It's time to load up the kids and head out to check out the progress on the construction site of your new home, which is something you do every week or so around this time. Got the camera? Check. Of course, this time you're expecting great changes - maybe even something that is beginning to look like an almost-finished dwelling. What you find, however, is that the house seems to have been in suspended animation since the last time you visited. Maybe a few more things done, but not nearly the flurry of tasks you thought would take place by now. What the heck is going on? And what can you do to speed up this process?

Much of what you are seeing in seemingly slow construction time has to do with an incredible labor shortage being experienced nationwide. Because skilled construction labor is so much in demand, the sub-contractors are calling all the shots in many new home community markets. There are, however, things you can do to speed up the process in terms of cooperation, and working in tandem with the builder.

Make sure your choices for options and upgrades are firm and are made as early as possible. If you can't make up your mind on colors, construction options, or upgraded flooring, the builder has to delay the process due to scheduling, which is already a nightmare in a busy new home market atmosphere. Cabinets and some floor coverings must be ordered weeks or months in advance. When local warehouses do not have your choice of carpet in stock, for instance, the builder must request that it be milled and sent from the manufacturer, which may take double to triple the time it would have. When going to the builder's design center, you may ask the design consultant to check for you on whether you have chosen an upgrade that is time consuming to ship. If you find that this is the case, and the time lapse may affect the completion time of your new home, you may opt for another upgrade. Hand in hand with timely choices is the directive to be sure of your decisions. Changing your mind can throw the process into a backspin and slow down the construction process for months.

If the builder offers a "neighborhood coffee" for new buyers, take advantage of the opportunity to mingle with other buyers on contract, as well as any company construction personnel who may be present. The dissemination and sharing of information is a key to helping you understand the process. A great stress reliever for some is the idea that yours is not the only home that appears to be going slowly, and everyone is probably in the same boat.

If your must have a question answered, ask your sales consultant, and not construction! If you and every other prospective homeowner call construction frequently, it will only delay the completion of everyone's home. Although construction superintendents and sub-contractors are directed to be friendly and cooperative with the buyers when the need arises, part of their job is to keep sales personnel (not buyers!) supplied with updates.

The most important virtue to practice is patience. Remember, even though the builder of your new home may take great pride in every home they build, they have many trades people working on your home. Finding and keeping good construction personnel is not always easy, and sometimes the most high quality, in-demand construction personnel can take longer to schedule just by virtue of the fact that they are so good at what they do.

Take heart in the fact that you will look back on this process one day and tend to remember the excitement and emotion of planning and moving into your new home, rather than how you are feeling now. I liken the process (in female terms!) to "giving birth". You tend to forget the pain of the process when the end result is a thing of beauty and a life-altering event.