Considering remodeling your home? Debating about whether to remodel your current home or buy a new one? Take into account every detail from budget to timeline to help you make an informed decision. Houzz surveyed 120,000 registered users whose responses may help you understand what to expect and how your renovation might play out. The first thing to remember is to be prepared; for anything. This includes paying premium for expensive taste, straying from your timeline, and experiencing various hiccups along the way. Also note that some of the best home renovation projects are kitchen and bathroom remodels. These rooms can very quickly feel outdated but can sometimes very simply be revived AND add value to your home - all good for resale! Read through the interesting findings from the survey which also details spending per square foot, the most common remodels, how remodels are often funded, and the benefits of a quality remodel. 

We've made mention of just how important doors in your home can be and the implications they provide - giving rooms a certain character and inviting guests and loved ones into your various living areas. Salvaged doors can especially bring a certain unique character element to your home and can add color and personality to otherwise neutral areas. Salvaged doors can be a great way to lend a design focal point to a room or act as a starting point for schematic themes in a space. Not to mention, it's a great way to recycle old or unused material and breathe new life into a piece. In fact, a salvaged door has a variety of uses from a wall hanging to a coffee table. So, take a chance on a family heirloom or at your local flea market to see what kind of treasures you can find to add your very own touch of personality to your home. 

The advantages of building a custom home go beyond the obvious: a custom home built by a professional builder offers performance benefits that only a new home can. These hidden benefits are as crucial to the homeowners’ ultimate happiness as the design, if not more so. Many of these benefits are the happy offspring of the drive to save energy. 

In recent years, energy-efficient details have become standard and are mandated by many building codes, which as a result, has raised the quality baseline for all new construction. Most professional custom builders go well beyond this baseline. We work with designers and use the latest software to analyze how the thousands of items that go into your home will determine its performance, and we hire employees and subcontractors who will do the job right. 

A new home also provides a certain peace of mind and confidence that everything in the home will work the way it’s supposed to for years to come. That’s why we use proven products with good warranties, along with highly skilled installers. In fact, a lot of people build new homes for the same reason they buy new cars: to avoid unexpected, costly repairs.

Read more in our latest e-newsletter about why building a custom home goes beyond the benefits of your dream kitchen or the ultimate in your luxury Master suite.

When building or remodeling your home, there are so many options to consider: floor choices, paint colors, ceiling height, bathroom fixtures, and one less commonly thought of: your door choices. You might even wonder why weighing your options when it comes to door choices is even worth the effort. Take a minute to count the number of doors in your house. Not a small number, right? Consider then, the impact that a little attention to the doors can have on the overall style and design of your home. Doors are a simple way to dramatically update a space or improve functionality in the area. 

Investing in the right material, style, and taking into consideration the possibility of specialty doors, you can enhance not only your home's appeal but its efficiency. Doors, as the gateway to your home, another room, or a hidden feature, are something not to be overlooked. Take the time to weigh your options and even get creative and playful with it - show them your personality at the door! 

It's difficult to imagine a shortage of land, especially in an expanse like Kansas. It's one of those things that, until it directly affects you, you don't even see it as an impending issue. According to a recent survey of homebuilders across the country, it seems that lot shortages are becoming quite a problem for builders. Sixty-four percent of builders reported that the supply of lots in their markets was “low” or “very low,” marking the highest percentage of reported shortage since 1997! Due to this shortage, new homes are being built at a remarkably low rate of under 1.2 million a year. Compare that figure to 2005, where total housing starts were more than 2 million and only 53 percent of builders reported a shortage of lots. When building a custom home, finding a quality buildable lot preferably oversized or on acreage, can be even harder to come by with a lot shortage. 

As an investment, home ownership is not only one of the most rewarding financial ventures but perhaps one of the steepest. Many Americans take years, if not decades, to make the decision to become a homeowner. While a majority of the time, the wait may be to pay off debt, build credit, or simply save enough for a down payment, studies have shown that homebuyers today, especially first-time homebuyers are simply waiting for exactly what they want. They're not willing to sacrifice any details and want to settle into a home that not only suits their every whim now but will also allow for growth later. Many first-time homebuyers are seeking a home that they can grow into. Similarly, many of these same buyers are not yet taking the plunge because they aren't able to afford the type of home they want at the moment. What these buyers are willing to sacrifice and what they aren't, is a very interesting study. 

The decision to purchase a home is not only about preference and logic, but is quite an emotional experience; one that many potential homeowners want to get just right the first time. 

Incorporating unique character accents into your home is precisely what makes it a home. A combination of personality, whimsy, functionality, and attention-to-detail can make your spaces enjoyable for years to come. If you're designing a custom home, you have the upper hand in choosing everything from layout, to materials, color, texture, and add-on features. From there, we could all take a cue from Italian design which incorporates function, glamor, and pays tribute to the classics. Italian style surely isn't for everyone but the governing tenets could inspire any proud homeowner. "Beautiful is better," is a design principle that Americans often forget, placing the importance, instead, on functionality. Beauty in everyday items makes your space that much happier, positive, and uplifting. Don't be afraid to use or get the most beautiful accessories and accents for your home! 

It's no surprise that another top design principle for Italians is "the kitchen is king." Italians love to cook and to share a meal with the entire family is more than just eating the food on your plate. It's an entire culinary and sensual experience. The kitchen often becomes the hub of the home, where families gather after a long day, where they visit, share coffee, stories, and laughter. The kitchen, therefore, should be given special attention in design. 

Ciao bella!

If you have ever been interested in new home construction, you may have asked yourself "Why hire a custom builder?" Don't we all want a custom experience in anything we do? A custom shopping experience, custom banking experience, custom dining experience. Custom = 100% YOU. In a way, custom has a lot to do with the human ego. If we have a custom handbag, custom suit, custom home, it means that the end product includes all of those little details to give you a user experience fit precisely for you.

​Working with a professional custom builder allows you, the homeowner, to create a one-of-a-kind home where anything is possible. Thus, the custom builder provides you with customer service that is, by necessity, more personalized and in-depth. We spend as much time as needed to ensure that the home satisfies your needs and wants. Making not just the end product, but the overall experience, enjoyable and personalized allows us to build a rapport that ultimately leads to a successful finished product, happy customer, and happy builder. 

Let's take a look at the Ranch home. In recent years, the ranch design for homes has been replaced with two-stories and McMansions. The bigger the better. But, it looks like the ranch has made a resurgence. Many builders prefer to build two-story homes due to spacial limitations with the lot. Building a two-story home takes less space and may offer more home, however, buyers are seeking large lots with a single-story home. Competition for ranch homes like this in the market place are causing bidding wars and prices to skyrocket. As the cost of land has increased, larger lots are harder to find and single-story homes, even harder. This article from Realtor.com details the trend and breaks down the demand by age group, showing that as age increases, so does the desire for a single-story home. We've built our fair share of each and can say that both ranch homes and two-stories have their benefits and their cons...what do you prefer? 

Whenever possible, with every Moffitt Built home, we ensure that the lot size and the proper use of lot size is just as important as the new home itself. We know that the size of the lot in comparison to the size of the home can make a huge impact on the overall feel of the property, the street, and the small community in general. Adequate space is needed in the lot after the construction of the home in order to give the homeowners and neighbors privacy and appeal. All sorts of factors are considered like the amount of light and air that can reach a home on a lot too small for the home vs. a lot sized just right. This idea has sparked some controversy with builders who are building McMansions on lots meant to accommodate much smaller homes. Larger lot sizes also contribute to higher resale values. Something to keep in mind when looking for or planning your future home...size matters.