Deer Ridge’s New Home Construction Process

Designing and building a new home is a feat many prospective buyers consider when searching for their forever home. Building your own home is a great way to get all the features, amenities, and style that you want. Many people may choose not to build their own home, especially if they don’t know or understand everything that it involves. Deer Ridge Construction builds custom new homes for Pennsylvanians looking to find an ideal home that meets all their needs. Below is our new home construction process, so you know exactly what to expect when working with us. 

Initial Contact 

After contacting us, our team will reach out to you to schedule a consultation to go over your project. During this meeting, we’ll go over your vision, needs, budget, and come up with a plan to make it a reality. We believe that consultations are very important to get all the details of your build, so consultations are complimentary. 

Designing 

After the initial consultation, we’ll come up with detailed blueprints of your desired design. We’ll map out where utilities, doors, windows, appliances, etc., will be located, along with the room layout. Once the designs are finalized, we’ll send the blueprints to your local municipal office to acquire permits. 

Acquiring Permits 

All permits must be acquired before we break ground on the project. Usually, you’ll need a zoning permit, a UCC Building permit, and permits for all utilities, including septic, electric, and plumbing. Getting permits and zoning permission can be confusing for new Pennsylvania homeowners, so our team can help you out with this to make it easier. Once all permits are obtained and you’ve approved the estimate we provided, we’ll start building your new home. 

Building the Home

Once permits, design, and everything are approved, we’ll begin building your home. There are about six steps to building a new home: 

Site Preparation

To start, our construction crew will prepare the site and mark the outline of the house. We’ll remove all trees, rocks, bushes, and debris to ensure the structural integrity of your new home. Then we’ll grade the land for proper drainage, which will allow us to pour the foundation properly. To learn more about site preparation, check out our Preparing Your Lot for New Home Construction blog. 

Lay the Foundation 

The foundation is one of the most important parts of new home construction, as it will ensure the longevity of the home. To build the foundation, our crew will dig holes and trenches for the footings, which are the ground support system that keeps the home from sinking. Once this is done, we’ll pour the concrete for the foundation. The concrete has to fully dry before refilling the dirt and starting the framing of the house. Once dry, we’ll add waterproofing to the foundation walls, and an inspector will check to make sure everything is installed properly. 

Rough Framing

The wooden frame of the house is put up, sometimes called the “shell of the home” or the home’s “skeleton”. This step involves building the frame of the floor systems, walls, roof trusses, doors, and windows. Once this is done, we’ll add sheathing plywood and house wrap to protect the frame from moisture damage and wood rot. Now it’s starting to look like a house!

Add Utilities and Insulation 

After the frame is finished, we’ll start installing the utilities. We’ll install plumbing pipes, electrical wiring, and HVAC ducts in the home’s frame. This involves the pipes and wires, sewer and water supply lines, and ductwork. You’ll also have to discuss with our crew where you’ll want outlets, light switches, and HVAC registers placed.  After these are installed, city building inspectors will come out to inspect the utilities to ensure they’re installed correctly. 

Once the utilities are approved by inspectors, our team installs insulation in the walls and ceilings. Common types of insulation include fiberglass, spray foam, and blown-in cellulose. Insulation ensures the home is protected from Pennsylvania weather and maintains comfortable indoor temperatures while improving energy efficiency. 

Interior/Exterior Finishes 

Now’s the time to do the bulk of the building, finishing the interior and exterior of your home. We’ll hang the drywall and install all the interior finishings, making the rooms start to take shape. This involves the interior trim, doors, cabinets, appliances, flooring, countertops, lights, bath fixtures, and more. We’ll also paint the walls to your desired color. We’ll work on the exterior as well to give you good curb appeal. Our team will add siding, brick, or stone, build the roof, patio, and deck, and pour the driveway. After this is finished, we can put you in touch with quality landscapers in our area to create a beautiful front and backyard. 

Final Walkthrough 

Once we’ve finished building and all inspections are in order, we’ll do a final walkthrough with the homeowner. We’ll walk through the home together to ensure everything is built to your specifications, and go over the operation of various systems and features. If any adjustments need to be made, our team will quickly fix them. When everything looks good, we’ll close, and you can obtain a Certificate of Occupancy from your local municipality and move into your new custom home! 

Inspections

As we’ve mentioned above, a few inspections will be done throughout the home-building process. These inspections ensure all building codes and requirements are met, and everything has been installed correctly. The home will need to pass inspections before moving on to the next step in the building process. These inspections include: 

• A foundation inspection
• A frame inspection 
• Utilities inspections 
• Final home completion inspection 

When you pass the final inspection, you’ll receive your Certificate of Occupancy. 

Work with Deer Ridge 

Deer Ridge Construction builds custom new homes for Pennsylvania residents who want a home that meets all their current and future needs. Building a new home with us is easy; we’ll work with you every step of the way to ensure everything is to your liking and approved by your local municipality. Check out some of our completed projects to see what our team can do. If you’re ready to get started, request a quote or contact us today.