Should I Hire A Custom Or Production Builder To Build My Home?
Ok, here is a test question to see if we are both on the same page? What type of restaurant do you like to eat at with your family? Do you frequent national chain restaurants or do you seek out the hard to find mom and pop places?
If you are like me, I hunt for the difficult to find restaurants, owned by a family where the owner is right there watching over things. The spouse is there too along with the teenagers as servers. The owner greets you at the door and stops by your table to see if you've been treated right. Somehow, the food always tastes better and I like being treated as though my being there matters. They know me by name after a few visits and what I ordered last time I stopped in. I'm feeling the love.
I live on the SW side of "O Town" so I'll mention a few restaurants I frequent so you get my point. Taquitos Jalisco, Bonsai Sushi, Little Saigon, Brazas Chicken and Magic Wok. All of these restaurants are exceptional! On the other hand, you can eat at a national chain restaurant. The food and service is consistent but not exceptional. You take home your left overs and the next day when you take them out for lunch, there's sludge on the bottom of the container or you find out they use pink slime to make their chicken pieces you're feeding your kids! The difference, one has a stake in the community and the other doesn't. One is beholden to a bunch of stockholders distributed throughout the world and the other depends upon your support to feed his kids. For the family restaurant, you the customer are his life's blood. The chain food restaurant has to meet profit projections set by corporate headquarters in another city.
Now that I've made my point, the same is true for Production vs Custom Builders. It's some huge corporation that's building 10,000's of homes throughout the country vs a small Custom Home Building Company that builds a handful of homes to feed his family and put a few bucks away for his kids college fund and retirement.
One that hires people that are only as good as the last home they delivered vs a builder that put his heart into each home that he builds. That has a team of suppliers and subcontractor that he's created a relationship with over the years vs. one that hires the "lowest bidder" to build your dream home.
A building company that has a service department with the reputation from their Homebuyers that say, if they can't caulk it, screw it or touch it up, it doesn't get taken care of. The other with a reputation of a continued relationship with their Customers where the Builder comes with the home.
Perhaps, buying a production home was all you could afford for your first starter home but now you've saved your hard earned money and are ready for a New Custom Home, Renovation or Addition. A home where value is important but so is quality and service.
I can always tell when I first meet Clients that had the production home building, experience, previously. The walk into our first meeting like they have 2 six-shooters mounted on both hips, one eye squinted closed and extra ammunition belts strapped across their chests. It looks like something out of an old western movie. They are loaded for bear! The questions are pointed with a determination not to be ripped off again. They felt like were squeezed like a loaf of "Wonder Bread" after their last home building experience. I spend the next several meetings and sometimes the entire time building their house getting them to trust me.
Ok, now it's your turn to decide, Production or Custom?
Have an awesome day!
Mike
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