Sunday, December 14, 2008

Asheville Real Estate, then Construction

Realty and property in Asheville North Carolina is selling quickly... and there is a lot of it... and even more if you include Buncombe County... and so on if you include the surrounding Counties. Asheville is just about centered in Buncombe County. Going 15-20 minutes in almost any direction will introduce you to a new county. It just seems like the more people that find out about the area, the more people want to leave their overextended or stale life wherever they are, and get over here to the Western North Carolina mountains. Some of our clients refer to it as an escape, while others come to WNC to retire. Some people are just looking for a new great place to start life again, and they connect with the WNC area before they ever visit. My company developer is talking to MapJack about getting Asheville photographed and listed so our "out of town, out of State, and out of Country" clients and friends can view this beautiful city from their office, home, or Blackberry... from anywhere in the World!

There are many choices when it comes to Asheville home building and Asheville real estate. As far as land and property preferences, some people are looking for a mansion with a 50 acre ranch away from everything. Other people want 1/4 of an acre lot with a little bungalow within walking distance of Downtown Asheville. Asheville Custom Home Builders, LLC works and will work with you to find exactly what you are envisioning. A client can contact us with a floor plan they are considering and just tell us "I am looking to build this home in Asheville (or beyond) and I would like about 2 acres of mountain property, within 20 minutes of Downtown Asheville", and that is what we will find for them. When it comes to choosing your custom home, some people go by styles like building a "Cape Cod", "A-Frame", "Tudor", "Log", etc. Some clients know how much square footage they need. In a 1200 square foot home, some 3 person families would feel very comfortable (400 square foot per person), while others may want or need up to 800 or more square feet per person. Once you have lived in a home with 10' or 12' foot ceilings, it is very hard to build or live in a home with standard 8' ceilings. You get used to and comfortable with the height the same way you get used to the space and room.

Building up instead of out? When considering some "green" concepts, many are using a smaller home foot print and saving earth space in the process. Instead of using 2000 square feet of your land, use only 1000 square feet and make a two-story home that equals that same 2000 square feet. Build Up... if you can. I know that as many of us get older, we only want and need one level. Building up is a great option, but it is not for everyone.

For Example: (Sample Real Estate & Home Building Costs in WNC)

Private Acre of land in Buncombe County: $25k - $100k+ (depending on how close to Downtown, if it is in a development, or what type of property it is). We have access to many land options and there are some nice 1 acre private mountain building lots about 25 minutes from downtown for only $30k! We also work with some developments that have beautiful inner-community lots (small town development effect within walking distance to small shops, hiking trails, gazebos, playground, pools, activities, development shops etc.). These lots can easily cost $250k+. Biltmore Farms, and Reynolds Mountain have perfected this high end community plan. You can contact us about private acreage or high end development options. We have access to many reviewed choices in Asheville North Carolina when it comes to construction and realty.

*(Talking about homes now...)Please note that when we say "Standard", we mean great! Hardi Siding, Green Framing (by Asheville Framing & Building... of course), Hardwood & Tile Floors, Nice Bathroom and Lighting fixtures (customers choice) etc. When we say "High End", we mean adding some things like custom timbers in the gables for accents, more decks or porches, some metal roof accents. High End may also include some green options like "green" paint, solar panels, radiant floor heating, Superior Wall foundation, Isynene insulation, etc.

Sample 1500 Square Foot Cape Cod Home (w/o land): Standard $150k+ or High End for $200k+
Sample 2500 Square Foot A-Frame Home (w/o land): Standard $260k+ or High End for $320k+
Sample 5000 Square Foot Luxury Home (w/o land): Standard $710k+ or High End for $890k+
***Of course these are just numbers and we can get it down to the penny once your request a detailed quote per your set of blueprints.

*Estimates are on a "crawlspace" foundation (basement would be extra, but you would get extra available square footage as well, that you have the option of finishing now or at a latter time). Grading & Land Improvements would be additional. We cannot figure this until we see the piece of property and determine what it needs for improvement and for a "house pad".

