3 Ways To Build Your Dream Home

This is a collaborative post

When it comes to designing and building your dream home, there are three main solutions: a self-build, a custom build or remodelling. This post compares them all along with the pros and cons of each. 

Opt for a self-build

A self-build could allow you to design and build your dream home from scratch. First, you’ll need to acquire some land to build on. You can then hire an architect to design your home and then hire contractors to construct it.

A ‘self-build’ doesn’t mean building your home yourself using your own hands (although you could if you wanted), but simply organising the entire build yourself. They are a lot of responsibility, but ultimately give you complete freedom to manage every detail.

There are self-build mortgages that you can take out to fund your self-build, as well as separate land loans for buying land. Just be wary that these loans require a high deposit, so you’ll likely need to own a home and have some equity beforehand. It’s possible to take out self-build insurance to cover certain risks during construction, however you may not be able to cover all risks. 

Look into custom homes

There are specialist home builders that provide custom home packages. This typically involves land that has been selected for you and a range of home designs to choose from. These companies provide all the architects and contractors and essentially take on all the risk. If there is a fault with your home, you may even be covered by a warranty.

Some custom home builders do allow a lot of personalisation, while others may only allow you to choose from a few templates with only a couple minor adjustments. As a result, you don’t have the same freedom to design every detail of your home. That said, there is still a level of customisation that you don’t get when buying a regular home. 

Custom homes can also be cheaper than self-builds. Some basic custom homes may even be eligible to first time buyers under various discounts schemes. Luxury custom homes aren’t likely to be accessible to first time buyers and may have a higher deposit much like a self-build. However, unlike a self-build, you can usually take out a single mortgage to fund the whole project rather than a mortgage and a separate land loan. 

Do some major remodelling

Another option is to simply add your dream features to an existing home through home improvements. This could include remodelling your current home or moving into a new home and remodelling it. 

Of course, without knocking down the house and completely rebuilding it, you’re likely to be restricted as to what types of improvements you can add. Buying a home and heavily remodelling it could also mean having to spend months living with ongoing construction work before you can enjoy it.

The benefit of building your dream home through remodelling is that it could be a chance to still buy a home with some history. This could allow you to preserve some older features, while adding in a few new features. 

Buying a home and then remodelling it to fit your image could be quite expensive overall – potentially more so than a self build or a custom home. You could save money upfront by buying a fixer upper, but you’ll have to factor in the cost of repairs on top of improvements when remodelling your home.