They could be a custom builder, but in order to give you an estimated price, they used allowances.

Often General Contractors have a Rolodex. If your supplier is not in the GC’s Rolodex, your GC may have to incur additional overhead.

Allowances and strict limits on where to source things are not my idea of a custom build . To me this seems like a semi custom tract build. The difference in these building methods seems to be causing you great stress.

When I built my custom home 4 years ago , there was a budget but no firm allowances . We could source from anywhere however we did try to use our builder’s preferred venders. On several times we did go outside his preferred. He did not have a design center as he only built custom. FYI it was a cost plus contract.

Does the contract say you have to use specific stores?

Jim, they don't have a Rolodex. They have three business cards. I don't mind the allowances. I don't like the lack of choice.

Babe, I didn't do my research. If I had known I would have done a cost plus.

Sasha, yes! But not stores. One cabinet supplier. One appliance supplier. One for flooring. And not clear on what I can really get from the sole hardware/appliance Ferguson. So apparently I can buy things from Sig. H and Ferguson from the showroom but I can't get from Build. Makes no sense. In fact, until I asked I had the impression that I had to get the expensive appliances as opposed to a $3,000 fridge.

I can't comment on the contract, but imo, Signature Hardware is not upscale. The faucets and fittings are made in China so beware. Some look great, but will not outlast a Moen.

Terry, the same response as I made before. You are not working with a custom builder. A custom builder does not give allowances.

Your hire; you have chosen and are working with a production builder who saves you money because he buys in quantity.

I’m sure he can offer you several options which will meet your decor style.

Do you have any idea of what it would cost you to hire a custom builder? He builds what YOU want…let’s say, for your budget, $400.00 a sq ft. That cost is controlled by your choices….no discount.

Even a custom builder in a cost plus arrangement will want to control the sources for product used on his projects. That usually happens in advance on cost plus, as selections are made.

It takes extra time to vet a supplier and a product to be able to say that it is of a quality level to be used in a home that they are building. Suppliers that they have worked with before are partners to do the leg work for them. If a particular range has a requirement for a different gas line or unusual size, the builder needs to have that brought to his attention. If it’s terrible quality, but really pretty, with a good PR campaign, why should they warrant a lemon in advance?

A homeowner’s wants are not always the best choice. And a builder should not be forced to supply and warrant something that he knows will fail, or provide problems down the road. There are very good reasons for controlling the source of products.

And there are very good reasons needed for wanting to go outside a builder’s vetted sources, if you accept the consequences for doing so. If you want that specialty troublesome range, and are willing to do the legwork, pay him his markup, pay the change order fee, sign an acknowledgement of going against advice, and accept responsibility for dealing with the tech for any warranty work.

Pick your hills to die on carefully. He is the one with experience, and has chosen supplier relationships that reflect their trouble free nature. Unless you have an experienced designer advising you on selections, you may be asking to wade into the deep mud. This is why a custom build will have the selections done on the front end. With the help of someone experienced enough to advise you wisely on those selections.

You don’t know what you don’t know. And that can hurt you. It can also hurt your builder and cost him money and time. That’s why there are change orders fees on a fixed price contract. And that’s why the products are picked in advance in most cost plus. The builder can then increase the charge on the front end to deal with the level of difficulty created by products.

Only new thing I will add is we have Moen Eva at our old house and it was great. Was in kids bath and amazing. Not a single woe.

If the builder has a design center, they have invested in that for a reason - they have a limited selection of "things" you can choose from. Do not expect much deviation - at any cost.

We did a custom build 4 years ago. Architect designed the house, we owned the lot and we selected our own builder after interviewing several and asking A LOT of questions. We had a very detailed fixed priced contract.

We put a few allowances into our contract as place holders for our own budgeting purposes, but there was no "upcharge" if we went over. And we did. Our builder didn't care whether we used a $3K fridge or a $10K fridge. He didn't care if we had a $20K kitchen or a $60K kitchen. There were change orders for builder supplied out-of-scope add ons, but the price was always agreed to before work began.

