How To Avoid Lack Of Communication With Your Builder

Are you concerned that you’ll be left in the dark while your new home is being built? 

You’ve likely heard the horror stories of unanswered phone calls or key details being missed completely, because of a builder’s lack of communication. 

If your builder doesn’t have the right communication processes in place, you’ll only be left uninformed as your new home progresses. However, when you work with a builder who does have a process for communication, you’ll never be left wondering about the progress of your new home.

Professional builders will provide you with a guaranteed communication timeframe, usually within 1 business day. So you’ll never have to make endless unanswered phone calls or follow up on ignored emails. And, they will not only send you consistent updates during construction, but they will also provide you with access to an online portal where you can see the progress of your build 24/7, from anywhere in the world. With systems and processes to keep every aspect of your build in one place, you’ll never have the fear of not knowing what’s going on.

Effective Communication From Your Builder Is Crucial

According to a study by Zillow Group, one of the most common frustrations from homeowners is to do with the lack of communication during construction. They simply want a better relationship with their builder and more transparency on timelines, costs, and delays. 

However, there are professional builders who understand the importance of communication and embrace new technologies and procedures to ensure you’re informed throughout the process. They’ll have online portals where you can access every single element of your project, including job schedules and photo documentation. 

While average builders just ‘go with the flow’ and might send you an update here and there when major milestones are completed, if you’re lucky. The problem with this is, you’ll only be left wondering when your new home will progress through the different stages of the building process. Designing and building a new home can be overwhelming by itself, without the additional stress of a builder with poor communication skills. 

It’s a common assumption that once you sign a contract with a builder you never, or rarely, hear from them again. That you’ll be left in the dark with a list of questions and requests, but no effective way to communicate them to your builder. But the truth is, a professional builder will have the systems and practices in place to make sure you can always get in touch with the builder, or site supervisor, and see the progress of your home.

Effective communication from your builder is crucial if you want the confidence that the construction of your new home is going to plan. Here are some tips that will help you choose a builder that will keep you informed during the process. 

Choose A Builder With An Online Portal

First, make sure that your builder has an online portal, like BuilderTrend, that keeps track of your entire project and be sure that you will have access to it too.

While some builders still rely on their memory and don’t keep track of your build somewhere that you can always access, professional builders will have an online system that keeps every aspect of your build in one place. They’ll not only store all the information in the portal, but they’ll also give you access so you can check exactly what’s going on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, no matter where you are. 

You’ll also need to make sure that the portal includes job schedules for all stages of the build. That way you’ll have a clear picture of the timeline of your project and when each phase is expected to be completed.

Next, ask who will be responsible for your project and make sure that you get their direct contact details, whether that’s the site supervisor or project manager. When you do this, you can eliminate wasted time with unanswered phone calls and emails.

Having direct access to the person responsible for managing your new home allows you to direct questions and requests to the right person, ensuring they are answered and actioned accordingly. Nothing is missed. 

Check Your Builders Reputation

Another great way to ensure your builder is a good communicator is by speaking to people that have built with them before. Ask them what the process was like for them.

Could they get in touch with the builder?

Were their questions answered without delay? 

If you can’t reach out to them directly, check the builders’ online reviews. See if you can find any that mention what the communication was like during construction. If the builder has poor communication practices, it will be obvious! 

There’s no better experience than first-hand experience.

So, it doesn’t matter if you are building your first home or you have built many times before… Designing and building a new home can be very overwhelming and when you hear new things for the first time, it's not easy to remember everything.

All the tips I’ve covered here are just a small sample of the information I can share with you to ensure you are well-informed before you get started on the design process... 

So I’ve put together a quick guide for you to download. It’s completely free, and it will help you to keep your design on budget and avoid any nasty surprises that can sneak

up on you when building a custom home.

Just click on the link and let me know the email address you’d like me to send it to.