photography by Lisa Russman

It’s been said time and time again that home is where the heart is. While our house is just the physical structure in which we build our real homes, there’s no doubt that we grow attached to the spaces our families live in and our friends come to visit. With that in mind, there’s something powerful about the idea of aligning the physical design of our house to compliment the family spirit that makes up our home. The best way to do that is by designing a custom home that’s truly yours. Here’s a few reasons to consider making your new home a custom home instead of moving into a place designed to fit someone else’s needs:

1. You Know Your Family Best
One of the biggest reasons that many homeowners choose custom homes over copy-and-paste designs by mass-market firms is the simple fact that they know their family better than any builder or designer ever could. You know what you like, and you know what your family likes. Moreover, you know what your family needs better than anyone else does.

Having a house that you like is good but having a house that meets the needs of your family and furballs alike is better than anything. Custom homes let you choose what’s important within your budget, on your terms.

2. Save Money and Get More
Going custom means getting control over the design of your house. Even if you’re not an architecture expert, by communicating with a designer directly, you can choose the features you need and want, cutting out the stuff that just doesn’t fit you or your family. By optimizing your new home to the needs and wants of your family, you’ll get the most bang for your buck, which can turn out to be a surprising change of pace, especially if you’ve bought older, pre-owned houses in the past. If you’ve ever tried to practice softball throws in a backyard that’s barely large enough for a family picnic, you probably know how expensive your window replacement bills can be. Customized space is good space.

3. New in More Ways Than One
Traditionally, the process of buying a home involves removing as much guesswork from the process as possible. Buying an old home, there are a lot of features for which you simply have to take the word of the previous owner at face value. Whether it’s the age of the boiler, the frequency of maintenance, or even the risk of pest problems, old houses intrinsically include some unknown factors.

From leaky pipes you didn’t discover until after you turned on the shower the first time to that one spot on the second floor where every footstep would wake half the household, we’ve all had unexpected “features” in our houses throughout life. The way we see it, though, is that there are enough surprises in everyday life to keep us on our toes without having to inherit the surprises of a previous homeowner.

With custom homes , you’ll cut that type of unknown out of the picture, since you’ll be there with the designer and builders from the get-go. You can choose appliances, plumbing, and electrical products that you trust without ever having to filter through someone else’s old paperwork. Peace of mind is impossible to put a price on, especially when it comes to establishing the central meeting place of your family!

4. Details, Details, Details
Let’s face it: We’ve all had features of old homes that we absolutely hated, even if we absolutely loved the house overall (and the memories we made within!) Some of these features would have been perfect — for anyone but us. Whether it’s poorly placed wall outlets or unsightly, out-of-date phone jacks, the little quirks of our house can really get to us over the course of years. If you thought the twos were terrible, just imagine how bad things could get when every outlet in sight is occupied by your teenagers’ charging smartphones and you just need to plug in the blender!

When you’re in control of the design of your house, you can ensure that those frustrating little details never hit the floor plan.

The way we see it, your house should never hinder the lives of the people who live within, nor should it tarnish memories of your life with your friends and loved ones by having frustrating or ill-fit features. A house should help make things better, and that’s why custom constructions really do help your heart feel at home.

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