Working with a Professional Builder – Does it Really Matter?

How homeowners benefit from an established builder’s systems and relationships Over the past decade, many new contractors have emerged as homebuilders. This has given homeowners more options, tempting some to choose a contractor based strictly on price. Bad idea. It’s nearly impossible to compare apples to apples when collecting competitive bids, especially for a complex … Read more

Construction Quality

As a professional builder, our company takes pride in creating high-quality homes. So we’d like our homebuyers to understand the difference between a well-built home and something less. What do we mean by “quality”? It’s not a mystery—construction quality is easy to see when you know what to look for. We’ve found that the best … Read more

CONTROLLING MOISTURE TO PREVENT MOLD

Your professional builder knows the best techniques and materials to keep mold at bay. We’ve all seen stories about black mold in houses, and no one wants to experience that. But even a new custom home can develop a mold problem if the builder doesn’t use the right construction practices and products. Mold is a … Read more

Exterior Finishes

The right materials on the outside of your house can both distinguish it and add to its value. The exterior finish is a home’s first impression, a greeting to neighbors and visitors, and a mark of the homeowner’s taste and style. Making the right choices in cladding, roofing, trim, and hardscaping can protect your home … Read more

PROS AND CONS OF LVT

Lots of homeowners are interested in this popular flooring—here’s what you need to know. Although the word “vinyl” raises some people’s eyebrows, luxury vinyl tile (LVT) is actually a high-quality engineered flooring material. In recent years, LVT has become wildly popular, even among well-heeled homeowners. It’s easy to see why: with looks similar to hardwood … Read more

Who Will Build My House?

The challenge of labor makes selecting the right builder more important than ever. Homeowners are rightly concerned about rising material costs and unpredictable supply chains, but both will likely stabilize. A more intractable long-term challenge is about who will do the work to build our homes. This is the big topic in today’s building industry. It’s harder … Read more

Building Your Perfect Custom Home Starts with a Site Analysis

Greg McAninch, chief operating officer, Timberlake Design/Build When you wish upon a star, you may be thinking about finding the perfect lot for your dream home. But it takes more than wishes and dreams to get to the home of your fantasies. Whether you own or inherited a lot or are in the process of … Read more

Where’s My Garage Door?

Why supply chain issues persist and how builders mitigate them. Although professional builders do everything in their power to keep home construction on schedule, they face more challenges than ever. Most have to do with back-ordered products—ongoing fallout from the pandemic. The supply chain affects every builder in the country, but as an illustration let’s … Read more

AVOID THE PITFALLS OF PINTEREST (AND OTHER PHOTO-SHARING SITES)

The first step to getting real value from these sites is to understand their strengths and weaknesses Many of our custom home clients love photo-sharing sites like Pinterest, and those sites can be a big help when searching for design and product ideas. However, they can also lead to frustration and disappointment. The result you … Read more