The Brand-New House Book: Everything You Need to Know About Planning, Designing, and Building a Custom, Semi-Custom, or Production-Built House

From the first vague ideas to the finished structure, building a brand-new house presents you with thousands of choices -- and possible pitfalls. Yet there's no single expert you can turn to at every stage and ask, "What do I do?" Until now. This definitive reference will help you: * Figure out how much house you need, and how much you can afford * Choose among types of builders, communities, and lots * Negotiate the offer, financing, contract, and closing * Assess options and upgrades -- which are worth it and which are not * Understand windows, flooring, kitchens, landscaping, and scores of other issues * Work with real-estate agents, architects, site superintendents, home inspectors, attorneys -- your whole team, which may consist of dozens of players The Brand-New House Book distills the most crucial advice from hundreds of experts -- from the broad strokes such as bankers on mortgages, interior designers on colors, or arborists on trees to fine-tuning such as cleaners on carpets, movers on staircases, or landscape architects on drainage, every issue is addressed. Thorough and authoritative, yet completely accessible, this book is the most valuable investment you can make to ensure that you bypass the potential nightmares and ultimately come home to the house of your dreams.