Your contractor should be able to help you with this. So s/he may say You need granite ready to be installed by a certain date. Then you need to go to the counter place and find out how much lead time they will need to make the counter.

The short answer is right away...getting a real cost estimate depends on the cost of the parts...a kitchen faucet can cost $35 or $1350. If you are already down the road, first things first...anything that takes power, water, drainage or air needs to be selected right away. Locating the position of a sconce light or where the ice maker line goes for the refrigerator. Mist kitchen cabinet layouts START with the appliances. Planning for a 4' commercial style range means a lot more to the contractor than the way it looks. Size and location of gas line, location of electrical (220 or 120?) size and routing of the exhaust ducting...to within a 1/4". So...appliances, plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, furnaces and water heaters...solar? Then the stuff that is fixed for a long time...trim style and cabinets, windows and doors...door hardware. Then the things that can change...flooring and tile, paint. Exterior stuff too? Siding, exterior trim, roofing and color are early decisions as the house is "closed in" before you get to the finishes. Do talk to your contractor. I have a multi page handout for my clients listing everything that needs to be selected in building and finishing a project.

Thank you.