Also, our builder only built one custom house at a time so he was committed to only our build for the duration and was on site every day. Maybe a moot point for Terry at this point but for anyone else who finds these discussions....in our case custom meant exactly that. Can't emphasize enough to read and understand the contract and make sure to ask all these types of questions up front of any of the builders you interview and before you sign a contract. It's a long, costly, stressful process and you definitely want to go into it with a complete understanding. Good luck with your build Terry!

Not at all a moot point. I still have to build the thing! Also, maybe someone who reads this may be more careful with their contract. I had my attorney read the contract to buy the land. I had him read my new work contract. This is the biggest purchase of my life and I didn't have him read the contract. I think that the builder is being fairly flexible based on my lack of knowledge upfront.

There are definitely custom builds with allowances. These appear in "all-in" contracts. The builder takes on all the risk for material and labor price increases. You get a serious change order penalty for going above the allowances, so this would appeal only to clients who know EXACTLY what they want for everything before the build starts.

Perhaps these are estimates rather than allowances? Is this a typical "cost-plus" contract?

I think you nailed it. But that's once I sign off on everything. I am allowed to go over the allowances if I pay in advance. They even refund any things that are under the

allowance. It's not a cost-plus contract. I hadn't even heard of it before I started. I didn't educate myself. I guess I thought everyone would help me along the way. Which they are. It's just been a bit of a battle to get the non-builder supplied stuff. The more I've read on this site I think the builder has been fair. I still don't think they should call themselves custom.

Btw, your name is funny.

It is called “due diligence“.

You did not perform due diligence. Maybe that will be the legacy of your post.

You are right, That's on me. Maybe someone will read this before they sign a contract and it will help them. I'm glad I posted all this after the fact because if I don't get exactly what I want I can't blame the builder. Even knowing these things in retrospect will help me.

Do they advertise as custom builders or was that your assumption?

The wording of the contract must support “custom”, and from what you say, the wording did not indicate custom at all.

You are not working with a custom builder. A custom builder does not give allowances.

Seconding (or nth-ing) that this is wrong. It depends on contract structure etc., but it's perfectly reasonable for a builder to quote a price (or estimate a price) based on allowances for certain finishes if they aren't pre-determined at the time the contract is executed.

I understand this now. Actually, I understood it at the time and thought it was fine. It's just the darn selections. But I think everything is going to be okay.

I think allowance is the wrong terminology to use for custom homes. We had estimates for planning purposes but as there was no change order or penalty for exceeding the estimate I don’t consider it an allowance . It was a cost plus contract and we simply paid for what we selected .

Custom builders do use allowances. Unless you specify EVERY detail up front then they have to. Ours is a custom build (https://bamasotan.us if you'd like to check it out) and we had allowances.

Other things in the contract do indicate that this a production/tract builder, not custom such as specifying the plumbing fixtures, toilets, flooring, etc.

A good builder will have preferred suppliers and contractors - that is one of the things you're paying for. A good custom builder will give you options and recommendations for who to use. E.G., they may get bids from three HVAC contractors, tell you the pluses and minuses, and let you choose which one. A good custom builder will not have any problems using others unless they have concerns about their quality or integrity.

There is no concept of 'upgrade' with a custom builder.

Cost Plus may generally result in a better quality custom house. However, the builder should provide an estimated cost prior to signing a contract and their fees should be based on this. E.G, if insulation comes in 10% higher than estimated then you are responsible for the 10% as well as the builders 14% (or whatever) on the estimated amount but the builder should not collect their 14% on the overage. If you request a change that results in a higher cost then the builder is right to collect their fee on the full amount.

Expect to finish the project 20% or more over budget. Some things will simply come in more expensive than estimated and some things will cost more than estimated by your own changes. Hopefully nothing over budget because your builder told a supplier to charge an extra 20% on your project to save money on another project they are doing for them.

Judy, their name is _____ Custom Builders.

There's so much due diligence that needs to happen before engaging any custom builder or sub. Contracts are fraught with apples-to-oranges differences between homeowner expectations and contractor assumptions.

Here's a useful checklist to make sure you've covered all critical items before hiring any contractor: freeguide.kickstarthouse.com