In the last couple of months we’ve had many conversations with Houston families trying to make decisions about how they are going to move forward after the devastation that Harvey brought to our city. We’ve been honored to be a resource for folks trying to make sense of their options.
While everyone’s situation is unique, we wanted to share some common considerations here:
Renovation Process
When considering remodeling or rebuilding you should consider your aptitude for the construction process and your ability or desire to make decisions about what goes into your home. Both remodeling and new construction will require your time and attention, and you will need to have the desire to see the process through. If you don’t want to make all the decisions yourself, there are lots of industry professional to guide you through design selections. Knowing yourself and how much you enjoy “figuring it out” along the way, versus having a professional to rely on, will help solve what type of team you should build to guide you through this process. [see our blog “Do we need an interior designer for our new home?”]
Finances
Your next consideration is finances – what can you afford? If you have received or expect an insurance payout, is it enough? Will you need to or want to contribute above and beyond that payout? What you can afford should also be married with the market value of your property. Decide early on whether you consider your home a short term or long term investment. Work with a trusted real estate professional to guide your total budget relative to current and future market values.
Building a Team
Then once you’re settled on a budget range and have finished your soul searching about how excited you are about remodeling or new construction, you can start your hunt to find a team of Building professionals. This is your Designer or Architect that will develop plans with you, and your Builder or General Contractor. This team should work together to value engineer your plans and execute on construction. To build the right team, we believe that your #1 criteria should be finding someone you TRUST with your money and have a great relationship with – you’re going to be working with this person for a while, and the process should be fun!
The outspoken majority of people have said that there primary requirement for any expense or work that gets done – is not to flood again. While this clear objective helps to provide focus, the solutions and costs vary: from elevating their existing house to building new on piers.
We believe your Houston home is the most sacred of HAVENS. So the decision that lay ahead of you should be made with much consideration. If we can be a resource for you, please let us know.