Steps to Building a House
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6. Rough-ins for plumbing, if on a slab, and inspection: A plumber will install the sewer line and water pipes that will be under the
concrete if you have a basement or building a house on a concrete slab. Any wiring that will go under the concrete will be placed in
conduit and roughed-in; however, most wiring can be run through the stud wall and ceiling joists.
7. Slabs, basement, and garage:Nowthateverythinghasbeenpreparedabove,concreteatwork,alsocalledaconcreteslab,fora
basementand/orgarageoorcannowbeconstructed.
8. Framing:Otherthanahome’sfoundation,framingisanextremelyimportantstepintheconstructionprocess.Ifyournewhomeis
not framed per your home plans, nothing that follows will be correct.
9. Exterior siding, trim, veneers: This step of the construction process will continue while work progresses on the inside and should be
done before roof shingles are installed. Masonry chimneys are installed after siding or brick is completed. Veneers such as brick
shouldbeinstalledbeforenalexteriortrimisadded.Afterallofthisiscompleted,ifthereisexteriorpainting,itcanbedoneat
thistime.Additionallytheexteriorofallwindowsshouldbecaulkedatthistime.Itissuggestedthatyoudon’tleaveexteriortrim
unpainted or unstained for too long as it could warp or get moldy.
10. Chimney and roong:Yourchimneyshouldbebuiltbeforetheroofisshingled.Thiswillallowplacementofashingaroundthe
chimneyforwaterproong,andwillalsoavoidcausingdamagetotheshingles.Ifyouhaveaprefabreplaceandue,itwouldbe
installedatthistime.Roongwillthenfollowafteryourchimneysarecompleted.
11. Rough-ins:Allelectrical,plumbing,phone,heating/air-conditioning,cable/satelliteline,internet,burglaralarmsystems,etc.willbe
roughed-inanytimeaftertheframingiscomplete.Thisdoesn’tmeanthattheunitsareinstalled,butjustthewiringorplumbingfor
them.Inspectionswillprobablybeneededafterwiring/plumbing/hvaciscompleted.
12. Insulation: Some areas require an inspection of insulation by utility and building inspector when completed. This occurs before it is
covered by drywall.
13. Cleaning:Housewillneedtobecleaned,vacuumedandwetmoppedtogetridofdust.TemporaryorpermanentHVACneedstobe
functioning to control humidity in house in order to begin hardwood installation.
14. Hardwood ooring and underlayment: After drywall is installed you may begin the process to lay the hardwood. First you need to
checkthesuboortoensurehumidity/moisturelevelsarearound45%.Ifnot,ade-humidiermaybeneeded.Thenthehardwood
willbebroughtintothehomefor3-5daystoallowwoodtoacclimatetothehome’stemperature/humidity.Thiswillhelpprevent
shrinkingand/orwarpingofthehardwoodoors.
15. Drywall:Mostresidentialinteriorwallsarenishedwithwallboardcalleddrywall.Inbathrooms,orothermoistareas,waterproof
board is recommended. Some municipalities may require a drywall inspection.
16. Priming walls:Beforeinteriortrimisinstalled,wallsandceilingswillbeprimedusuallywithaspraygun.Primingreducesthenish
painting time which will save you money. Only windows will need to be covered.
17. Painting:Nowyouarereadyforyournalpainting.Pleasenote,itusuallyaddscostsifyouhavealotofpaintcolorchangesfrom
room to room. Wallpaper may also be hung at this time.
18. Interior trim and cabinets: Interior trim such as doors, moldings, cabinets, countertops, etc. are installed at this time. This includes
bath cabinets, kitchen cabinets, and any other built-ins such as bookcases.
19. Other trims such as counter tops, ceramic tile, ceramic ooring:Itisnowtimetoinstallceramicorvinylooring.
20. Finish plumbing, electrical and hook up utilities:Nowtheplumber andelectriciancannish theirwork. Some ofthe xturesa
plumberinstallsmustbewired,sotheplumberneedstonishbeforetheelectriciancannish.Additionally,yourheatingandair-
conditioningmustbecompletedbeforeyourelectriciannisheshiswork.Thenyourelectriciancaninstallswitches,receptacles,light
xtures,andelectricalappliances.Nowitistimetohookupyourutilities.
21. Clean-up: Gettingcloser!Cleaningcanbeginonboththeinsideandoutsideofyournewhome.Wavegood-byeasthetrashis
hauled away.
22. Carpet and/or hardwood oor nish:Atthistimehardwoodoorsshouldbenishedbeforeanycarpetisinstalled.Ifyoudon’tdo
this,sandingfromthehardwoodcangetintoyournewcarpet.Ifyouhavehardwoodtonish,thesandingwillbedonebeforethe
deep cleaning in completed.
23. Driveway: You should keep heavy trucks off newly laid concrete or asphalt driveways for a period of time. That being said, try to
have all heavy shipments such as drywall, etc. received before pouring. If you wait till the very end, then you might have a moving
vanonit,soconsiderallofthisinyourtimingifpossible.Concretecanhandleheaviertrucksusuallyaweekafterbeingpoured,
but asphalt cannot.
24. Landscaping: This step in the process can usually wait until after you move in; however, do discuss this with your lender. At this
time, the Bank of Washington does not require landscaping to be complete in order to close on your mortgage loan.
25. Final inspections, surveys, and mortgage loan renance or modication of the construction loan: After you complete the home
(exceptiondrivewayandlandscaping),allnalinspectionsfromthecountryorcityforbuilding,electrical,mechanical,and
plumbingshouldbemade.Yourconstructionlenderwillalsomakeanalinspection.
26. Enjoy your dream home!