engage the right people

Choosing a well-suited builder is crucial. Your budget will help guide you – do you have funds for a bespoke custom-built house, or will a project home suit your needs better? Find someone you trust and can work well with over a long period of time. It goes without saying that they should be fully licensed and insured, but it’s also a good idea to ask around for recommendations, and check at least three references – preferably including work that was completed a few years ago – before you sign on the dotted line.

“Nobody’s perfect,” says builder Frank Tarulli of Thomas Archer Homes and part of the House To

Home Beautiful team. “When things do happen, it’s about dispute resolution and how things are fixed or amended. A good relationship will make this happen a lot more organically.”

An experienced builder will also have an established pool of all the necessary sub-trades. This is not the time to be introducing your cousin who’s an electrician, as the

important builder “IT’S REALLY YOUR trades HAS ALL THE RIGHT AND SUPPLIERS UNDER HIS WING” ~ FRANK TARULLI

builder does not have a previous working relationship with him and will not guarantee his work.

“You want to make sure when you engage a builder that they are taking care of everything,” says Frank, who designed the Thomas Archer Homes property (pictured top). “This will reduce stress.

Once you’ve got all the planning done, you want to sit back and watch your home get built.”