How Long Should You Take to Find a Builder?

So, you have decided to build a house, planned, budgeted, and gotten financing for your construction project. The next step is now finding a builder to execute your plan. Well, once you hopefully get secure the permissions to build a house, you should now start looking for a builder. 

You should not rush the process of hiring a contractor. Ideally, you should find a contractor that will stick to the budget and complete your construction project according to plan. So, how long should it take to find the right builder? 

The Average Time for Finding the Right Builder 

On average, finding the right builder should take between 3 and 6 weeks. By the end of this time, you should be signing a contract with the builder to start the building process. The contractor can take between 3 and 4 weeks to mobilize before getting on your site. And, this can even stretch longer if the contractor is busy. 

Therefore, allow yourself flexible timing when hiring a builder. Unexpected delays may also lead to extra expenses. Make sure that these are captured in your construction budget too. 

What Goes into the Time Taken to Find a Builder? 

Several things happen when hiring a builder. These can be categorized into several stages that will consume your time. 

• Meeting potential builders: You won’t hire the first contractor that you come across. What’s more, builders could be busy and not available to meet you when you are. Therefore, set 1 to 2 weeks as the time you will take to meet builders. 
• Getting quotes: You can take another 1 to 2 weeks getting quotes from contractors. That’s because the contractor will need time to come up with a quote for your project after meeting and discussing your project. 
• Signing a contract: Again, set 1 to 2 weeks for preparing and signing a contract. The builder will take the time to prepare the contract. You will need time to go through the contract, probably with your lawyer, before signing. 

Ideally, you should not rush to hire a builder for your construction project. Instead, take your time to find and hire the right contractor for your project.