We just announced we are building our next home (read that blog post here) and the first question people always ask is, “oh are you building custom?” The answer to that question is no, we are not building a custom home. Instead, we are building a semi-custom (production) home. So what’s the difference? Well let me tell ya!
existing plans vs. unique plans
limited design choices vs. choosing EVERYTHING
more expensive vs. less expensive
faster turnaround vs. slower start
Building a custom home was never on the table for us. Honestly, I thought building a semi-custom home wasn’t either, but it definitely seems more manageable. The biggest difference in the two types of building are the plans. When you build a semi-custom home, you get to choose from a list of pre-selected house plans. When you build a custom home you get to choose any plan you can get your hands on. Semi-custom does allow you to customize different things, like knocking out walls, expanding rooms, expanding ceilings, choosing colors, choosing flooring. Although you don’t get to choose EVERYTHING like a custom home, you still get to choose from a wide variety of stuff to make your home feel like it’s YOURS.
Although you may have thought it would be reversed, building a semi-custom home is usually less expensive. Because the builders of these homes build so many, they usually buy in bulk and get big discounts. When you build custom, it is unlikely that the contractor you are working with can get those same discounts. The semi-custom production builders are like robots. They have a process and repeat it over and over again until they create whole neighborhoods. Because of this, semi-custom homes usually get done faster than custom.
Our home won’t be done for another 8-9 months. Right now it’s a big pile of dirt, but we are so excited to start the process. We should get to schedule our first design meeting here soon! 🙂 There is so much to share, and I can’t wait to get your help throughout the whole process!
As always, all opinions and text are my own.
Stay Sweet! ♡
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