How to Utilize Professionals to Keep Your Project Within Budget.

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Little known fact: The start of your custom home project is not when you break ground for the first time. It’s all figured out on paper first.

Be prepared to review, revise, and repeat to get everything within your budget and style. Make sure to allow enough time for planning and building to achieve your desired delivery date.

RTM design budget

So what are the steps you need to take to get your RTM project plan together?

Do Not Fear Disclosing Your Budget

One big, and necessary, step is discussing what you hope your overall project will cost. At B&B, we have compiled an entire list of the expenses associated with building a home – reaching past the costs related to the RTM alone, including site prep, hookups and foundations.

Discussing your budget with our on-site designer and estimator gives them the ability to design and quote your home project using materials and function that will fit within your overall budget while allowing enough room for other expenditures and features.

To ensure that you do not encounter any surprises along the way that can suddenly hinder you from achieving your dream—or will require last minute split decisions—our estimator at B&B Homes is equipped to provide you with detailed quotes based on your budget parameters. From your RTM home costs to your on-site garage, foundation, hookups and deck, as well as any other required on-site elements that may come up.

Be Prepared to Review, Revise, and Repeat

There are a couple steps involved in this process. First, designing your custom home. This involves everything from the style and materials chosen, to the layout and function of the home that fits your family’s lifestyle. All of these parts are taken into consideration and reviewed to make sure they are fitting your overall vision.

The next step is estimating the cost of the design. In this phase you will be given quotes that include everything discussed during the design process. Once the first vision of your home is quoted, and you have a concrete idea of all the costs involved, it can be necessary to go back and revise some of the options chosen, or remove some features.

Do not fear this step. Request changes or revisions to get the project to a stage you are comfortable with.

This is a natural progression point in all major projects. More often than not, there is another material available, or another timeline to consider – like saving the decks or garage for a project the following year – that will make achieving your exact vision a reality (without depleting the quality of your home).

So What Now?

The biggest feeling may be to give up. We get it, we’ve all been there. At B&B, we want to be there for you helping you through this stage. We understand this last step is full of very personal decisions, and requires thoughtful deliberation of answering the questions like “What do you most want to get out of your home?” and “What are the top 5 priorities?”. Once you feel you have those questions and thoughts answered, approach the drawing board again with our team of professionals.

Be Involved

Ask all your questions, state your ideas, and display any concerns or fears you may have. B&B Homes wants to build you a home that we ourselves would live in. That requires perseverance, flexibility, and honesty from both sides. Believe us when we say all the hard work at this stage, makes the reward at the end even better.

B&B Homes has earned the reputation for providing excellent quality RTM homes and prides itself on delivering superior customer service throughout the process. If you are ready to start planning a 2019 RTM project, reach out to us here for more information.

Keep Cozy in the Winters: Explore these Popular RTM Fireplace Options

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There is no doubt about it that the prairies have some of the harshest winters out there. But there is a silver lining, and that is keeping cozy by the fire in the bitter cold months in the comfort of your own home.

There is no shortage of different options to customize a fireplace with lots of options available for aesthetic and function. Three popular options for B&B Homes clients are traditional wood burning, gas and electric fireplaces.

RTM fireplace

Wood burning fireplaces are a traditional option that have been heating homes naturally for decades. This tried and true style of fireplace requires a little more upkeep than more modern gas and electric options and is not as efficient at producing heat. But if the scent and ambiance of the burning logs is what you are after, the additional maintenance can be considered a labour of love when maintaining your wood supply and cleaning your chimney seasonally.

RTM gas fireplace

Gas fireplaces are a stylish, modern option that provide flexible heat and aesthetic options by efficiently burning natural gas or propane instead of wood. There are a number of options for gas logs that create the ambiance of your flame. Gas fireplaces are also enclosed, providing safety from embers without requiring any chimney maintenance. Gas fireplaces also provide an alternate heat source for the home.

RTM electric fireplace

Electric fireplaces allow you to have the visual of a fire without having to produce any actual heat allowing for use all year round to create a relaxing ambiance at your leisure. Most electric models B&B sources do give you the option for both flame and heat or just the flame. An environmentally conscious option, electric fireplaces do not use any gas or produce any emissions.

Do you want to warm up by your own brand new fireplace next winter? Are you ready to start planning your own custom RTM dream home with B&B’s Dream It, Build It, Move It process? Contact Suzanne directly at suzanne@bbhomes.ca to get started.

What’s Trending at B&B Homes

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Here at B&B we have been seeing a big demand for cozy, rustic style homes.

The Redburn RTM

Warm brown tones, paired with distressed wood features and dark metal accents create this well sought after look.

The Redburn RTM

Adding in a stone clad fireplace and pine ceiling is another way to develop the rustic style.

Pine Ceiling

Features

And finally complete the look with the little details.

