Sawlor Built Homes

𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘊𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘏𝘰𝘮𝘦?
There’s more to custom home building than choosing the style and layout of your home. The difference also lies in the details, which is why cabinetry is such an important consideration in your new home’s look!

Why Should You Consider Custom Cabinetry for Your New Home? Custom cabinetry allows for complete flexibility in its design, compared to “off-the-shelf” cabinets from your local building supply store.

Can you say WOW FACTOR!?

In which room are you spending your time? The bright and airy living room with the coffered ceiling and large windows, or the spacious entertainment room with the bold blue cabinetry and modern bar area? Let us know below!

Thank you, W&C! 💚

When you commit to building a house, you also commit to your builder. You put your trust in someone to manage quite possibly the biggest investment of your life – you rely on them to ensure your house will be built with quality and meet your needs just right.
So, it’s no wonder that choosing a builder isn’t a simple task. What should you look for now that you’ve found ‘the one’?

What to Consider When Selecting Your Builder The Canadian Home Builders’ Association Nova Scotia offers a Certified Residential Builder program to its members.

There is something appealing about stepping outside the walls of your home and taking advantage of what the outdoors has to offer. Keeping your family's wants, needs and lifestyle in mind, there are many ways you can enhance your outdoor living space.

Talk to your Builder about your options - with your wants and your Builder's expertise, your outdoor living area will be a place you and your family enjoy for years to come!

We are incredibly grateful for the continued support from our Clients! The excitement and appreciation they have for their new home is why we continue to do what we do - turning dream homes into a reality. Thank you, K&K!

✨ Added to our Gallery - Custom Home 56 ✨

Our Clients worked with us to build their dream Passive House, designed by Passive Design Solutions and the final product is STUNNING!

Click the link to view the latest addition to our Gallery of Homes ⤵️

Custom Home 56 Home 56 is a custom designed 2 storey Passive House with an attached garage.

Decisions, decisions, decisions. When you’re building a custom home, you’ll face a lot of them.

What kind of flooring should you choose? What about countertops? Cabinets? Paint colors?

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed with the many choices you’ll have to make. A good builder will have a team to help guide you through the process and answer any questions you have.

Your builder will work with you to develop a plan that incorporates all the structural elements of your new home. Later, you’ll work with an interior designer to narrow down the details. They will show you a range of products to suit your style, needs and budget, which, when pieced together, will form the overall look of your home. Once you sign off to proceed, your plans will be set into motion.

So, what happens if you change your mind after you’ve signed off? Let your builder know right away. A builder with a strong team should be able to research and implement changes quickly, easily, and at a reasonable cost.

Your builder should provide you with a change order that outlines the details of the change, as well as the cost or credit. You and your builder should sign off on the change order, acknowledging that you both understand and agree on the change to be made. It’s very important to get all changes in writing to avoid miscommunication.

At the end of the building process, your final bill should only show your contract amount and any change orders you approved and signed. Surprises—especially financial surprises—should not be a part of your building experience or final bill.


www.sawlorbuilthomes.com

A to start this week off 😊 Thank you for your continued support, R&K!

Choosing a builder can be a little like playing the dating game. Some builders will work hard to make a great first impression, but you might be disappointed to find out things aren’t as they seem as time goes on.

Where many come across this dilemma is the issue of price. It’s easy to produce a low quote, while all those add-ons keep, well—adding on.

What to look for: As a buyer, it’s important to know what your quote should include.

Does it account for all the products and systems that will go into your new home? What about the costs required to build your home—the permits, warranties, insurance and certifications? Any exclusions should be clearly noted.

Upgrades are another area to pay attention to. Are the products and systems quoted the cheapest of the cheap? Chances are, you’ll want to make at least a few upgrades to your house plans. When a builder quotes in the mid-range instead of the low range, you’ll get a more realistic price.

Is the builder quoting according to the National Building Code of Canada’s standards—the bare minimum—or above code? Building above code is recommended for a better-quality home, though it might cost more upfront.

What else to consider: An accurate, detailed quote should be between 20-30 pages in length. Once signed, it becomes part of your contract. No further change should be made without an approved change order, detailing the change to be made and the cost to do so.

Your quote is also used to direct the trades working on your home, so an inaccurate quote could lead to more inaccuracies as your home is built.

The bottom line is that a quote that’s produced simply to hook you on a low, unrealistic price does no one any favors. From the dating world to the homebuilding world, if something seems too good to be true—it probably is.

✨️Sneak Peek ✨️
Custom Home 56 will soon be live in our Gallery. Our Clients worked with us build their dream Passive House, designed by Passive Design Solutions, and the final product is stunning! Stay tuned to see the full album in our Gallery.

A great to start off our week. Happy Monday!

An Entertaining Idea

If you envision your future home as a place family and friends can gather comfortably, you’ll want to discuss a few key elements with your builder.

