Having a house built - Can you tell me about allowances?

The builder will be giving me some allowances for different things like lighting, carpet, plumbing fixtures, etc.





What dollar amounts should I be looking for (I don't want to get screwed). I would consider this a medium trimmed house. THANKS!Having a house built - Can you tell me about allowances?
All builders have a percentage of building your home broken down into sections. Framing costs, cabinets, flooring, lighting fixtures etc... Each builder will also have a particular supplier that they feel gives them the best price and that is where they will reccomend you go to pick out your fixtures. You don't have to use them, it is best to shop around for sale items.





What you should do to see if your contractors allowances are fair is first go to a kitchen cabinet maker (this is the biggest draw) and look at a standard kitchen layout and get a rough idea on how much it would be. Compare this to the amount of money you are given. You should be getting anywhere from 3 to 5 thousand dollars, depending on the size of your home. Lighting fixtures around 1500 and plumbing about 3000 again it depends on the size of your home.





What I did when I had my last home built was to go find another builder that was willing to give me a ball park number. Home depot and Lowes have a design section so you may want to go there and get ideas on what you want. They will help you with design and your choices. Contractors use these two companies a lot so they will have a pretty good idea on whether your builder is out his mind or not.





Countertops, kitchen cabinets and bathroom fixtures should be what you spend the most on. If you have to cut back on other items so you can add the money here do it. This area offers your best resale value, other places like carpeting and light fixtures can be upgraded later on easily as a do it yourself project. Upgrading showers, tubs, cabinets and countertops is more costly and may require you to hire someone. Building a home and knowing where to spend the most and where to cut back for future planning is really no different from doing a renovation go here to http://www.decormotif.com/Tips%26amp;Ideas/ and read about home improvements and remodeling just to get and idea.





Do this fairly soon before the the gyproc is done. You need to be making these choices while your home is being framed. Having said all that still your best bet to get a good idea on prices is head to home depot and talk with their designer. Contractors do and they talk to many so they will know whether your allowances are pretty close to industry standards. If they say your builder is being very generous then take a second look at the framing, roof and wiring to see if they are cutting corners.Having a house built - Can you tell me about allowances?
Mountainhomeshow.com This site has information on when and how much draws should be at what times. These are paid after the approval of building inspectors..such as excavation, footers (in the correct place on your property), walls roof, plumbing, electrical, on and on. Everything requires inspections and approval, otherwise the work has to be corrected before a draw is paid. A draw is the same as the allowance you mentioned. The draws generally come from a construction loan, the final loan comes at the end of construction and final payment at the final closing .





Only pay when the inspectors have approved each section of construction. Do not be pressured in to paying otherwise.