Building a New Home: 5 Resources That Have Been Helpful

The beauty of doing anything you’ve never done before in this day and age is ~ Google.  Like seriously, how did we ever do anything before we could google how to do it?!  I feel like all of us who graduated high school before the dawn of the internet deserve a special star on our diplomas.  We did that y’all!  😉  But I digress, the point I’m trying to make is having a wealth of resources at my fingertips both before and also during this home building process has been so very helpful!  With just a quick google search I was able to read through tons of articles about what to expect when you build a home, and because we’ve never done a custom build before all of that research has proven to be invaluable.

We weren’t completely green on the building process as we did work with a builder on our 3rd house in Richmond, Virginia, but this time we’re doing a custom build so the process is slightly different.  Having lived in 6 homes now I knew exactly what I wanted out of a floor plan……but thinking about things like where to put outlets, running a gas line to your grill or fire pit, adding a hot water spigot to the exterior for bathing dogs or rinsing off when you get home from the beach……these are things I probably never would have thought to consider without help from google’s search magicians.  *(Little blogger tip – Search Engine Optimization is important.  😉 )

Here are the 5 online posts that have been the most helpful!

1. 77 Things You Should Consider When Building a New Home by Bungalow Company ~ This is a really great thorough list!  
2. The 10 Most Important Things I Learned Building a House by Erin at Sunny Side Up ~   There’s something comforting about hearing someone else’s experience.  And Erin, having been through the process, provides such great insight in this post.  She talks about the amount of time you put in and making sure you actually have the time in your schedule to take on a project like this.  And already I’ve found that if I had a traditional 9 to 5 job this process would be much more difficult.  SO many vendors aren’t open on weekends, so most if not all of our appointments have happened during the work week.  I can’t imagine trying to do this without having a flexible work schedule.  
3. 10 Things I’m Glad We Did While Building A New Home by Steph at Binkies & Briefcases ~ Two things in this post that were the most helpful to me in terms of areas I had not given much thought to:  1. Thinking about where the sun rises and sets and 2. Taking a video of everything before the insulation and drywall goes up. 
4. Build List: Outlets by Meet the Woodwards ~ I’ve honestly never thought too much about outlet placement……but there’s actually quite a bit to consider here.  This list is super helpful.
5. Kitchen Countertop Surfaces 101 by Studio McGee ~ I haven’t been in the market to choose a countertop surface since we worked with a builder on our Virginia house back in 2002.  And a lot has changed since then. This post is the most comprehensive one I’ve found on the topic.  
   

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On top of the insight those posts have provided, our builder uses an app called Buildertrend which has really streamlined everything.  It’s an app that can be used for both building and remodeling, and it’s a great way to keep everyone involved up to date ~ highly recommend!

Related Posts: 

New Build: Electrical Walk-through

New Build: Selecting Light Fixtures That Coordinate 

New Build: All About Our Kitchen Cabinets