It is a truly custom build. We spent 10 months with the architect designing the home. We have already made some changes to the original CAD drawings, such as changing them to inset cabinets.

For a custom build -- no not normal. you must insist on talking to the cabinet maker and seeing the cabinets, the hardware used, an actual drawer and door front. What are the boxes constructed of? Is it painted or stained? Veneer? You need to see a drawer, a shelf. All those things. Insist on seeing an example of the cabinet maker's work that you will be similar to your job. If the builder is resistant, insist more and personally - after an experience I had a few years ago - I would stop everything until that happens. I have recently been in 1,000,000 homes with stapled drawers and cheapo drawer glides and door hinges. A custom home should not have builder grade cabinets. ever.... you can change carpet and fixtures. you can add decorative moldlings and the like. Changing cabinets won't happen.

No, not normal. We're probably 6 months from ordering cabinets and our builder has already had us meet with a KD to look at different door and color options.

Absolutely not normal and not acceptable. In a custom build, YOU choose everything down to the last door knob and the builder uses YOUR choices.

We met at least three times with our cabinet builder about the cabinets.

House build · More Info

House build · More Info

To even contemplate dropping $20,000 to $60,000 or more on a vendor you've never met for a product you haven't seen is, to put it as gently as I can, not sensible. How is it possible to even consider doing that?

It would make me question his motives and be uncertain I could trust him period.

We met with our builders cabinet maker + 3 of our own choosing that all sell different brands/lines. We know the cabinet allowance for the build so we can choose a different vendor without penalty.

We met w/ multiple cabinet makers. When I found the one I wanted, we met with him on at least 6 occasions and I probably emailed with him 1,000 times. We also went and saw our cabinets being constructed in the show room.

There is no scenario in which I would allow cabinets to be designed w/o me being directly involved with the entire process. Even for a recent simple bookcase I had built by a custom cabinet maker, we had 2 meetings, and emailed back at least 20 times.

I started meeting with our cabinet maker as soon as we had plans, before framing even started. We met in person at least 20 times, sometimes in our office, other times at a home they'd made cabinets for. We've emailed at least 500 times back and forth, directly as well. I keep/kept our builder in the loop as far as timelines, etc, but we dealt directly with the cabinet maker ourselves.

20 times? Wow. Cabinet maker must require some serious interpersonal skills.

~7000 sq ft makes a lot of cabinets. And those 20 times are throughout our (now) 10 month build.