First Steps To Evaluating
Log Home Builders

Deciding which of the many log home builders to use can be a daunting task. There are so many that even narrowing your list down to a chosen few can be difficult.

Making your selection even harder is the fact that there are so many very good log home builders available that it is hard to distinguish one from another. But, the fact that there are so many good ones really is good news and should be comforting to you.

Understanding the log home building process, the timeline of events, and knowing what's involved in each stage will help you tremendously in building your log house and communicating with your builder. At the very least, you will create confidence in your knowledge and you will earn the respect of any potential builder.

Before we get to specifics, let's look at some of the general things your log home builder should have. This short list should get you thinking  in the right direction.

You log home builder should:

• Build a quality home or cabin - You're going to live in this a long time and you'll want to enjoy and be proud of it.
• Have a competitive price - While your builder doesn't have to be the lowest bidder, they should be competitive. However, if you feel the most comfortable with a higher-priced builder and can afford it, then, by all means, go with them.
• Be able to communicate with you very effectively.
• Work with you to implement your ideas
• Be flexible to your desires

One of the first things you need to decide is who is going to take the primary day to day responsibility for the construction phase - are you going to hire a builder or act as your own general contractor? There are two main benefits in being your own general contractor:

• You save money by not paying someone else to do the job
• You always know exactly what the status of the project is

Some people find that the hands-on involvement that comes with being your own contractor is a great way to reduce the potential stress of building your own log house or log cabin – you are never in the dark, worrying over what is happening and if everyone is telling you the truth about the progress being made.

Of course, this is only true if you have the skills, experience and time necessary to properly manage the construction. If not, you are likely to find the process of scheduling and managing sub contractors and materials highly stressful – and it is even possible it may end up being more expensive overall than simply hiring one of the many log home builders.

So, you have to be honest with yourself about your capabilities – and your ability to commit the time necessary to the project. Remember especially that you cannot always decide when to dedicate time to managing the construction. If a problem arises, it usually has to be dealt with immediately or it will end up costing you dearly.

The fact is, most new log home owners hire a general contractor – indeed, many lenders insist on it. While we may like to attribute this constraint to the unaccommodating nature of banks, it is really just an indication of the importance of the role, and the level of difficulty involved in doing it successfully.

Just remember - not everyone can build a log home, with or without a set of instructions. That's why there are so many log home builders!

For related info, go to log home builder.