Custom Home
Custom Homes
We have put together a list of questions to help you articulate your vision for your new home. You can print these questions out & answer them as a starting point to the planning process, or just use the list to help clarify your needs & goals. Think of this form as an “icebreaker.” We crafted it to help you navigate initial conversations with your Home Designer & Builder.
As you go through the questions, keep a few things in mind:
| Dream big, then scale back.
Don’t be afraid to think about & describe what your “perfect world” would be like. As things move forward you can adjust these ideas to the budget, zoning, time frame, land & other realities.
| Separate the “needs,” “wants,” “dreams,”and “don’t wants”.
The needs in your home you cannot live without. The wants in your home are realistic & easily obtainable. The dreams for your home are more difficult to achieve & require immense resources. The things you don’t want are equally important to imagining your home’s image.
| Rank your desired features in order of importance.
This may help you make difficult concessions later.
| Don’t try to solve the problem, just express your desires.
Even if your problems & desires seem at odds with each other or impossible to obtain, keep moving with your design & focus on what you want. If there are differing opinions between you & your partner, include all of the opinions. It’s important to address everyone’s concerns in order to create something that works for everyone.
| Describe what & why you like or don’t like.
Think about things you’re opinionated on in your own home or other homes. Give examples & use as many descriptive words as you can.
| Collect some images of features or things that you’re drawn to.
Houzz & Pinterest are great places to find inspiration. Magazine clippings work great too. Consider floor plans, architectural features & building materials that you like, or ones that create a certain mood or feeling.
| If a question is not relevant to your situation, just skip it.