• Entertaining style: Do you enjoy hosting cozy cocktail parties or having a group of friends over to watch the game? The way you plan on entertaining will affect the kind of space your builder creates.

An intimate eating nook can double as a spot you drink your morning coffee and gather with a small group of close friends. An open-concept great room will accommodate more people and give you the versatility to rearrange your space to fit the group.

• Layout: You don’t need a huge house to entertain – you just need a clever layout with a good “traffic flow.”
A kitchen island that faces the living area, for instance, will allow you and your guests to connect while you prep food or drinks. Ensuring you have enough storage space for serving dishes and utensils, along with areas to cook or serve, is essential if you plan on entertaining often.

If you have the space, you might want to consider a media or games room – or a designated spot in the basement for movie and game nights.

• Maintenance: Who wants to worry about spills or scratches when spending time with family and friends? Consider easy-to-clean, durable materials that will take the stress out of entertaining. When you know tidying up will be a breeze, you can relax and focus on the company you’re with.

• A house is better when it’s filled with those you love. With a few special considerations, your home will be a place your family and friends will want to spend quality time together.

Our hearts go out to all those affected by the terrible wildfire in Nova Scotia. Thank you to the emergency responders for your hard work and efforts to get this under control.

We are thrilled to annouce the arrival of our newest team member. Meet Cohen Douglas Dion, born April 13th 2023. Keith is a very proud first time Grampy!

Cohen looks forward to meeting his friends in the industry when he is a little bit older 💙

You have a long wish list of what you want in a home, but you don’t know where to start. Do you keep an eye on real estate listings near you? Reach out to a tract builder? Or go with a custom builder?

Bring Your Wish List to Life With a Custom Home With a custom home, you’re able to create a living space that perfectly suits your needs and lifestyle.

It is a beautiful first day of Spring in Nova Scotia and we have outdoor living spaces on our minds!

Deck Options to Increase Your Living Space There are many different options available to enhance a deck depending on your family’s wants, needs and style. Here are a few suggestions to get you

Thank you Susan and Dennis!

Save or Splurge? You’ve likely already crunched the numbers and know what you can afford. You’ve also likely scoped out ideas for your new home and started a wish list – perhaps with a few things on it that could stretch your budget. Knowing when to splurge and when to save will help you make room for those nice-to-have items, while ensuring you have all that you need.

Save or Splurge? Knowing when to splurge and when to save will help you make room for those nice-to-have items, while ensuring you have all that you need.

Price Versus Value: When one builder gives you a quote that’s much lower than another, it’s important to ask yourself – “What is the quote missing?”

Price Versus Value It can be tempting to go with the builder offering the lowest quote, but the lowest quote doesn’t always mean the lowest final price or the best value.

Thank you to our Clients!

When you think about what’s on your must-have versus your nice-to-have list for your new home, does one outweigh the other? The kind of builder you choose will depend on your needs, preferences and budget.

Custom, Spec or Tract? Tract homes

Once you’ve decided to build a custom home, you’ll have many more important decisions ahead of you. Some of the first decisions you’ll make involve choosing a lot and choosing a builder.
So do you find the lot and then hire a builder, or vice versa?

www.sawlorbuilthomes.com/nova-scotia-home-builder-blog/the-lot-or-the-builder-which-comes-first

On Friday, March 25 we virtually attended the 2022 Kohltech Peak Awards. It was a little different than the live award show and galas in the past, however, it was another great event hosted by the Canadian Home Builders' Association Nova Scotia.

The Kohltech Peak Awards celebrate the best of the residential industry in Nova Scotia, judged and voted on by experts and leaders from across Canada.

We are honored to have received the prestigious Builder of the Year award. We would like to thank our amazing team at Sawlor Built Homes, our loyal tradespeople and suppliers and our Clients for working with us to adapt to the unpredictable and ever-changing market conditions.

Congratulations to all Finalists and Winners at this years award show!

Choosing a builder can be a little like playing the dating game. Some builders will work hard to make a great first impression, but you might be disappointed to find out things aren’t as they seem as time goes on.

Where many come across this dilemma is the issue of price. It’s easy to produce a low quote, while all those add-ons keep, well—adding on.

The Price Illusion Where many come across this dilemma is the issue of price. It’s easy to produce a low quote, while all...

Custom Home 55 is now live on our website!

Custom Home 55 is an energy efficient 2 storey home featuring a bonus room over the attached garage and spectacular views overlooking the entrance to the Halifax Harbour. Imagine the sunsets our Homeowners enjoy from almost every room in this home!

Custom Home 55 Custom Home 55 is an energy efficient 2 storey home featuring a bonus room over the attached garage and spectacular...

*Sneak Peek*
Custom Home 55 will soon be live on our Gallery of Homes! Stay tuned - more photos will be available next week and you definitely do not want to miss it!

Feel free to browse our Gallery in the meantime: www.sawlorbuilthomes.com/gallery/custom-homes-we-ve-built