Choosing a builder
Custom builder or production builder
These are two different products sold under one word, and the difference is not quality. It is volume, and everything else follows from that. Here is the comparison written by a custom builder, including the part where you should hire the other kind.
Side by side
The eight differences that actually change your build.
| Production builder | Custom builder | |
|---|---|---|
| Who you actually deal with | A sales agent, then a project manager, then a warranty department | Randy, from the first lot walk to the day you get the keys |
| The plan | Chosen from a catalog of plans that are already drawn and already priced | Drawn for your lot, your family and the way you actually live |
| Volume | Fifty to several hundred homes a year | About ten a year |
| Changes mid-build | A change order process, often with a fee and a schedule penalty | A conversation, priced honestly, before anything gets built twice |
| The lot | Usually theirs, in a subdivision they developed | Yours, or one of his, and walked before anything is priced |
| Price certainty up front | High. The plan is priced because it has been built many times | Lower until the lot is walked and the specs are set, then firm |
| Timeline | Usually shorter and more predictable | Longer, because it is being drawn and built once |
| Who to pick | You want predictable, fast, and the plan already fits | You want acreage, a specific layout, or one person accountable |
The part most builders leave out
Hire a production builder if any of this is you.
- You need to be in a house within about six months
- One of their plans already fits how you live
- You want the price fixed before a shovel moves and are happy to take their lot
- You are not going to enjoy making four hundred decisions
Randy will tell you this on the phone. Losing a job that was never a good fit costs him less than building for somebody who wanted something else.
And the other way round
Hire a custom builder if this is you instead.
- You already own land, or you want acreage rather than a subdivision lot
- You want a layout the resale market and the plan books do not have
- You want one person accountable rather than a department per phase
- You would rather choose the finishes than negotiate upgrades against a base price
Watch the interviewsWe never had to chase him. If we called, he answered — and if he said he’d be there Tuesday, he was there Tuesday.
Hamid & Lisa S.O’Brien homeowner
Common questions
Asked by people holding two very different quotes.
- Is a custom home always more expensive?
- Not always, and it depends entirely on what you specify. A production builder’s base price is real but the upgrades are where the margin lives. A custom build costs what its specs cost, which is less comfortable up front and more honest by the end.
- What is a semi-custom builder?
- A production builder who lets you move some walls and pick some finishes. It is a genuine middle ground, and worth knowing that it is what you are being sold when the word custom appears on a catalog plan.
- How long does a true custom home take?
- Longer than a production home, because it is drawn once and built once. Ask any builder for a schedule in writing and ask what happens to it when it rains for three weeks, which around here it does.
- Can I use my own architect?
- Yes. Randy builds from plans people bring him as well as drawing from scratch with them. Bring what you have.
Also worth reading
- How to compare two builder bidsWhere the gap between two quotes usually hides.
- Building in Grayson CountySoil, permitting and what is driving the growth.
