A house frame is like the skeleton of your home. You want it to be built strong and right and with the best materials available. So if you’re a homeowner building your own home or having your first home built, how do you know if your home is getting a good set of bones? The plan featured above is our New Haven Place (MEN 5206) plan. Materials The first step to getting the best skeleton possible is to have the best materials. When we are young we drink milk and eat lots of healthy foods to make

According to the National Fire Prevention Agency, U. S. fire departments respond to an average of one home fire every 88 seconds. Another frightening statistic is that on average 7 people per day lose their lives in U. S. home fires. When you are building or remodeling your home, your family’s safety is your number 1 priority. Let’s look at making your home as fire safe as possible. Featured home above is our Willow Way (MEN 5036) plan. Preventing Home Fires While there is no sure way to prev

Your dream home is getting closer and closer. There’s already been so much done. No, really, there has. Yes, I know you’ve mainly done paperwork and dirt has been moved around. I promise this step will let you see something tangible. Not fancy, but tangible. Plan featured above is Stone Village (SMN 1030) Foundations The foundation is probably the most important structure in your home (other than the love of your family). You want to make sure that you choose the right foundation for your type

So you bit the bullet and are going to remodel your home. No, put the sledgehammer down. As with anything a remodel needs to follow a certain natural course of events. It takes a lot of work to do correctly and we want to make sure you have this in the bag. House plan featured above is Washington Cove (SMN 1034). Remodeling anything is a big undertaking. This guide is intended as a rough step by step of any project. It should help you figure out what your specific project needs. Before you get

You found the perfect spot to put your dream home. You’re ready to start building, but the site is covered in trees, tall grass and maybe a few old used tires. Well that’s easy to fix, right? Whoa, put down the chainsaw Bruce Campbell. There are a few things we need to look at before we start hacking and slashing. Image above is of one of our newest plans Blue Ridge Overlook (MEN 5051) Site Preparation Site preparation consists of clearing trees and other vegetation from the building site, doing

Don’t those remodeling shows make it look so easy? Fifteen minutes and a montage later and your home looks like it just popped off the pages of Martha Stewart Living. Remodeling takes a bit more work than those bubbly hosts would have you think. The plan featured above is our Austin Ridge (MEN 5195) plan. Should you remodel? That’s the big question. Should you remodel or should you just buy a new home? That depends entirely on you. The benefits to remodeling the home you live in are that you g

Building your dream home should be as easy as falling off a log. This article is all about the second stage in the process: Getting your construction loans and permits ready. The world runs on red tape; let’s try to make it less confusing. The house plan featured above is our Main Street Villa plan. Construction Loan Now that you have your land and your plan and you’re ready to get started, what’s next? Your next step should be a bank or credit agency. It’s time to get a loan for the construc

You’ve decided to build your own home. That’s a huge project and sometimes it can be a daunting one. Well, we’re here to help. This article is all about the first step in building a home. From site analysis to helping you decide what you need in a home, we’ve got you covered. Site Analysis Site Analysis is the first stage in any major construction project. Even if you are building something small you have to know where you want to build it and how suitable the land is to build it there. This is

We all love Farmhouse Style. Those wide covered porches and white rooms with the comfortable and inviting décor. That open, airy kitchen filled with color and laughter. The luxurious claw footed bathtub where you can just soak for hours to relax. We all want to have those in our home. So how do we make this rural dream a reality no matter where we live? What makes a home have that Farmhouse Style? Is it a formula that you can follow and give your home that look instantly? Is it something that ca

One of the newest trends to sweep the nation is a return to the farmhouse style. Popular shows like Fixer Upper and Pioneer Woman have made the rural style fresh and new again. So what makes up that style? Where did it come from? And how can I have my house look as good as theirs? What defines a farmhouse? A farmhouse is not one particular style, but rather a home in a rural setting. The modern farmhouse is homage to our rural roots. The elements of a farmhouse are simple. They are well crafted

On March 3, 2019, Lee County Alabama was devastated by a confirmed EF4 tornado. This incredible storm left a twenty-four mile long track through Alabama and into Georgia. This storm broke a record-long 673 day streak of nonviolent storms in the U.S. It also took the lives of 23 people. Severe weather is a serious consideration when you are building a home. The main concern with severe weather is, of course, the safety of your family and loved ones. When you are looking into ways to keep you and

We’ve all had that moment. A nice leisurely trip to the store turns into a race against the impending storm clouds that you inevitably lose. So here you are trudging in with load after load of groceries and soggy feet. You finally get done with the lugging and toting and realize you have covered your lovely home with muddy footprints. If only there was some sort of special room that would solve this dilemma! Let me introduce you to the mudroom. The mudroom has been a staple in Northeastern an

Farmhouses are one of the most popular styles for new homes. While they have always been around they have made a surge in popularity over the past few years due to the incorporation of modern elements making them relevant and new. One of these modern elements is sleek metal roofing either in accents around the home or for the entirety of the roofing system. As you are preparing to build your home you may be considering metal roofing for some, or all, of your roof. While this does seem to be tr

When it comes to choosing house plans for spec homes we know there is a lot to consider. Whether you are looking to sell or rent these new builds it is important that you get the best return on investment possible. This means making sure the house plans you choose are designed to make the most out of each and every square foot of the home. It also means keeping in mind things such as: a boxy footprint, straight and lined up framing and rooflines that are not going to break the bank. Here are a f