Learn more about our semi-custom building process. You can choose one of our proven home plans, bring your own plan, or we can help you design your dream home in Southern Maine.
Built By Adams has more than 20 home plans that can be adapted to your lot (or we can help you find a lot) with the flexibility to add additional space, porches, patios, and more. Home plans range in size from 1,200 square feet to over 6,000 square feet and if you choose a stock plan often times you will save a lot of money in design costs and will be several steps ahead of other Built By Adams clients who choose the custom design path.
Don’t want to build from one of our plans or you already have a home plan? No problem. Our proven 10 Step Building Process works for almost all home plans and we can help you design a home that fits your lifestyle and dreams.
Built By Adams specializes in building your dream home that truly feels custom utilizing our semi-custom home building process. You can get a custom home without all of the added costs, added time, and stress that a custom home building process would bring. The big difference between fully “Custom” vs “Semi-Custom” is in the streamlined approach we take at Built By Adams.
And if you don’t want to try to build a home on your lot, choose from one of our semi-custom homes for sale.
The Difference Between Custom vs Semi-Custom
We have built fully custom homes for over 40 years and there is a big difference between the two home building processes. Custom home projects involve the client, home-builder, and possibly an architect working very closely throughout the project to design, plan, and select every single detail about the home’s construction, layout, and all of the finish details. These types of homes are rarely done as a Fixed Contract to Build and more likely entered into as a Cost PLUS arrangement which can get very expensive for the client.
EVERY SINGLE DETAIL in a custom home project is worked through, selected, possibly changed a few times, followed up on, and finally incorporated into the home. This adds a lot of extra time, stress (for the client, builder, subcontractors, and so on), and ultimately a lot more money to build. As an example, a home building client may have some ideas about incorporating something a new or unique feature they saw on HGTV.
Unfortunately, what HGTV doesn’t show is the process of building or sourcing that feature. Ultimately, it becomes the builder’s responsibility to figure out of the details that go along with incorporating that feature into the home.
“We have eliminated a lot of the time, cost, and tedious decisions that need to be made when building a custom home and simplified the design and selection process utilizing our building system software and streamlined selection process. Building a home can be a very stressful time for the client and the less the client is involved the smoother the process is from start to finish.
There are literally thousands of decisions, components, and steps that go into building a great home at a fair price that would drive most people crazy wading through all of that information. Pick out your doors, windows, kitchen and tops, your flooring, your siding/roofing colors, your paint colors, and maybe a couple of upgrades, and prepare for move in day to your beautiful new home. A home that is built to a higher standard than most of your premier luxury/high-end builders at a price that meets your budget.
You may end up spending a couple of hours upfront with our team picking out the majority of the home in our showroom, 1-2 hours visiting our kitchen designer, 1 hour at the flooring store, and maybe one more trip to figure out lights and faucets and you are done! And you don’t even need to do all of that if you don’t have time. That is our goal. That is what we can do for our home building clients.”
– Ryan Adams, President of Built By Adams, Inc.
For reference, Built By Adams could build two semi-custom homes in the same time frame as one custom home of the same size and scope. A semi-custom home is a much smoother process and leads to a more enjoyable experience for both the client and the builder. The number one reason for the time differential is that with a custom home project, many details and selections are unknown at the outset, in spite of going through a length and costly design and specification process. This forces the client and builder to enter into the custom home project with what are known as “allowances” and not hard costs on key items. The builder and client will then spend hundreds (possibly into the thousands) of additional hours of back and forth throughout the project to figure out exactly what is being built and how much these items truly cost. All of this added time is billed at an hourly rate + markup by the builder and architect.
The key to the Semi-Custom process is all of these design decisions and selections are made BEFORE we arrive at a Contract to Build price. These items are listed out in great detail in our specifications and exhibits (your bank will need these) and are literally used to build your home and ensure no details are missed. It also means that your project will progress rapidly, as each subcontractor has the materials they need for each phase of your build process – no waiting for client selections because it’s already done!
Once we arrive at the Fixed Contract to Build, paperwork is signed and we are ready to get started. From this point until the end of the project, there will be 4 key onsite meetings:
1) Site Review – foundation location to be reviewed and signed off on by you and a surveyor (to ensure setbacks are met).
2) “Rough-In” Meeting – review of the electrical layout and lighting and final sign off on plumbing/heating.
3) Pre-Drywall – we review the insulation install and ensure nothing was missed for electrical and plumbing before we drywall.
4) Final Walkthrough – several months will probably have gone by between the Pre-Drywall meeting and the final walk-through. but you are in good hands and you trust the Built By Adams process and over 6 decades of experience. We will develop a quick punch-list (if there are any items that need attention) and get those items done before move-in.
You will have an opportunity to ask questions during each of these meetings. We expect clients to keep a running list of their questions to review with us during these meetings rather than reaching out to us multiple times throughout the project. We are usually on site and we would hate for important questions or changes to get miscommunicated or go unanswered while we focus on your (and other clients’) projects.
Semi-Custom is NOT for Everyone…But for Many Clients It’s a Great Way to Get a High Quality Dream Home Without the Full “Custom” Home Price.
Our semi-custom home building process is NOT designed for someone who wants to be involved in every decision throughout the construction process. It is designed for busy professionals, families, and retirees who want a great custom home built with minimal involvement in the process and less stress.
When you choose Built By Adams for your custom home, you are hiring us for our expertise and you get to sit back and get ready to move into your brand new home!
Call Now 1-207-490-9886 or Fill Out the Form to Request a Design Consultation.
