Where does a person start when they want to build a brand new Custom Designed home in the Cairns region of Queensland? 

The design process or choosing a home design can be daunting.  Especially if you have never considered building before.  Floor plans are a great place to start but what if you have very specific requirements and ideas of how you would like the layout and design of your new home? Do you need an Architectural Designer or Draftsman,  or a Planning Consultant? Who can you turn to? 

We have compiled a list of 5 steps  to create a great custom home design that is right for you without visiting a display home. 

STEP 1 – YOUR AVAILABLE FINANCE

What is your budget? You need to start with this, and work from there.  There is no point designing a huge floor plan with everything you ever wanted if you are not going to be able to pay for it. Integrity New Homes Cairns will be able to help you with this process by giving you some standard designs and pricing for them, as a place to begin to get an idea about how much “house” you get for a price point. Our extensive range of Inclusions are beautiful and are all sourced from reputable suppliers to ensure that all homes and display homes have quality inclusions included as part of the package price. 

 

STEP 2 – WHAT ARE YOUR SPECIFIC FAMILY REQUIREMENTS 


Start by listing your needs. This will depend on the number of people in your family, and how they will use the living room space.  Other than “living” what do you need to do in your overall design? For example, do you work from home and need a quiet space to take phone calls, or to concentrate.  Creating a room designed especially for this purpose becomes a need.

Does your family spend most of the time outdoors, and enjoy cooking on the BBQ rather than in the kitchen? If so, a well designed outdoor room or alfresco area is actually a must have.

Do you want to earn a little extra income by providing accommodation… if so, why not consider a Dual Occupancy home… we have some great designs available.  An excellent example is our Livingstone Range   

 

STEP 3 – HOW LONG DO YOU PLAN TO LIVE IN THE HOME

Ask yourself the question, “will we live in this home for a long time, or just for a few years?” The answer will help you determine what is crucial to include and what can wait until you build again.  Perhaps you have young children.  We all know that they don’t stay little for long; their needs change over the years; so how long will you be in the home and what is important for “living”.

 

STEP 4 – HOME ORIENTATION – DO YOU HAVE A VIEW

The orientation of your home design will make a huge difference to the feel of it, and to how it feels to live within it.   In Australian states and territories, the North and North Eastern aspects are the ones that make the home more live-able, light and airy. Natural lighting in your home is essential as it reduces the cost of living,  by it's energy efficiency.  Large windows facing north are a lovely interior design feature.  If you have already purchased your block and these aspects are not an option for you, we can help you custom design a home that uses the best aspects of the site and creates something special within that space. If you have a block with an amazing view, but it’s facing the wrong direction in regards to natural lighting,  we can work with you to design the best outcome for the site and your needs. 

 

STEP 5 – THE STYLE & FINISHES OF YOUR HOME

Although your budget has some degree of influence on the style of the home you can build, this is definitely worth consideration. 

Your home reflects you.

This is a true statement.

So why not plan to create something that you love, within your price range.

Your Interior Design style comes into play here.  For example, Hamptons Styled homes are a huge trend in Australia right now, both in Coastal regions and Country.  It lends itself well to both. The style is Classic and beautiful and can incorporate open plan living spaces very easily.  You can go all out and spend a lot of money on the finishing touches of this style,  or you can use a well priced cladding such as James Hardie Hardiplank to create the look, and finish it with colours that suit.  This product also has great insulation features, so although it may be a more expensive option to building a block and render home, some of the costs are lowered because of these benefits. See more details regarding construction methods and thermal benefits here.  
As a GreenSmart Professional Builder, with 20 plus years in the building industry, Integrity New Homes knows the building process intimately and how to create a home that you will love to come home to. 

Why do we know these things…? 

Integrity New Homes Cairns owners and operators  are LOCAL families who live in this area.  We love it here. Our families are settled and happy across the region in preschools, schools,  various job applications, and also other businesses.  We buy local. We support local. We build homes for real people. We have done the research to ensure that you are going to get the best value for a long time to come. We are personally invested into making you happy.  Because we are all local builders, we want to create happy clients so that word of mouth builds our businesses,  and brings you back next time you or your friends or family members want to build.  
Locals supporting locals.  
We get it. 
It’s especially crucial in the current climate with Covid-19 and all the dramas and lack of supplies and the like that we have all had to deal with.

Get in Contact with us here.