Are you wondering how long it takes to build a custom home in the city of Kelowna? In our experience, every custom building project is different. Let’s take a quick look at a variety of factors that can affect the design and construction timeline of a custom-built home in Kelowna.
Timeline for Site Plans and Architectural Renderings
To receive residential building permits in Kelowna, it is necessary to supply the city with two sets of your site plans and architectural renderings. Before you can do that, you’ll have to do all of the following:
- Solidify your design decisions.
- Get estimates from your builder. If Alair Homes is doing the work for you, expect the estimate process to take about one week, give or take depending on the complexity of your project.
- Have your plans drawn up. This process can typically take 6 – 8 weeks.
Timeframes Residential Building Permits
Timeframes for residential building permits in Kelowna vary depending on the nature of the work to be done. It’s wise to allow a minimum of 4 months to obtain all the permits necessary for building a custom home. For complex home building projects, it isn’t unusual for permit acquisitions to take as long as one full year.
Building Site Location and Topography
Some building projects are reasonably straightforward. For example, if you want to build your home on a flat parcel of land that the city of Kelowna has already zoned as residential property, it’s likely that the process of pulling the necessary permits will go smoothly.
You’ll have to allow more time if you plan to build your home on a mountaintop or a lakeside. This is because the nature of the necessary foundation work is different in locations like these. It can also be trickier to bring in the necessary construction equipment, particularly if you’re building in an area where utilities are not available and roads have not yet been paved.
If you’re interested in building your home in a setting such as an agricultural parcel of land or a heritage conservation area, it will require a development proposal and application. This can require more than routine involvement from the city staff, and thus it can add substantial amounts of time onto the construction time frame.
The Sources and Nature of Your Building Materials
Your choice of building materials can speed or slow your construction timeline significantly. For example, building with locally sourced Canadian maple will usually be quicker than waiting 16 weeks for shipments of exotic hardwoods from South America. The timeline will also be influenced by the availability of local contractors who can do the work you require.
These are not the only issues that can affect the amount of time it takes to build a custom house in the Okanagan region, but these are a few of the major issues that we typically face when scheduling a new building project. If you have any questions about the custom home building process or timeline, we encourage you to get in touch. Feel free to phone/visit Alair Homes in Kelowna to discuss your ideas for the perfect home. We hope to speak with you soon.