Steps involved in building a house

                  In rural Konkan,people build their own houses with the help of special  house builder from same village and with locally available material. This houses last for many generations. Nowadays ,Steps involve in house building are modified as per latest trend ,convenience ,time and other related  factors but sentiment will always remain same.

                 Building even a basic house is beyond the usual scope of a article, but here are some general guidelines, and a basic list of steps involved in constructing a house.

1)      Finance: This is first important step as, it will decide exact picture of the project. Owner must decide overall budget ,which includes amount of saving one wish to spend and  amount of loan considering current income ,future plans etc. Say your budget amount  is X.

         X=Architect’s fee+ Building material cost + labor cost + Contractor’s profit +                                    .Miscellaneous charges

2)      Plot selection: Purchasing plot is one of the most important part. Its better to take advise professional. He can find out positives and negatives of the site. Do not entirely trust on agents .There are lot more legal things involved along with services, designing. You will not always come across plot which do not have any problem but because of professional’s advice you will be able to find out if that can be overcome.

3)      Legal verification: Before purchasing plot, always check if land has clear marketable title. first find out tenure ,legal right of holder of lands in government records; tenure or possession right, whether free hold or leasehold or under government grant or sanad. Architect prepare drawings necessary for Client's/ statutory approvals and ensure compliance with codes, standards and legislation

4)      Planning and designing : Always get  plan  prepared by professional Architect. He is the one can develop most suitable design as per your taste, budget, site condition. Architect  can give professional assistance in both design and implementation of the building project.

5)      Hire contractor and prepare estimate :Based on quantities and specifications calculated by architect, owner asks for estimation from different contractor. He advises Client on appointment of contractors. Owner will get detail cost of construction in this process. During selection of contactor, owner  can clear certain  special conditions such as water supply required for construction, Electricity ,total time period required for work etc. In small  villages, Contractor and owner don’t go for formal contract but it is better to have one.

6)     Structural design : Based on architectural design ,structural designer prepares appropriate construction drawings such as column, beam, foundation as per load and soil conditions.

7)     Construction: During actual construction phase ,Periodic inspection and evaluation of Construction works are done by an architects.. Sometimes onsite changes are done in design by permission of an architect

8)      Completion: Its architect’s responsibility to prepare and submit completion reports and drawings for the project as required and assist the Client in obtaining "Completion/ Occupancy Certificate" from statutory authorities, wherever required.

              In  some part of konkan ,it is hard to get qualified and local architect. Sometimes cost of construction is so less that  some of the architects from cities  are not willing to do work in rural area, but it is always better to  have qualified and experienced professional to check the plot and  house construction. Go through this blog. I am trying to post details related with architectural  practice in konkan  area. You can email me queries  at sawant085@gmail.com.