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Plan and Design Tips
"Our commitment is for quality and our goal is customer satisfaction."

Utilize the experience and knowledge of Snow Country Contracting, Inc. by following these Great Plan and Design Tips!

PLANNING TO BUILD A NEW HOME?

THIS INFORMATION WILL HELP YOU PLAN AND DESIGN THE FLOW OF YOUR NEW HOME.

PLANNING STAGES

When planning to build a new home, think about the following: how you want to live, the comfort and the convenience of your new home, the way you entertain, eat, study, work and play. A home of your own can be exactly that. Building with your design in mind helps us create a home the way you want it to be.

The most important quality of a home is for it to fit your family, your needs, your lifestyle.

We don't consider ourselves to be just good designers but great listeners as well. It's your home. Your dream, your design and we'll give you all the help you need in that process.

Tell us your needs, your budget and your vision and we'll design a home for you...an environment that will be as personal as your imagination.

INTERIOR PLANNING

Consider the things your particular family has to keep and store. Storage spaces are a big plus factor for designing your own home. Consider these spaces carefully and put them where you need them for work and play.

Visualize the paths you will take during your daily activities and how various family members will be coming and going. Planning books call this the "Traffic Pattern" of the structure and it is a very important issue to consider. We can help you through the planning stages.

As you work out your plan, "walk" through the day. Ask yourself if you need more counter space in your kitchen other than food preparation.

Think about cabinets, drawers, shelves, and closets, not just in the kitchen and bathrooms but in the other rooms of the house, too.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

After you have your plan decided upon, you should then decide on window sizes, styles and floors. There are many new and different window styles. We like to use special window designs that become a distinctive part of a home. Often times we'll use stock-sized windows to create a special design, it's an affordable alternative.

CHOOSING A DESIGN/BUILD CONTRACTOR FOR A "TURN-KEY" PROJECT

When you hire Snow Country Contracting, Inc., we can do it all for you--everything from obtaining the building permit to handing you the key when you move in. We believe that you should know all your costs up front. Some "package homes" only include the shell, without garage and mechanical prices, which lead you to believe you can build a home for under $50,000 complete. We won't put you through that situation. We inform home buyers of all costs related to building a new home.

Once you've decided on the home to build, everyone seems to have advice. The more you talk to different companies the more confused you become. We welcome the opportunity to discuss with your ideas. At Snow Country Contracting, Inc., we can answer your questions. We can custom design your home for you on one of our sites or in your particular location. Our homes are designed according to the site and building codes in our area.A NOTE ABOUT YOUR FINANCIAL INSTITUTION

First, unless you have the cash to build your home on your own money "as you go," talk to your financial institution. Tell your banker the planned size of your new home, they will discuss mortgage payments and other home-ownership costs, which you are able to afford at this point financially.

Traditionally, guidelines were to take two and a half times your gross yearly salary for the home purchase, or that your monthly payment should never exceed one weeks salary. Many institutions still recommend these limits but other bankers are more conservative and each individual buyer will be evaluated differently based on credit, your credit history and income level.

SELECTING SQUARE FOOTAGE SIZE and STYLE

In deciding which size and style to build, there are some simple considerations. Most people who choose to have a custom home built immediately think they need the services of an architect. This may be true in the case of a very unusual or large home, however, we custom design most of the homes that we build.

If you've seen a picture of a home that looks exactly the way you want yours to look, your job will be easier from the start. Decide on the size that you can afford and apportion the inside dimensions to the number of rooms and layout that best suits your needs. This in itself will save a great deal of time. If you have no idea where to start, that's understandable and working with our firm will start you off in the right direction.

There are certain considerations about house size and shape to remember. Most building materials are made into even-sized lots (most sheets for instance are 4 X 8), you will save time and money to keep your outside dimensions in even numbers. (24' X 32' rather than 23' X 33'). Also avoid using room widths over 32 feet, whenever possible.

Next, there are only a few basic shapes that all shelters come from and the simpler your shape, the less expensive it will be. Steeper roofs, dormers, valleys and corners all add to the cost of the project. The ranch style is a one-story structure, which may be simply a rectangle or a "T", "U" or "H" shape for a bigger and more interesting layout.

A traditional two story house has the second story over all the space of the first floor. Two story homes are easier to heat and less costly than spread out ranches because only one roof structure covers two floors of living space and foundation.

Variations of second stories include loft spaces, the story and a half which usually has a living area with a high cathedral ceiling and the split level which utilizes basement space, which is less expensive to build than above ground space.

SITE and PLANNING

Consider the land the house will be on. Where is the summer sun? The winter sun? Which wall will get the cold winds? Where is the best view? Will there be an attached or detached garage? Where will you park and how will the drive be located from the access road? We'll help plan most of your concerns when we design the home or lay it out on the site for your review.

PLANS and CUSTOM DESIGN

We have custom designed over 400 homes and can show you any of those floor plans. There are a variety of styles that appeal to many personalities and life styles. From contemporary to traditional country. The photos of homes featured in this brochure are presented in an effort to stimulate your imagination and creativity. While they are versatile and attractive they are not intended to limit you to a specific type of home.

Keep in mind that as you discover floor plans, that every home can be priced and built to your individual specifications. If you like a particular home we've already built, we can modify it to your specific needs and desires or begin with an entirely new design.

We'd be happy to arrange an appointment to show you some of the homes we've already built, if needed. As you look at homes we've built, keep in mind that our expertise is in custom home building, we are not a "kit" or "modular" home builder. We are custom home builders specializing in design/build. You'll be pleasantly surprised to see the quality of items we select as standard items in our specifications. We pride ourselves as professional home builders and are very price competitive.

Our customers receive detailed specifications covering each phase of work to be included along with detailed products selected. You'll know exactly what is included in our contract. Our blueprints detail the site, the foundation, electrical, and elevations.

FACTS ABOUT CUSTOM HOME BUILDING

With Snow Country Contracting, Inc., you can have a home built the way you want. We offer the design flexibility to build a home which will fit your needs. You can make design changes and even add a window or wall after construction starts.

Building with Snow Country Contracting, Inc., can take less time than ordering a prefabricated home from a home dealer. Our custom built homes often are less expensive and built better than purchasing a manufactured home. We believe that our custom built homes have a better resale value too. We invite you to compare our prices, as many of our customers have, you’ll find that our custom built homes are affordable.

We take good care of our customers. We handle the paperwork, lien waivers and necessary documents required by area lending institutions and the title companies. We are approved contractors for many area banks based on our professional services offered and our financially sound business practices.

Our custom homes are scheduled in a timely manner. We don’t need to line up sub-contractors who may be overbooked or don’t show up on the job on time. (We have our own masonry and construction crews and our own excavation equipment for those reasons.) With our company, there are no unnecessary time delays with a manufacturing plant, we don’t need to "order" a home and wait for "delivery" from an assembly line.

We offer the experience level needed to build your new home. We’ve built over 400 custom homes since 1975 and are a second generation home building company. We have an outstanding reputation and invite you to talk with area bankers, business suppliers and homeowners we’ve built for. Stop in to see our new office on US2 between Ironwood and Bessemer. At Snow Country Contracting, Inc., we’re ready to serve your needs. Call us for an appointment today at (906) 932-1411 or (800) 876-9751.