Intention
Your home should reflect how you live — not just today, but for years to come. That’s why we begin every project by exploring your lifestyle: how you move through space, how you entertain, your daily routine, your storage needs, and your aesthetic sensibilities.
We believe conversations about layout, function, and style should happen simultaneously. As we layer those conversations, the full vocabulary of your home begins to emerge naturally.
Once the floor plan is finalized, your architect will begin working on the exterior elevations. Occasionally, minor interior adjustments may be made to enhance the exterior design. (If you’re a visual thinker, tools like 3D modeling can help you grasp the relationship between spaces early in the process.)
Once both the interior and exterior are approved, your builder will prepare a “bid set” of drawings to begin estimating.
The Interior Designer’s Role in Planning
This is where your interior designer becomes deeply involved and our fun starts! Our philosophy is to plan ahead as much as possible — not only to relieve decision-making pressure, but to ensure the construction process flows smoothly and efficiently. Every selection we make is documented, coordinated, and integrated into the build timeline to avoid delays and last-minute compromises.
The Construction Timeline: From Plans to Punch List
