Hiring the right professionals is crucial and it can make or break the project. A lot of homeowners are unaware of what it takes to build a dream home before they start and it often is not explained to them until they are well into the process.
At Julie Laughton Design Build, I not only explain the process in advance, but I handle all of the communication on behalf of the client with the professionals needed. My one-stop shop approach has been taking the stress out of the process for my clients for over thirty years.
The Design Build process can be very challenging because there is a lot of work at the beginning to get the plans developed and approved. In order to get this process started, you have to hire the right professionals. On a typical new home construction project the process involves many individuals.
- Architect or Designer: This person draws the plans of what the building will look like on the interior and exterior plus all of the components of how it is built and will function.
- Survey Engineer: They survey the property lines and provide height certification and setback certification during the building process.
- Soils Engineer: They drill and take core samples of the soil that are laboratory tested to give us the strengths, weakness and expansion of the soil. These reports from the Geotech engineer are required to be completed before the structural engineer can do their work on the footings.
- Structural Engineer: They design the framing and load requirements for the structure itself. The load requirements consider everything like earthquakes, wind, hillside slippage and the weight of the building overall.
- Civil Engineer: This is the engineer who works on the drainage of the property around the building. They determine the slopes of the sidewalk, driveway and where we put the underground drainage.
- Title 24 Engineer: This is the one who calculates the energy values of the home based on the U-factor of the windows in relationship to the heater, air conditioning and gas and electric being used.
The JL Process is designed to accommodate the client’s every need and provide them with a seamless stress-free process. Call me to discuss your dream home and my 5-Star process.
