Trees are an essential resource for the custom home building industry. They not only provide the structural lumber for a house, but they also provide lignin, a component feedstock for paper pulp. A custom home project with inaccurate paper work is just as likely to fall apart as one built with inadequate lumber.
The quality of a custom home’s paper work—the contract, plans, specifications, even photos and magazine articles the clients use to show what they want—is every bit as important to the success of the project as the materials and skill that go into constructing it. It is the paper work that makes it possible to communicate the idea for a home’s design among all the interested parties—architect, builder, trades, owners, and others—and to transform that idea into a house. If you’re not sure that the paperwork is as important to a house as its foundation and roof, read the story below and then decide.
John and Debbie King had owned a successful business for many years and now wanted to reward themselves with their long-held dream of designing and building a custom home tailored to their individual requirements. They had spent months looking at undeveloped land, residential lots, and homes. They had sought out information on a number of architects, designers, and builders. One beautiful fall afternoon, they came across a spec home in an existing subdivision and fell in love with it. The couple loved the floor plan, colors, textures, and all of the interior and exterior detailing.
This home had already sold, but that did not deter the Kings. The house was perfect! Well … almost. There were a couple of things they might change. The potential clients identified and contacted the architect and builder of the house.
Solomon Architects and Bill Hanson Builders had collaborated on the spec home and were pleased with their recent run of luck. They’d known each other for many years and worked well together on many projects. This particular spec home had sold quickly and had generated lots of interest among potential clients and buyers.
The initial meeting between the Kings and the architect/builder team went well. Soon the couple would sign a fixed-price comprehensive construction contract with Bill Hanson Builders to build their dream home that included the building permit, architectural plans, and the cost of the construction. The new home was to be nearly identical to the original spec home that the buyers had seen. They had visited and revisited the home many times in order to identify, clarify, and confirm which detailing should be included and which changed for their project.
The changes and modifications were slight, but numerous. The specification changes included colors, textures, cabinet plan layout adjustments, and customizations along with some juggling of the master bathroom configuration. The plans and specifications were finalized and submitted to the owners for approval. The specifications were a little unusual because they referenced the detailing of the original spec home. A majority of the specification wording was attributed to changes and alterations that the owners had directed and specified. The plans had been redrawn from the original spec home set and noted all changes.
Ground was broken on the project in record time, and the plans, engineering, and permitting process had gone very quickly because the new home was under the same city building department jurisdiction as the spec, even though the construction was taking place in a different subdivision. Construction progressed quickly as well. The builder was pleased that rebuilding a house he’d already built was as efficient as he’d anticipated. Hanson was nearly beside himself when he realized during the drywall phase that the house probably would be completed six to eight weeks ahead of schedule.
The owners had been pleased with the progress and visited the jobsite weekly. The interaction and communication between the owner and builder had been exceptional. The Kings always seemed to have a few questions and comments about the construction as it progressed, but there had not been any major issues, problems, or discrepancies.
Then came the phone call: “Hello Bill, this is Jim King. My wife and I want to meet you out at the house as soon as possible.” “Sure, Jim. Is everything OK?” Hanson responded. “No, not really. There are quite a few things that we’re not happy about.” “I’ll meet you there in 20 minutes.”
