First, let’s break the custom home building timeline down into two distinct phases: the planning phase and the construction phase. Each phase of building a custom home near you comes with its own timeline, as well as its own unique challenges. The planning phase is everything that happens before a home builder begins construction on your custom home build. The planning phase of building a custom home comprises the nitty gritty decision-making process for the homeowner and includes tasks like:

• Selecting and purchasing a lot 
• Choosing an architect and home builder, plus bidding 
• Designing your home, choosing a floor plan, and selecting amenities
• Acquiring permits and obtaining approval for homeowner/construction loans if applicable

Most of the steps listed here can each take anywhere from one to six months, to be generous. Taken together, they often total up to a year for the planning phase of your custom home build. Experts agree that one of the most critical factors in determining the time it takes to design and build a custom home is the time it takes You, The Homeowner, to make decisions. Delaying decision making and changing already made decisions can quickly derail a timeline, adding weeks and/or months to your project. It’s best to make your home building decision as practically as possible, taking emotion out of decision making.

Plan on the construction phase of your custom built home project to take around 12 months. The scope of this phase is largely out of your hands as a homeowner, since active construction time for your new State College PA (or Bellefonte or Boalsburg or nearby) home is dependent on a number of external, unpredictable factors that it pays to be aware of before you begin. Calculating the answer to ‘How fast can a custom home be built?’ depends on variables such as: 

• Your home builder – choose a top rated home builder in PA with experience and skill (like Triple E Homes) to minimize costly mistakes 
• The design specs – know that building a large and complex home design will take more time than a modest and traditional design
• Building site conditions – breaking ground on hilly lots or hazard zones adds complexity to building that may require time-consuming remediation 
• Supply chain – your proximity or distance to supplies and labor will impact your timeline; in particular, shortages of available supplies or subcontractors will stall construction
• Building permits – Lead time for obtaining approvals and permits varies throughout townships in the Centre Region including Benner, College and Harris townships, serving Bellefonte, State College and Boalsburg PA
• Inclement weather – Unfavorable conditions can cause delays due to an inability to work in heavy rain, snow or freezing temperatures, aka, Central Pennsylvania winters. 

Get off on the right foot when planning your custom built home by choosing a reputable custom home builder near you. Triple E Homes  is an experienced custom home builder whose methodical, skillful approach can help ease the stress of the home building process. Having the right home builder for you will add value to every stage of the process, when your builder’s experience and insight can prevent costly delays. Your home builder can advise on most factors – from floor plans and lot specs to supply chain and permitting. Basically your home builder can help with everything except the weather!

Though we’ve gone over the many factors that affect your custom build timeline, you might simply still be wondering, what part of building a house takes the longest? When done in consecutive stages from start to finish, the physical building process adds up to about seven months, but as we’ve learned, a fully custom built home alters the total length of time of the project. Each step of the process comes with its own timeline, from to the foundation, framing, HVAC, electrical, plumbing and exterior aspects to interior construction, comprising painting, sealing, flooring, cabinetry, trim and hardware. Each can take approximately one to two months on average. 

Central Pennsylvania custom home builders are usually at their busiest in the warmer months. And since Central PA has a finite number of both local custom home builders and warm months, you’ll want to do your planning with the local seasons in mind to avoid further delays. To minimize weather-related construction delays, begin your pre-construction phase in the winter when your focus is on planning and you and your custom home builder do not need to be outside to work.

Doing the spec work and pre-construction in winter does mean that you start building during the busy season, when contractors and materials could be short supply. Rest assured that well known national supply chain issues are being mitigated, but should still be on your mind as you move forward in the new home journey.  Be sure to stick to your original selections and avoid deviating while construction is underway. Changing your mind means introducing delays that could extend your custom home building timeline by a few weeks. 

Even after diving into the distinct phases of a custom home build, you still might want a solid number for how much time you need to set aside for a home building project and that’s okay too. With pre-construction activity taking approximately 6 months to a year and actual construction of your custom home in the State College area taking an additional year, the total is around two years. This is how long it takes to build a custom home you’ll love. Many phases of the overall home building process happen concurrently however it is impossible to predict the outcome given all the variables. Triple E Homes is here to help. Call us at 814.424.4775 or email us at tripleehomes@sle.email to get started today.