Guide to Building Your Dream Home

If you don’t have the time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over! 
​- John Wooden UCLA basketball coach

Step 1 - Develop Your Dream

​Use these questions to help you focus your vision...
  • Do you want to specify details (Custom Home) or will you choose an existing plan where we would specify the details within your budget (Spec Home)?  Lot Size? What are your dreams for your land? Do you need room to garden? Do you want acreage? 
  • Proximity to School and Church? Do you like a more rural life or do you need to be close to particular schools and a church? 
  • Do we need extra space for kids? Playrooms and TV rooms are a necessity when you have young kids. We want to provide ample play space and room for toys and games. 
  • If there are no children or children have moved out, space can be allocated for entertaining and crafts as well as hobbies. 

Step 2 - Select Your Perfect Property

The answers to your questions above will help you drive the selection of your lot. The location and size will be dictated by what you plan to build. Your contractor can help!
  • If you want to plan for a swimming pool in the future, we need to find a lot that is perfectly optimized for that kind of addition.
  • If you plan on raising chickens and building an organic garden, we need to think of these dreams when choosing our lot. 
  • If your goal is increasing property value, maybe a neighborhood with the protection of a homeowner’s association is the right plan.
  • If you value community and proximity to school and friends. Finding a lot in a cul de sac is great for young children because of the extremely low traffic. 

Step 3 - Choose Your Trusted Team


​Your home builder should be your liaison for the entire project! Your builder should have amassed a network of solid contacts in every phase of the process to assist you. Your builder should be able to refer you to a lender for financial, architects for planning and drawings, designers for interior and exterior choices, and all of the onsite finishers. If you choose the right contractor, you will have access to all of his recommendations to choose from.  The lot can be purchased outright or your builder can bundle the financing in with the project. Whatever works best for the project is what we want to do.

Step 5 - Design and Budget

It’s difficult to set a budget until the builder knows your dream. Always choose a contractor that is in tune with your dream and very upfront with the process that is required to make your dream come true. Intuition like this only comes with experience. As you make changes to your plans and your vision, you should see the price change on the builder’s quote. You want to see an honest representation of your plans being built into your financial reports. If you don’t see changes, the builder was likely not being very transparent with their quoting to begin with.

Step 6 - Financing

Financing changes depending on the economy and housing market at any given time. Finding a lender that has worked with your builder and has a good relationship can help everything run smoothly. Lending can come from many different sources, if you can work with familiar faces, everyone is more at ease throughout the project.
Leverage who your contractor recommends and talk to your title company. Title companies collect and compile documents from all parties for closing, which means they are a third-party observer when things don't go as planned.  Many times, simply asking questions of your trusted partners will shed a lot of light on your next steps.

Step 7 - Let's Get Started

Once you have your dream, your team and your land, you are ready to go!  It may seem like a lot to process, but that's why you have a trusted partner in Way Properties, LLC. It's new and overwhelming to you, but fortunately, we do this every day. Guiding a first-time home builder through the process of creating their dream is what we love to do the best! So whether this is your first time building a new home, or you are already a pro, Way Properties, LLC is ready to build your dream! 

Contractor in Sulphur, LA