A Better Building Experience Starts Before We Build

A successful custom home doesn't begin when the foundation is poured. It begins with understanding what you want to build, what it will realistically cost, and what needs to happen to get there.

Our goal is to answer as many of those questions as possible before construction begins—and keep you informed once it does.

Will we figure out absolutely everything beforehand? No. It's construction. But we'd like the surprises to be the exception, not the planning strategy.

Before We Build

  • Two people sit across from each other at a table, hands visible over an open notebook. There are glasses of water, a vase with two white calla lilies, and a few notebooks on the table. The background includes a wooden panel and a plain wall.

    01 | Let's Talk About Your Home

    Every project starts with a conversation.

    We want to understand what you're hoping to build, where you're building, your priorities for the home, your anticipated investment, and where you are in the planning process.

    From there, we can provide some general guidance and determine whether Blake-Tull is the right fit for your project.

    The goal isn't to sell you a house. It's to understand the one you want to build.

  • Two people are reviewing architectural blueprints on a wooden table, one pointing at the plans and the other writing, with a model house and a mug nearby.

    02 | Discovery

    Once you're ready to explore the project more seriously, we dig deeper.

    We review plans, specifications and the details that can have a meaningful impact on the scope and cost of your home.

    This is where we start asking a lot more questions.

    Some will be easy. Some may send us back to the plans. And occasionally one question leads to three more.

    That's okay. This is exactly when we want that to happen.

    We'd much rather identify those things now than after construction has started.

  • Architectural plans and construction documents on a desk, with a person using a calculator, handwritten notes, a laptop showing a project estimate, sample materials, and a binder labeled 'Finish Selections' at a construction site.

    03 | Detailed Estimating

    When you're ready for an accurate construction proposal, we move beyond general estimates and begin obtaining actual bids based on your plans and specifications.

    Our trade partners review their individual scopes of work, pricing is gathered, and the pieces are brought together into a detailed projected cost of construction.

    It takes more time than applying a price-per-square-foot number to a set of plans. There's a reason we do it.

    A fast answer isn't particularly helpful if it turns out to be the wrong one.

    We want the number you're using to make a very big decision to actually represent the home you're planning to build.

  • People sitting at a wooden table engaged in a discussion or meeting, with notebooks, pens, and a laptop visible.

    04 | Getting Ready to Build

    Once the scope, specifications and projected construction cost are established, we prepare to make the move from planning to building.

    Contracts and specifications are finalized, project information is organized, and the details necessary to get construction underway are coordinated.

    We'll also walk through what happens next, how we'll communicate, and where you'll find the information you need throughout construction.

    By the time we break ground, everyone should know what we're building, what we're expecting it to cost, and what happens next.

    It sounds obvious.

    We think it should be.

While We’re Building

  • Wooden house framing under construction with temporary metal scaffolding surrounding it.

    05 | Construction Begins

    This is when plans finally start becoming something you can walk through.

    Your project manager coordinates the day-to-day construction of your home, works with our trade partners, monitors progress, addresses field conditions, and keeps the project moving through each phase.

    Behind the scenes, we're coordinating schedules, costs, selections, approvals, quality-control checks, and the countless details required to bring a custom home together.

    There's a lot going on.

    You shouldn't have to manage all of it. That's our job.

  • A smartphone showing the date and time, a partial laptop keyboard, and a corner of a tablet or another device on a white surface.

    06 | Stay Connected to Your Build

    Transparency isn't something we reserve for meetings.

    Throughout construction, Buildertrend gives you one place to follow your project, including progress photos, schedule information, selections, approvals and other important project details.

    We also provide visibility into project costs, so you can understand where your money is going throughout construction.

    But technology doesn't replace communication.

    When something needs to be discussed, we'll talk about it.

    You shouldn't have to log into software and try to figure out what we're not telling you.

    It's your home and your investment. You should be able to see what's happening with both.

  • A person demonstrating different material samples, including wood, fabric, and stone, on a white table with a black brochure that says 'LET'S TALK ABOUT YOUR PROJECT'.

    07 | Selections Without the Chaos

    A truly custom home comes with a lot of decisions.

    A lot.

    Our selections process keeps those decisions organized and moving at the right time in the construction schedule.

    Whether you're working with one of our trusted third-party designers or making selections on your own, our Selection Coordinator helps keep upcoming decisions identified, selections documented, approvals tracked, and information communicated to the people who need it.

    You make the decisions that make the home yours.

    We help keepwhat feels like 437 decisions from actually feeling like 437 decisions.

  • Scrabble tiles spelling the word "TEAMWORK" placed on a green tile holder, with a Scrabble game board in the background.

    08 | Communication & Problem Solving

    Custom construction is complex.

    Plans change. Products become unavailable. Site conditions sometimes reveal something unexpected. And sometimes a decision made months earlier needs to be reconsidered once you can actually see it in the space.

    Our promise isn't that none of those things will happen.

    It's that when they do, we'll communicate with you.

    We'll explain what happened, talk through the options, address the cost or schedule impact when applicable, and work through the decision together.

    We believe honest conversations are part of a good building experience.

Welcome Home!

  • Open-concept living room and kitchen in a modern home with hardwood floors, white walls, large windows, a gray sofa, a coffee table, and kitchen cabinets with appliances.

    09 | The Final Details

    As construction nears completion, our focus turns to the details that take a home from nearly finished to ready for you.

    We complete our final quality-control process, work through remaining items, and walk the home with you before completion.

    We'll also review the information you need to understand your new home's systems, warranties and what comes next.

    “Almost finished” and “ready for you to move in” aren't quite the same thing.

    We're working toward the second one.

    We want the house ready for you—not simply finished enough to hand over the keys.

  • From a first-person perspective, a person wearing jeans and brown shoes is standing on a concrete porch in front of a yellow 'Welcome' doormat and a brick step.

    10 | Welcome Home

    Handing over the keys is a milestone. It isn't where our responsibility ends.

    Our homeowner-care and warranty process gives you a clear path for addressing applicable items after move-in and helps you transition from building your home to actually living in it.

    And eventually, we'd really like for you to stop talking to us about construction.

    Not because we don't want to hear from you.

    Because it means you're finally just living in your house.

From the First Conversation to the Front Door

There are a lot of moving pieces involved in building a truly custom home.

You shouldn't have to manage them yourself.

Our job is to bring the people, information, decisions, craftsmanship and construction together—while making sure you understand what's happening along the way.

Will every day be exciting? No. Some days we're going to be very excited about plumbing rough-in (which generally matters to no one but us)

But that's part of building a house.

You get to watch something that started as conversations, sketches and plans slowly become the place you'll live.

We think that's pretty extraordinary—even on the plumbing days.

Tell Us About Your Project