Ensuite features

Features

Features

Whatever your style may be, the B&B team has the knowledge and expertise to pull it off. Visit our Facebook page, Instagram, and website to see more inspiring pictures. Contact B&B Homes to get started on your own custom home build.

 

Introducing The Chesapeake and The Hudson Floor Plans

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If 2019 is the year you want to be living in your brand new RTM home, it is time to start planning! One of the first steps of the process is to determine the size of the home and the layout that will work best for your family and budget. It is never too early to start, but it can easily be too late when you start putting the various pieces of the process together. Start design early and check out these new inspirations from recent B&B Home’s projects!

The Chesapeake utilizes 1640 sq ft of functional living space that includes three bedrooms. With an open concept design and a high vaulted ceiling in the front entry, this home leaves a grand, open feeling for families to relax and prepare meals in. A double sided central fireplace is a statement piece for the entrance, dining and living room areas. The side entrance is kept tidy with the mudroom lockers and laundry room only steps away. The Chesapeake includes a walk-through pantry that adjoins the mudroom to kitchen for organization and extra storage. This home offers a comfortable living space while utilizing each square foot of space.

The Hudson boasts over 2100 sq ft of functional space for a growing family. With four bedrooms and a study, everyone has a space to call their own. Whether preparing meals for the family or hosting a dinner party, this spacious kitchen is a culinary haven. With custom cabinetry built into the design, there is plenty of room for storage to stay organized. Cozy up by the fireplace during the cold winter months and enjoy ceiling details created to fit any style. If you are looking for a beautiful custom RTM home with carefully planned features and generous square footage, The Hudson is the one for you.

Want to Get Started Planning Your Own RTM Project?

If you have any questions about the RTM process, want to book a site visit to tour some of our current projects or wish to start the process of drafting your own custom design plan, contact us here.

Delivering The Redburn to a Family in the Duck Lake Area.

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The Hunter’s began researching the possibility of a brand new home when they moved out to their farm in the Duck Lake area. It took about five years of researching and consideration before making the decision to build with B&B. They wanted to make sure that they found the plan they liked, and a builder they felt comfortable and confident with to build their forever home.

An RTM seemed to be the most practical way to get the home of their dreams. With their location, getting a builder and trades to come out and build it from top to bottom onsite would have been extremely difficult and would have cost a fortune with mileage charges. They decided on an RTM because it would be complete and they would be able to move right in within a reasonable timeline.

What Do You Like Best About Your New Home?

“It is such a hard question to answer….because honestly the answer would be everything. We have loved it all from the moment we moved in, to this very day.  And I know we will still love our home 25 years from now!  I guess though if we had to pick one thing, it would be the space that we have.  We have enough room to not be on top of each other anymore!”  -Natalie Hunter

Finding the Right Design and Working With the Right Builder

The Hunters were living in a mobile home on their farm and with their boys getting bigger and a large extended family, they really wanted to have more room. They wanted a home to their host friends and family and not feel like they were trapping them in a tiny box.

The Hunters wanted to have a big entry area conducive to their farm life. The lockers, laundry and half bath have been the best value functional areas to have in their new farmhouse.  They also wanted to have a large kitchen so that everyone can come and sit down to have harvest meals in. As well as lots of room for cooking and storage for all of their kitchen accessories.

Why They Picked B&B Homes for the Project

“We really wanted to deal with a builder that cared. That didn’t just see us as a number. That went above and beyond building a product that would last us forever. A home is such a massive investment and you want to make sure that the builder understood that from a personal point of view, not just a monetary point of view.  We wanted a builder that would hear us….because not everyone’s tastes are the same and we knew what we liked and didn’t like.  We wanted someone to stand behind the product that they were building.  Be upfront with everything so that there were no surprises.”   -Natalie Hunter

What’s One Piece of Advice Would You Share With Anyone Planning a Custom RTM Home?

“Research your builders!  Make sure you’re not settling and that you find exactly what you are looking for.

What Did You Like About Working with B&B Homes?

Where do you start…..from the very beginning we knew right away that we would choose B&B.  Darwin was the only one in all of the companies that we went to that took the time out of his busy schedule to take us and show us their homes. He showed us homes right from starting out construction to the finished product. He explained the differences in construction and what we should be looking for in a home. Not once did he ever make us feel pressured that we had to choose them. He just gave us all the information that no one else took the time to care to show us. By the end of the tour we knew that we wanted to deal with B&B. 

We loved the fact that they only took on so many homes in a year and that they put all of their effort into making those homes the best that they could.  They truly cared about the product that they put out there.  When we met Katia she made such an overwhelming project seem so effortless. She made sure that we were happy with everything and went above and beyond to make sure we had exactly what we wanted! She is a true gem to work with. We can’t believe how beautiful our home is….we are a little biased but we think its the best designed home ever!

