Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, we want you to participate in every step of the way and construction is one of the longest and biggest steps of the entire build process. We will arrange 4 formal walkthroughs for you to meet on site with our construction team. These walk-throughs will be upon lock up/framing completion, prior to electrical rough in, prior to finishing carpentry commencing and after a final clean in order to determine deficiencies. You may also arrange to visit outside of your scheduled walkthroughs, but please make sure to arrange your visit before stopping by, as unsupervised visits are not permissible.
North Pointe Homes is a licensed builder with the Government of Alberta. We have been in business since 2006 and in that time have built a wide variety of homes ranging from side by side duplexes and triplex units to large custom estate homes. Our experience covers both infill development over the past 10 years as well as greenfield development. Along with our experience we are also registered members of the CHBA, BBB and Edmonton Chamber of Commerce and most recently CHBA Edmonton Region Award of Excellence Winner.
There are four main steps we’ll take to ensure your building experience is as smooth and seamless as possible.
- Pre-Building: Here we’ll discover your wish-list and establish your budget. If you don’t already have a home designed, and you want to build your very own custom home, we’ll set you up with our design firm. The two of you will work together to create your very own custom home plan.
- Design: After you’ve approved your architectural plan, it’s time to start selecting interior colors. Items such as: cabinet styles, stone types and paint colors will all be deciphered.
- Construction: Once both you and the city have approved your home plans, work gets underway. During this stage, we’ll consult with you and invite you to meet with us on site to review the progress.
- Warranty: Once your home is complete and you’ve been able to sit back and enjoy it, we’ll come by to ensure everything in the home is up to par.
Yes, as long as your parcel of land is located no more than 100 kms outside of city limits.
We will provide you with a list of specifications that outline construction and finishing details. These items come included in the price of your home. Any additions outside of this list come with an upgrade cost. It’s important to review and understand your specifications, to ensure you know exactly what to expect to see in your home.
If you’d like to make a change to your blueprints after they’ve been approved, we will need to discuss the cost and feasibility of your request. Sometimes a change is not always possible due to construction timelines, or structural reasons that don’t allow for it. Changes can be made but they may come at a cost.
To ensure the development of appealing new communities, community developers often regulate items such as: exterior elevations, exterior design details, landscaping and fencing. Architectural controls bring added value to new neighborhoods, but they can also cause delays in developer approval if your new home plans don’t conform with their guidelines.
Our standard deposit structure is 5% on signing, and 10% on permit approval. But like everything else we are able to alter our terms to suit our client’s needs.
Draw mortgages play a part in the financial plan for the construction of your home. A builder is able to “draw” on the mortgage at specific intervals while building. The flow of funds to your builder is measured by percentage of construction complete. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), your mortgage company and North Pointe Homes all use similar formulas. A major advantage of a draw mortgage is you lock your interest rate in sooner. In an increasing rate environment this is a big advantage.
With a completion mortgage the buyer takes out the full mortgage at the completion of the home. In most cases, builders will only allow this type of mortgage when the buyer is purchasing a quick possession home, that’s already completed, or near completion.
We offer a 90 day deficiency check in and address all necessary items. Minor items will be dealt with on your one year anniversary and major issues will be rectified promptly. Our relationship does not end after one year, if there is something that concerns you please feel free to contact us and we will see how we can help.