Custom Home Builder: Design & Build

We build custom homes the whole way through — from the first sketch to the certificate of occupancy — without you ever hiring a separate designer, engineer, or six different subs. Because we keep design and construction in-house, plan production and structural engineering happen in the same shop that pours your foundation and hangs your cabinets.

A design-build home means one contract, one schedule, and one number to call. We start with a free advice visit and a complimentary 3D model so you can walk the house before we frame it. From there we handle the survey, structural engineering, energy code, and city submittal, then self-perform the trades that decide whether a house is built right: concrete, framing, plumbing, HVAC, and electrical. That vertical integration is why our schedules hold — no sub is waiting on another sub who's waiting on us.

What's included

• Site evaluation, survey coordination, and feasibility

  Before anything is drawn we walk the lot, coordinate the survey and check setbacks, slope, utilities and access — the things that decide whether a plan fits the land and what it will cost to build there.

• Architectural plans and structural engineering (in-house)

  Our own team produces the architectural plans and the structural engineering, so the drawings are buildable by the crew that will build them and changes don't bounce between offices.

• Permit submittal and approval in your jurisdiction

  We prepare the complete permit package — drawings, structural calculations and energy-code compliance — submit it to your city or county and answer the plan reviewer's corrections ourselves.

• Foundation, framing, and weatherproofing

  Excavation, footings, foundation walls, framing, roof and the weather-resistive barrier are self-performed, which is how the schedule holds through the structural phase.

• Rough-in and finish: plumbing, HVAC, electrical

  Plumbing, HVAC and electrical rough-ins are run by our own crews and coordinated with our framers, then finished after drywall with fixtures, panels and equipment sized for the house.

• Cabinetry, tile, flooring, and finish carpentry

  Cabinetry, tile, flooring, trim and paint finish the house, with quartz and granite countertops fabricated through our cabinetry shop and a walkthrough before the keys change hands.

How it works

1. 1
   Free advice visit

   The builder who will price the job walks your lot or the house you plan to replace, talks through what you want and what the site allows, and leaves you with a scoped range — no obligation.

2. 2
   Complimentary 3D model

   Every new-construction proposal includes a 3D model of the house so you can walk the rooms, check the light and move walls before anything is framed.

3. 3
   Design and engineering

   Our in-house team turns the approved concept into construction drawings and stamped structural engineering, with the energy-code calculations the jurisdiction requires.

4. 4
   Permits

   We submit the package, track plan review and resolve corrections ourselves, because we're the ones who will build from those drawings.

5. 5
   Build

   One contract, one schedule, one number to call: foundation, framing, envelope, mechanical rough-ins and finishes, with our crew self-performing the trades that decide quality.

6. 6
   Final walkthrough

   We walk every room with you against the plans and the punch list, complete the final inspections and hand over the certificate of occupancy.

The same ten-step process runs every project we build — see how we work.

What it costs

A custom home is priced per square foot at your area's build rate, then adjusted for size, finish level, site and style: smaller homes cost more per foot, Premium and Luxury finishes add to the range, and a sloped, view or well-and-septic lot adds foundation and utility work. Land, design and permit fees, utility connections and unusual soils are priced separately on every estimate.

Timeline

1. Design and permitting

   Concept, 3D model, construction drawings and engineering, then plan review — the length depends on the jurisdiction, and we give you a phased schedule at contract.

2. Site work and foundation

   Clearing, excavation, footings and foundation walls; on hillside lots this phase includes retaining walls or shoring.

3. Framing and envelope

   Floor systems, walls, roof, windows, roofing and siding — the house is dried in before the mechanical rough-ins start.

4. Rough-ins and inspections

   Plumbing, HVAC and electrical, each inspected before insulation and drywall close the walls.

5. Finishes and occupancy

   Cabinets, counters, tile, flooring, trim, paint and fixtures, then final inspections and the certificate of occupancy. Most single-family homes run 8–14 months from permit to occupancy; the homes on our portfolio took 8 months (Palatine, 4,254 sq ft), 10 months (Bellevue, 4,500 sq ft), 39 weeks (Aurora, 2,952 sq ft) and 7 months (Boise, 3,823 sq ft).

Permits and codes