It was so nice as a homeowner to hear that it was whatever we wanted our house to be! They had constant communication with us about everything and encouraged us to come out anytime to see the progress of our new home. It was like watching the best Christmas present ever being built from start to finish! It was very much like a family environment where we felt welcome by everyone!   
We will always continue to recommend B&B. As far as we are concerned they are the best in the industry by far. Anyone who has a B&B home will be as lucky and grateful as we are that they had the very best home builder building their forever dream home. Thank you so much to the entire B&B family for making our RTM building process the most amazing time! We couldn’t have asked for more….because you gave it all to us!” -Natalie Hunter

Working with our on-site designer can help you bring a vision to life that you didn’t know was possible for a new RTM home. Contact B&B Homes today to coordinate a complimentary consultation with our designer here.

 

Delivering the Ironstone to Central Butte for a Young Family.

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The Peterson’s spent about a year thinking about what they wanted for their future RTM home and met with various builders before they came across the layout of the Ironstone and decided to work with B&B. The deciding factor for them was having the kitchen and dining room off the back of the home, a layout that was very difficult to find when they were looking at floor plans.

Everything else in the Ironstone design seemed to fit with what they were looking for, from the fireplace to the tray ceilings; they felt it was truly beautiful home, and one they wanted for themselves. Rachel and Brennan knew immediately that the Ironstone was exactly what they wanted for their future home.

What do you love about living in your new RTM home?

“Seeing the way everything came together blew us away. We always say to each other, can you believe this is our home? It’s such a great feeling to see all of our choices come to life to create the home we had always dreamt of. 

 

There were so many things that drew us to B&B Homes as our builder. Great service, great people, great craftsmanship. Every detail of our home was well thought out and nothing was missed with B&B.“ – Rachel Peterson
sliding barn doors

What advice would you give to someone planning an RTM project now that yours is completed?

“Our advice to anyone looking to build a new home would be to enjoy the process! It can be stressful and seem overwhelming, but it is worth it. Take your time and have fun with all of the choices along the way. We have such a sense of pride seeing everything we picked turn into a beautiful home.” – Brennan Peterson

The Ironstone

What did you like about working with B&B Homes?

“B&B Homes was great to deal with from start to finish. They were so accommodating meeting with us when it worked with our schedule and making any changes we decided on. Everything was built and finished with great quality which was such a weight off our shoulders knowing we could trust B&B to do the job right. They made what could have been a stressful time in our lives easy and fun. We can’t thank them enough! “ -Rachel Peterson

Want to get started planning your own RTM project?

Working with our on-site designer can help you bring a vision to life that you didn’t know was possible for a new RTM home. Contact B&B Homes today to get started on designing your own custom floor plan here.

Building a Functional Layout with Vaulted Ceilings for a Mantario Family.

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The Massey’s had recently moved from a mid-sized Saskatchewan city back into a 1939 farmhouse in the yard of their family farm. They were planning to renovate the home, but after only a few weeks of living in it, they decided to build. They just had a newborn son and their daughter was only three, so they wanted to make plans with the long term in mind. They would have had to move to renovate and the costs in their heads were adding up very quickly. Even with a very costly renovation, the house still wouldn’t have met their needs as a young family so it made the decision easy to start planning a custom RTM home that would.

Choosing the Right Builder for Their RTM Project

Delia spent about a month checking out different builders, styles, financing, moving costs, etc. Since she was at home with her kids at the time, she had quite a bit of time to commit to the process. The Massey’s were looking for quality and start to finish contracting. They were surprised how many RTM builders there were in the Saskatoon area alone and that could deliver to their remote farm. A company that did start to finish was very helpful especially with attaining financing for the entire project.

“Having this super functional, gorgeous place to call home and my kids having their own spaces is what I like the most living in our new home”. – Delia Massey
What advice would you give to someone planning an RTM project now that yours is over?

“I have a few major pieces of advice. First, get your financing in order long before you plan to start building. That was a very long three months in our case and held things up on our end. Especially when we were so anxious to start!

Trust me when I say that I researched pricing. I must have got 6-8 basement quotes and not a single one covered everything B&B did OR was less than their price. We also thought we could do our garage cheaper locally. Though we have a fantastic local contractor, it’s definitely cost us more. B&B is very competitive and if I could go back and sign that contract for everything at the beginning, I would. Costs fluctuate on material and that would have saved us a lot of money.

It’s a big commitment so always plan to spend more as there are a lot of things that with keep coming up for years (parging, deck, basement finishing, etc.) But no matter where and how you live, you have to pay to live and paying to live in the house of our dreams is worth it!”

– Delia Massey

What Did You Like About Working with B&B Homes?

