Ask The Home Designer
Jerry Karlovich - Home Designer Extraordinaire - Good Home Design Advice

Remember!
Excellent Design Doesn't Cost You Money
IT SAVES YOU MONEY!

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 Ask The Home Designer:

- Send any questions to jerry@korel.com?subject=ask I will answer questions once a week and send you a personal answer.


Q: I bought a couple of enclosed storage cabinets from IKEA to install in my living room. The studs in my living room walls are further apart than the pre-drilled holes in the cabinet. What other options are there so I can hang my cabinets?

A: First, you can always drill additional holes in the cabinet's mounting board. Better than that, use steel cabinet cleats. These are sometimes called "French Cleats". Click Here to buy some from Amazon.com .  


Q: How much does it cost to build a home?

A: This is the most ask question and I've given and entire web page to the ANSWER.


Q: My builder said he could build my plan for $125.00 a square foot. Does that include the Garage and Living space or just the Living space?

A: Thanks for your question. It's really best to go back to your builder and ask him this question since he's the one who might build your home. However, most of the time a price like that is for the Living Space but remember, Garages and Porches are not free. A good rule of thumb is when a builder is giving preliminary pricing like that is, the Garage is not more than 1/4th of the Living Area and all the covered Porches and Patios don't total more than about 1/10th the Living Area. So, a 2,000 sq. ft. home might have at the most 500 sq. ft. in a Garage and 200 sq. ft. in Porches. Never-the-less, get this answered by your builder.


Q: Help, a friend of mine asked me to seek assistance w/glue on her granite counter top.
A: Depending on what type of glue it is, the hardware stores sell a product called Goof Off to remove glue and it will not hurt a granite counter top. But first, try WD-40. WD-40 cleans glue off a lot of surfaces for me and it will not hurt plastic. Just wash the WD-40 off with detergent and if they like to keep their granite counter tops sealed, they will have to re-seal it.
 

 Designing your Dream Home

At times I feel torn between playing cupid (designing a home you will fall in love with) and your accountant (designing a home that you can afford). Designing and building a home is both a matter of the heart and the bank account. One really does not outweigh the other. As your Custom Home Designer, I'll help you find a happy balance between the two.

First, you'll benefit from the wealth of experience I bring having designed over three thousand homes across north Texas during the past thirty plus years. Together, we will design a home that will meet your emotional and financial needs for today and tomorrow.

Next, I'll do everything I can to take the stress out of your home design and building experience. There are hundreds of details that go into each home design, let me handle those for you. And let me help you find a builder and all the other service providers that make for a smooth and worry-free design-build process.

Whether you are a first-time home buyer or a veteran and this is your forth home to build, I'm ready and happy to answer all your questions. You'll get honest answers, just ask.

The Custom Home Design Professionals at Korel Home Designs are proud that each year we provide around 50 Families and their Home Builders with a Custom Designed Home Plan. That's not so many that I can not give each client my one on one personal service. Over the past thirty years, we have custom designed over three thousand homes for our clients all across the U.S. and a few around the world in the countries of Mexico, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South America and Europe. I am excited and feel blessed every time I get to work closely with a new family observing them watch their dreams become a reality. One of my most rewarding moments was when a homebuyer broke into tears the moment I un-veiled her Front Elevation sketch. I too myself got goose-bumps.

To begin the process of a Custom House Plan, we like to start with the lot or survey of the land. Please do not forget to bring your survey or subdivision plat if you have one. I also like for my clients to prepare some sort of a wish list. It's ok to bring photos or clippings of other homes you like so you can share those with me. Remember, it's not a good thing to copy another design professional's house plans in any way. I just want to see the parts of a house that you like. I will come up with something entirely different and you will like. List special needs or special requirements for your lifestyle. Have some sort of an idea of how much house you want to build in square footage. Look at other plans in that square footage range and compare your wish list to them. Are you asking too much when we compare your wish list to the square footage? It happens all the time. I can help you with this.

Web Update

April 16, 2010 - I added a Partners page and Add your web site page.

March 3, 2010 - Launched "Ask The Home Designer"

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Things to know:

  • Building Codes

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  • Cabanas

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  • You Build It!

  • Home Styles

  • Roof Pitches

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  • Cabanas

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  • Man Caves

  • Water Heaters

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