CUSTOM HOME BUILDER & DESIGNER

Every one of our beautiful homes begins with quality design. And every quality design begins with our Highland Custom Home Design Process. Our goal as a custom home builder is to take the needs, wants, and desires that you have for a new home and create a design unique to you—and how you live. See samples of our custom home projects here. Below, you can check out a brief breakdown of our process for designing a home that’s truly customized for you.

STEP 1: GATHERING INFORMATION

 

We begin by gathering information on how your lifestyle and tastes will influence how your ideal home will look and function. We accomplish this through three primary ways:

A questionnaire. The questions cover a number of areas and help us get a big picture of what you’re envisioning.

Photo examples. To help us develop an overall aesthetic for your home, we ask that you begin a Houzz.com profile and an ideas book.

Initial meet-up. It’s time for a thorough conversation! After you’ve completed the Highland Builders questionnaire, we meet to go over every question, allowing us to dig into the specifics.

 

STEP 2: SCHEMATIC DESIGN

 

Once we’ve established the scope of the home and the preliminary budget, we can start the design. This step begins with the signing of the “Schematic Design Contract” between you and Highland Builders. Note that at this point, you are not committing to a build contract. What we want is for you to start feeling comfortable and confident that we can provide your dream home.

STEP 3: FINAL DESIGN

 

This step begins with the signing of the “Final Design Contract,” which will take the home plans from schematic stage to completion. During this phase, we are adding building elevations, roof plans, electrical plans, cabinet details, and other building sections. Along the way, we’re communicating closely with you as we refine the details—the details that are crucial to making sure your final home matches your vision.

STEP 4: BID PHASE

 

During the “Bid Phase” Highland delivers the finalized bidding plans and specifications to the suppliers and subcontractors for bid. Once we receive bids, we gather the specifications and bid numbers together in our master Bid Estimate breakdown. If there are any “bid options,” we clearly lay out the differences in costs between them. Once options are finalized, we convert our “Bid Estimate” to a “Contract Estimate,” which is used in preparation of the Build Contract. The Build Contract will clearly list the cost of the project, building plans, and the specifications that will be used for the build.

STEP 5: HOME BUILD

 

Just as we took great care in developing the plans and specifications, we use the same attention to detail in each phase of home construction. That's what a quality custom home builder does. Since there are literally hundreds of details that go into each custom home, we make sure you are kept up to date with any on-site detail design options. We also request on-site meetings at several crucial stages of construction. At closing, we walk you through any operational features of the home and answer any questions you may have. And, of course, we’re still just an email or phone call away if you have questions later.