FAQ’s

We started our company in 2021, but Mike has been building homes for over 25 years, starting out as a site assistant and framer and ultimately working as a project manager and lead construction manager for highly respected custom home builders in the Asheville area. Laurie has been working in multiple areas of construction for over 15 years. She has designed, managed and performed work on projects as well as created and managed her own technology support company, working with builders across the United States and Canada.

Yes. North Carolina requires a license for any project over $40,000. Contractors may carry a Limited License (projects up to $750,000)  Intermediate License (projects up to $1,500,000) or an Unlimited License (no restriction on project cost).

Plumb Level Square has an Unlimited License and is fully insured.

Yes! We recommend working with a real estate agent to search for land or a home. However, we want to start working with you on your new home or remodel as early in the process as possible and would love to do site evaluations or visit a home that you are interested in, to help provide some insight and planning options for your purchase.

If you need assistance with finding a real estate agent, let us know and we can make some recommendations.

We’ll schedule an initial phone call to discuss your new home or remodel and plan a site visit. We’ll review and discuss either your completed plans or your conceptual design and we’ll ask a few questions about your timeline and budget range.

After our site visit, we will offer a rough estimate range based on known recent costs and the details you share with us about your wants and needs for the home. If this estimate range is acceptable, we will move forward with a Pre-construction Agreement and a detailed estimate.

All remodel and new construction projects will need professionally drawn plans by a draftsman or architect.

Pre-Construction with Plumb Level Square is a period of time when we work side-by-side with you and your interior designer, if you are working with one, to create a complete home design and detailed estimate. During this time we will complete the following:

• Finalize a set of plans based on the site or current home (this must be done before an estimate can be started)

• Work with local municipalities to secure utility permits, if not already completed

• Begin the selections process with a step-by-step guide to create a clear vision of your style, wants and needs

• Complete any required engineering reviews of the plans or site work

• Work with you to detail the specs and selections of your build or remodel

• Work with our trades and suppliers to estimate the labor and materials needed

• Work on site with you and our surveyor to stake the location of the home (if new construction)

At the closing of pre-construction you will have a design concept and a detailed estimate for your project that can be used for financing, if needed and to begin construction. We’ll move forward with a review of the construction agreement and prepare for construction.

Yes, like many builders we do have a fee for pre-construction work.  The design of your home and the detailed estimate requires a great deal of office and site work as well as travel time while we are working with you, our trades, suppliers and the local municipality to get the work completed and ready to begin construction. Depending on your project this can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months. In order to devote the amount of time we believe is necessary to create an accurate estimate, we charge a flat rate fee to cover some of our costs and time. The fee is based on the size of your project and the estimated time it will take to complete the work.

During pre-construction you may also have costs associated with plans, surveys, permits, engineering, etc. that will be billed to you without any additional fees.

We use a cost, plus fixed-fee agreement. The builder fee is calculated based on the estimated cost of your build, (all materials and labor) the location, the difficulty and estimated length of the project. We do not charge a specific percentage, but typically do not exceed a 20% markup of the cost of your build.

By calculating the fee based on these criteria, we believe we can offer a fair price for each project rather than assigning a specific percentage across all types of projects.

A fixed fee also provides you with a guaranteed cost of the builder fee in a market where materials and trade labor are variable. Our builder fee will remain the same, unless the scope of work changes or you re-select items during construction that significantly exceed your estimated cost per selection category, (for example lighting or plumbing fixtures.)

You have two options for interior design while building with us.

1. You may select and work with an interior designer of your choice and we will be happy to partner with them throughout the build.

2. We work with you during Pre-Construction to guide the selection process, integrating the Pre-Build System, Well Designed with Emily to make suggestions, provide selection options and fully design the build with you. While we are not interior designers, we have been very successful in creating beautiful homes with our clients. Our design assistance fee is a flat rate and is offered as an option and cost of your pre-construction agreement.

We do use software programs for each project to organize data, manage budgets, complete your project bookkeeping and schedule work. You will be receiving documents and invoices from some of these programs, but you will not have to login for any of these items.

We do not use project management software to manage our projects or our trades from the computer. We will be on site most days to manage your build or remodel.

We also do not create homeowner access to our software to view or manage the project. We much prefer a more personal approach and will provide photos and updates through direct communication with you.

On average a new home takes 12-14 months to build after the planning and permitting (pre-construction) is completed. Each home is unique so timing can be shorter or longer depending on the details of the build.

Remodels are highly variable based on the scope of work and can take anywhere from a few weeks to over a year.

We will discuss your estimated start date and timeline during your initial consultation and your pre-construction period.

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We typically plan new construction and large remodel starts one to two years in advance. Some smaller projects may fit well in our schedule alongside other active projects, so start dates may be much sooner. Also, we are a small company and typically do not take on more than 3 or 4 large projects per year, including spec homes. It is not uncommon for us to be able to use a spec home slot for a custom build, allowing your start time to be immediately, or soon after pre-construction. We will do our very best to work with your timeline and highly recommend beginning the pre-construction process several months to a year before you want to start your build or large remodel.