“Having an in house designer helped a lot. All the selections are very overwhelming and Katia was very helpful in helping to make decisions.
Also, this is a family owned and operated company. The first person we met face to face was Travis as he accommodated us visiting on a weekend. Coming from an entrepreneurial family, I can appreciate the level of commitment that usually comes from family owned businesses.  He cares about the company and the quality of homes it produces and that was evident right from the beginning.
Having said that, all the staff we have encountered have been fantastic.  Darwin, Kim, Adam, Suzanne, the aussies. All highly professional and down to earth people.”

-Delia Massey

Want to Get Started Planning Your Own RTM Project?

Working with our on-site designer can help you bring a vision to life that you didn’t know was possible for a new RTM home. Contact B&B Homes today to coordinate a complimentary consultation with our designer here.

Building an RTM With Ranch Style Finishes for a Family Outside of Maple Creek.

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The Beierbach’s engaged with B&B Homes after seeing a floor plan call out their name that was shared on Facebook. With some modifications to The Redburn to make it truly their own, the rest is now history and they are living in their custom RTM today. When it came to looking for an RTM builder, they were looking for flexibility to suit their ranch style, good quality construction and of course affordability. They also needed to look into RTM options due to their remoteness in the Maple Creek area and for the convenience of outsourced project management around their busy lifestyles.

Having the Space for Entertaining and Hosting Guests

With an open concept and more living space than their previous small farmhouse, they are now more comfortable hosting guests and entertaining at their home and seem to do a lot more of it these days.

“We love our new home and look forward to enjoying for many more years! B&B met or beat every deadline which was so nice as we were super anxious to get into the house once we got the design phase done.”

-Donna Beierbach

Bringing Together Ideas Through Research

Donna spent around three months researching different features and finishes online that would capture their style and preferences. B&B was impressed with all of their unique ideas that were able to be executed. Their home like all custom RTMs was quoted based on the custom specs that were put together specifically from Donna and Williams’ researching and planning. During this time they also talked to friends, neighbours, relatives — anyone they knew that had either built or moved in a new home.

What One Piece of Advice Would You Share With Anyone Planning a Custom RTM Home?

“The expenses of site prep/ dirt work basement, plumbing/heating, electrical etc for hooking the house up really adds up. Get quotes for all of the above and allow for a bit extra!”

What Did You Like About Working with B&B Homes?

“The staff!! So helpful! We were way out of our element with this project ….we deal with livestock, not paint swatches and tile samples so we leaned heavily on designer Katia for advice and input. She did such a good job of capturing the feel we were looking for in our home! Darwin was always eager to answer any questions we had and Travis was great about warranty issues and customer service in general!”

-Donna Beierbach

Want to Get Started Planning Your Own RTM Project?

Working with our on-site designer can help you bring a vision to life that you didn’t know was possible for a new RTM home. Contact B&B Homes today to coordinate a complimentary consultation with our designer here.

The Value of Working with a Professional Designer for an RTM

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Anyone can draw up a floor plan, but when it comes to creating a design for your forever home and selecting the features and finishes, you are going to want expert advice that you can trust throughout the planning and building process. Smart design prevents unnecessary renovations down the road. Like when you book a hotel room, you will have expectations about what kind of experience you want to have for what you are willing to pay.

B&B Homes takes pride in offering unlimited creative options to design a home with the counsel of our onsite designer Katia, who will guide your decision making and planning all the way through. From letting you know what you can pull off in your floor plan within your square foot, to going shopping for lighting fixtures and flooring with you, she will be along for the whole ride when it comes to your RTM project.

We must admit, Katia is part of B&B Home’s secret sauce for delivering a premium RTM building experience. Keeping a strong relationship onsite between the designer and the building crew has lead to a lot of beautiful custom RTM homes.

“We are very pleased with the final product of our customized home with the help of our designer Katia. The entire B & B staff was very professional and easy to work with throughout the entire process.”

-Mike & Shannon Palmier

Hear more about the B&B Home’s RTM building process from past B&B Home’s clients here.

Considerations When Designing a Kitchen Island

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The kitchen island is one of the fun parts to plan when designing your own custom RTM home. When visioning your layout, you need to be conscious that there is enough traffic space so you can be comfortable doing multiple tasks at a time in the kitchen, making the space functional. Let’s review some ideas you can make your own when designing a kitchen island when planning a custom RTM home project.

Double sink in the island area while allowing for enough space from the range to move around the space for the busy multi-taskers.

You may prefer prairie views when doing this dishes and opt for family meals on an easy to clean and maintain quartz countertop.

No wasted space if you plan for storage in advance.

Create an ambiance based on your personal style and preferences to prepare daily meals. A rustic look can be achieved with custom cabinetry and lighting fixtures to compliment.

Plan your own custom RTM dream home with B&B’s Dream It, Build It, Move It process. Contact Suzanne directly at suzanne@bbhomes.ca to get started.