Building a new home can be a daunting undertaking. Not only is it a lengthy and complicated process, but it’s also a huge financial investment. 

Adding to the pressure is the fact that you’ll have to live in the home you build for years to come. Get it wrong and you’ll be reminded of the failure of your project on a daily basis (and also have to live in a home that doesn’t live up to your expectations).

Seeing as the stakes are so high, it makes sense to put some extra effort into finding the right builder. The only question is: how do you identify the best home builders in Perth that will be able to make the process of building your dream home as satisfying and enjoyable as it should be?

If you’re going to be embarking on a building project soon, make sure you read the rest of this post to learn more about 4 tips you can use for choosing the right home builder.

Do Your Research

The first step to choosing the right builder is to get a good idea of who’s out there and what they can offer you. Search online, read websites and reviews and also ask your friends, family and colleagues if they’ve had any good experiences with builders. 

Different builders will specialise in different things, so it’s also very important to have a clear idea of exactly what things will be needed in your new house before you start looking for your builder. 

Check their folio (most builders will have their past projects displayed on their website) and see if the work they’ve done in the past matches up with what you’re looking for.

Ask For References

Building a home is as much about the people and the process as it is about the finished product, so you want to make sure that your builder is good to work with.

Asking for references is the best way to gauge this. Talk to their previous clients and ask questions like:

• Were they nice people to work with?

• Are they happy with the job that the builder did?

• Did the builder communicate well?

• Were they easy to get a hold of when they had questions or wanted updates?

• Was the project completed on time and on budget?

Go The Extra Mile

References are great, but they’re somewhat limited in that a builder is only going to give you a reference for people that they know were happy with their work.

If you really want to get to the bottom of the issue, go the extra mile and research to find out what other homes they’ve built. There’s nothing stopping you from knocking on the door and asking the owners about their experience with the builder.

This is likely to be the most honest and best information you can get access to, so while it might be a little awkward, putting in the extra work can really pay off in the long term if it helps you avoid a disastrous home build.

Focus On Quality, Not Cost

Building a new home is expensive, so it can be tempting to focus on cost alone.

While there’s definitely nothing wrong with shopping around to get the best deal, you should be wary of builders who’ll undercut other offers. 

A cheaper price means there’s more chance that they’ll cut corners and do a sub-standard job, so it pays to put in the time and effort to choose a builder that can deliver a high-quality product at a reasonable cost.

When it’s done right, building a new home can be a really enjoyable and rewarding process. However, you need to make sure you choose the right builder to work with.