Custom Designed Properties Across the Region

Ask Who Drew the Plans on a Custom Designed Home

Custom Designed homes in Greater Vancouver were built to one household's brief, so ask who designed the house, who built it and what the permit file shows before you decide what the property is worth to you.

Start with the paper. Ask the listing agent for the architect or designer, the name of the contractor, the date of substantial completion and whether the original floor plan survives. Custom home builders in North Vancouver, West Vancouver and Surrey vary enormously in quality, and a recognised name behind the home building work gives your appraiser and your lender something solid to hold. If the house is newer, ask whether the home warranty is still in force and what remains on each part of its coverage.

Inspect the Details a Standard House Never Has

A custom build carries details a production home does not: a flat or low-slope roof section, a wine room with its own cooling, radiant floors, a glazed stairwell, an elevator, a green roof. Every one of them is a maintenance item with a specialist attached. Ask your inspector to price the unusual pieces rather than only note them, and ask the current owner who services each system.

Look at the envelope with the same care. Ambitious geometry, deep overhangs and large spans are where water finds its way in, and repairs on a one-off assembly cost more than on a repeatable one.

Weigh What a Custom Designed Floor Plan Costs at Resale

A luxury home built around somebody else's habits can be a bargain or a trap. A layout with a single enormous bedroom wing, a studio where a family would want bedrooms, or a kitchen laid out for a particular cook will narrow the pool of buyers when you come to move. Walk the floor plan twice and imagine an ordinary Tuesday in it.

Then price it properly. Ask your real estate agent for comparable sales, and expect the comparison to be rough, because custom homes rarely have twins. Replacement cost matters more here than in most searches, so ask your insurer early what it would take to rebuild what you are buying.