Comparing Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Custom Home Builders: How to Find the Right Fit for Your Style

No doubt you’ve heard the saying that a home is the biggest investment you’ll ever make. Yes, choosing between Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky custom home builders involves money, but it also involves time. When you decide to build from scratch, you are committing to spending time with your builder. It’s important that you feel comfortable working with the builder for an extended period.  

Look at the Bottom Line First

Before you go too far down the road to a new custom home, it’s best to define your budget. If you plan to finance the home, talk to a lender about the mortgage amount you qualify for. Then decide as a family what you are comfortable with in terms of borrowing. 

When building a new home, setting aside a contingency fund of 5 to 10 percent of the total cost is common. This fund can be used to cover unplanned upgrades, change orders or emergency situations. 

When you have clarified the financial picture, you can ask each builder candidate about financing options they offer. 

See Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Custom Home Builders for Yourself

It’s fun to pore over websites and photos online, but it’s critical to meet builder representatives in person. When you visit Rivers Pointe Estates, for instance, builders in the community are happy to answer questions. Toebben Builders, Drees Homes, Justin Doyle Homes and Traditions Building Group are each building in a section of the community. 

When you speak with company representatives either in person or by phone, do they listen carefully? Do they respond to questions in a timely manner? From the outset, you should feel that a pleasant working relationship could be formed.  

Picture This: Your Home Your Way

Of course, the look and feel of your new home are of the utmost importance to you. At Rivers Pointe Estates, each builder offers a slightly different style of home: 

• Traditions Building Group is developing innovative courtyard homes, along with single-family villas and villa homes with walkout lower levels. 
• Justin Doyle Homes is offering custom single-family homes starting at $500,000.
• Drees Homes is building patio homes and single-family homes starting at $450,000. 
• Toebben Builders is offering custom single-family homes starting at $650,000 and custom riverview homes at the Reserve at Rivers Pointe starting at $900,000.

Before you meet with builders, consider your “must have” list for your new home and how it could work with your lifestyle. The size and type of your home will depend on the square footage you prefer, your family’s needs and your desired lot size. Maybe you’re looking for a close-knit neighborhood feel. Or perhaps you’d prefer an estate style setting. If you’d rather have a low-maintenance home that you can “lock and leave” while you go on vacation, a courtyard home could be just right.  

You can also compare builders based on your preferred aesthetic style. If you’re hoping for a modern farmhouse, for example, or more of a traditional home, can the builder meet your expectations?   

Customizing Your New Home 

With a new home, you want it to reflect your taste and preferences. So, as you compare Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky custom home builders, ask about customization. Keeping your budget in mind, will each builder candidate be able to provide the look and level of finishes you want for your new home? Request more information about the design process. If you will choose from a group of stock plans, to what extent can you alter them to suit your needs? Ask about the selections process and options that will be available to you for things like flooring, countertops, lighting and cabinetry. 

Quality Counts

At Rivers Pointe Estates, six Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky custom home builders were selected based on experience and quality. As you compare builders to each other, take the time to examine the quality of craftsmanship, either in model homes or in existing homes at other developments. Ask to speak with previous clients, if possible, to get a sense of both standards and working relationships for each builder that interests you. 

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