Just some ideas for you if you are considering building a home in Asheville North Carolina. For more exact custom pricing, don't hesitate to contact us. Thank you.
Asheville Custom Home Builders, LLC http://www.ashevillecustomhomebuilders.com/

Asheville Home Building, Quality not Quantity

Asheville Custom Home Builders, LLC. can design & build a beautiful home for you in Western North Carolina.

Anyone can say $59 a square foot for a brand new home in Asheville North Carolina, but in all reality, this is not accurate. For some reason some clients love to hear that "lowball" number when thinking about building a home. This magic number is nothing more than a starting point to start adding to if you want to construct a real home.

If I were to show you a nice brand new Mercedes Benz and tell you that it is going to cost you only $20,000, your next question should be "What's wrong with it?" There are many factors to think about here. The car may be operational and look good, but where and how was the money saved? It has to be somewhere!

The same goes for when you are building a new home. Companies try to attract clients with low dollar amounts by using the lowest end materials they could find, at the cheapest price. Of course, some big companies get bulk pricing and then the savings sometimes even gets passed down to the end client, but for the most part... you get what you pay for. On top of that, the subcontractors that are used to get this low pricing are working at their bare minimum, making hardly any profit, but at least keeping steady work. Is this the American dream? Working for monster builders who are simply keeping your business afloat when work is slow? Subcontractors quickly get frustrated with this setup and do the lowest quality of work for builders that keep them in this mode. Quality work is valuable and you must be willing to pay a fair price for the work requested.

Not all homes are built the same. We have seen home builders use #3 studs to save a few thousand dollars after they gave a client a low low "unbelievable" price. This is very dangerous. When uninformed clients deal with builders who are working off of the "lowest price" angle, they trap the builder into having to make his livlihood ($) up somewhere. So they get the "cheapest" labor, the "cheapest" lumber, the "cheapest" flooring, and many other "second hand" materials that you as the client will never know about. Eventually, you will have a "cheap" house. A Mercedes with a lawnmower engine. For example: defective old Hardiboard at your local "seconds shop" is half the price of new premium HardiPlank. "Their crew" also does insulation? No thank you! I want a crew where insulation is their main focus and they learn daily how to improve the insulating factor and air flow of my home. I do not want a "cold end or corner of the house" or a mold problem in the near future. There are many ways for builders to "save" money, but it will end up costing you plenty more in the long run.

In Asheville North Carolina www.AshevilleCustomHomeBuilders.com can assist you with choosing the right piece of Real Estate in WNC. Then we can begin choosing or designing the perfect home to fit your every need.

Asheville Home Builders, serving clients as usual


As a home building professional in Asheville North Carolina, we know that an election year is a slow year for construction. Then you can add all of the economy problems on top of that and it became a really bad year for building. Not that construction was not happening. It was just not moving at the pace many companies in the Asheville area had accustomed themselves to. So when you have a lot of overhead, and clients stop coming, your company goes down. Builders started thinking "lite" once again, started revamping their business philosophy, and increasing their competitive edge.


We did not have a huge amount of projects this year, but we know what the future of Asheville holds and we are settled in that. Clients can come to us for a large array of home options, including log homes, custom timber homes, custom built stick built homes, cabins, townhouses, and more. Our teams are the experts in these categories. Looking for an Asheville Home Builder? We can meet with you and start building the home you desire according to every minute detail we get specified. Contact us for a free consultation in Asheville North Carolina. http://www.ashevillecustomhomebuilders.com/


For more information about Asheville North Carolina, please visit http://www.askasheville.com/. Ask Asheville is the most complete and comprehensive guide to Asheville Western North Carolina. You can find all of the main Asheville area links on the top of every page including the new "newcomer" page that has everything you need to know about getting set up here. Also, see some great worldwide links on the bottom of every page, a search engine custom designed for Asheville North Carolina, and a "Quick Link" page that has plenty of direct links to everything you could think of in Asheville NC.