When it Doesn’t Make Sense to Oversee Building Your Custom Home

There are some Barden custom homeowners who have an enhanced sense of ownership over their home.

Why? 

It's not because they custom designed it to fit their lifestyle, nor is it because there's not another home like it (though both play into it).

Their pride of ownership comes from the fact that they took a more involved path to realizing their dream home, taking on the general contractor (GC)  role for their project. Fully embracing the idea of "build your custom home," there's very little they don't know about their home and the work that went into it.

But even for those with the best intentions, going the GC route route isn't always the best idea. Certainly, we're not saying that approach to custom homeownership is only meant for some people – that couldn't be farther from the truth.

What we mean, instead, is that there are some scenarios in which taking the reins on a custom home project isn't the best idea, and it’s best to have an experienced partner – such as a Barden Independent Dealer – to help you along the way.

Build Your Custom Home With Barden: What That Means

This one is largely dependent on the individual dealer. 

In short, some allow their clients to act as their project’s GC. In most cases, a builder, who is a GC would likely require the client to hire them as the GC of their project, while a dealer who is not a GC wouldn't be able to accommodate that and specialize in working with owner/builder customers.

In instances where the dealer allows the client to be GC, that doesn't mean the homeowner literally builds their custom home.

More importantly, it does not mean the independent dealer has a drastically reduced role in the project. We’ll say this several times – it’s impossible for a client to build a Barden custom home without a Barden Independent Dealer heavily involved in the process. 

Rather, the client/ future homeowner takes on the liability for their project, may have more involvement with the contractors they hire to perform the work, and often wish to contribute with sweat equity of their own. To be sure, that doesn't mean the homeowner is left on their own to complete their project – they'll still be working directly with an Independent Dealer, as there's no way to build a Barden home without one.

In our decades in the custom home industry, we've seen this approach to custom home building work many times. There are plenty of happy Barden custom homeowners who have acted as their own GC and realized the home of their dreams.

At the same time, we've seen others go into their project with the best of intentions only to have a less-than-ideal experience (for reasons we'll get into next).

The simple fact of the matter is that a custom home project is a big undertaking, and if the future homeowner going to oversee the project as its GC, they'need to be prepared for all that it entails.

Further Reading: [How to] Build Your Custom Home With Barden

6 Instances to Reconsider Being Your Project's GC

If you're planning to act as your own GC while building your custom Barden home, hats off to you! You're about to take ownership of your new custom home to a unique level.

But what about that less-than-ideal experience we mentioned? Is there a way to avoid that from the get-go?

As we've seen it, there are a few red flags you can identify well before any planning starts for the build:

1. You’re not 100% about the project
2. You have no project management experience
3. You don’t have the time
4. You needed a home yesterday
5. You’re not looking to work with anyone else on the project 
6. You don't have the capital for the project

1. You’re Not 100% About the Project

There's a reason we set this as #1 on our list.

Put simply, if you aren't absolutely confident about your project to begin with, that's a good sign that this path to homeownership might not be the right one for you.

Regardless of your role in the project and its management, building a custom Barden home does take a major investment of time and money. The last thing you should be doing is stepping into such an undertaking that impacts the rest of your life feeling questionable about the decision.

Not feeling 100% about pursuing custom homeownership? Our assessment can help! It only takes a few minutes to complete:

2. You Have No Construction Project Management Experience

Whether you're building a custom ranch, modern farmhouse, or something as unique as a barndominum, constructing a custom home is first and foremost a project.

Ask any one of our Independent Dealers and they'll all tell you the same thing: custom home builds are complex and have a lot of moving parts to manage. Even with a thorough checklist and project roadmap, it can be easy to get bogged down in the details and lose track of the bigger picture – especially when you've never done it before. 

And what happens when your project throws you a curveball? Responding to it isn't about simply finding a solution. It also means you'll be working to make sure the rest of the project stays on track – something that can be a tall order for even a seasoned GC.

To be direct: If you have little or no experience overseeing a construction project, cutting your teeth on project management with your building your own custom house might not be the best idea.

3. You Don't Have the Time

While a Barden home can be constructed and made weather-tight in a matter of about two weeks, the rest of the project isn't completed overnight. In fact, there's a lot of work that goes into the project both before and after construction crews and specialty contractors are on site.

What's more, building your custom home isn't something where you can dabble in project management as you want. Once the work starts, it becomes something that's part of your day-to-day. That's no different than what you expect from any of the contractors you'll hire: they're present & working until the job is done. 

Remember: building a custom home means you're building a house from scratch. Even if you know exactly what you want and there are no bumps in the road along the way, managing the project is still a full-time job – any one of our Independent Dealers would tell you that without hesitation.

4. You Need a New Home Yesterday

Compared to other methods, panelized construction can be a faster route for custom home building. This is largely because panelized home construction is firmly rooted in completing as much work off-site as possible and delivering structural components ready for immediate installation on a predetermined schedule.

But for its speed, panelized construction isn't a fast track to setting the world record for building a custom home the fastest. In other words, your custom home project still takes time to build. Depending on a variety of factors – for instance, the level of customization or the complexity of the build – it can take more than a year to reach move-in day.

5. You’re Not Looking to Work With Anyone Else on Your Project 

Just as no man is an island, no Barden home is built as a solo effort.

As we mentioned before, the only way to build a Barden home is to work directly with one of our Barden Independent Dealers. 

Even in a supporting role for your project, your independent dealer is involved in every step of the process. In addition to providing their wisdom of experience and insights, they'll assist with:

• Floor plan design
• Interfacing with the Barden team
• Supplying the framing package
• Recommending contractors, trade workers
• Managing payment schedules
• Facilitating inspections

You'll also be working with specialty contractors and tradesmen (think electricians, plumbers, etc.) to handle parts of your building your own custom home requiring a certain expertise.

6. You Don't Have Capital for the Project

What’s a custom home project without the money to support it? One that's going nowhere, fast.

This should come as no surprise – it takes money to build a custom home, and your finances need to be in line and available before work starts.

Building a custom home isn't like moving into an existing home that needs some work. Sure, the latter isn't exactly where you'd like it, but it's liveable. Without funding at the ready, your project can come to a grinding halt quickly if you're unable to immediately pay for things such as:

1. Labor
2. Supplies
3. Permit fees
4. Professional services

Unless you're the one bankrolling your project, custom home builds are typically funded by a construction loan.

Whether it's from a traditional bank or a third-party lender that specializes in construction, these loans are typically released in installments (draws) as the project reaches certain milestones. At the end of the project, the loan is converted to a typical mortgage.

But to get a construction loan in the first place, many lenders – primarily banks – will require you to work with an approved contractor (think: Barden Independent Dealer). In other words, they want an experienced and legitimate third party to keep an eye on your project and make sure it's built according to plan.

Resource: The Cost to Build a Custom Home: An Open Letter

Avoiding 'It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time'

Taking on the role of GC for your custom home build can be a challenging, yet rewarding journey.

When the project is complete, there really won't be anyone who knows your home better.

But in being the person in charge of the project, it's important to honestly assess your readiness, experience, and resources before diving in. The last thing you want is to be in the throes of your project and struggling to keep it moving forward.

What Does the Barden Homebuilding Process Look Like?

Dig in with our Ultimate Homeowner's Toolkit: