In this post, we’re sharing everything that happened during the first month of our custom home build, including excavation, foundation, and the start of framing our first floor!

The very first month of building our custom home completely flew by! Going into this custom home build process, we really had no clue what new home construction was like (we’ve never done this before), so everything was brand new to us.

We were pleasantly surprised at how fast the build was moving and before we knew it, we started to see our new home come to life!

Continue reading to see our whole build process by stage during the first month of construction!

The whole process during the first month of building our custom home

First Month of Custom Home Build:

Dig Day: Official Start of Construction

At the time of submitting for permits in July, we were told by our builder that our excavation date was pushed back two months to the end of October.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, we get an email from our builder saying that our permits were actually approved EARLIER than expected and we were going to be starting excavation in FOUR days at the end of August!

We were so surprised and had to rush to our empty lot to make sure we got our “before” photos 😉

Our builder had moved our project up before a different client since our permits were approved first unexpectedly. Because of this, our build timeline was moved up by a whole TWO MONTHS, which we were really excited about!

Empty lot for building a custom home
Dig Day: Official Start of Construction!

Excavation: 2 Days

We were grateful to begin excavation at the end of August during warmer weather! Excavation only took 2 days to complete.

Excavation process for custom home build
Excavation: Day 1
Excavation process for custom home build
Gravel for driveway laid out

We actually got some bad news on the second day, where they ran into “bad soil” finding clay while digging. After a soil inspection, the engineer said we had to do additional foundation work, with increased footing size, and additional steel rebar.

While purchasing this lot, our builder (who had built a lot of custom homes in this neighborhood) said we wouldn’t need to do a soil test because they had never run into bad soil over these years of building here, so we did not do any soil test.

Excavation process for custom home build
Excavation: Day 2

Install Foundation: 3 Days

They continued with prepping to pour the foundation with the added footing requirements of our “bad soil” conditions.

Foundation process for custom home build
Prepping to pour the foundation footings
Foundation wall pouring process for basement
Foundation footings poured

Foundation Walls: 4 Days

Over 4 work days, they prepped the foundation wall forms and poured concrete.

Foundation process for custom home build
Pouring foundation walls
Foundation walls process for custom home build
Front of House: Pouring foundation walls
Foundation wall pouring process for basement
Foundation walls revealed!

We could really start to see the house take shape at this stage! Our floor plan was completely custom and we tweaked the design many times. At first, the house felt smaller than expected, but we knew it would turn out just fine (I mean too late now anyway!).

Foundation waterproofing for basement
Rear Covered Porch Footings for Stairs
Foundation waterproofing basement egress windows

Backfill: 1 Day

After the foundation waterproofing went on, they backfilled and we could walk right up to the foundation edge for the first time.

Love this before and after of backfilling around the basement egress windows!

After backfilling, the big pile of dirt in the backyard was gone and the lot was flat again. For the first time, we gained a good sense of our backyard with the foundation of the house in place.

Foundation Backfill New Home Build
Foundation wall pouring process for new build
Foundation walls pouring for basement

Installing Basement Steel Beams: 1 Day

The next step was installing the basement steel beams, shown below!

Foundation wall pouring process for basement

Basement Rough-in Plumbing and Electrical Panel Install

We saw the rough-in plumbing for a future full bathroom in the basement. Next, the electrical panel was installed before they poured the basement floor.

First Floor Framing: 8 Days

At the end of the first month of construction, they started to frame the first floor of our house! Framing really moved quickly to our surprise.

Framing process for custom home build

It was really cool to see the first floor without ceilings! This stage was our favorite to see and explore.

On our first floor, we have the living room, kitchen, pantry, powder room, dining nook, formal dining room, my office, and mudroom.

Framing process for custom home build
Our Living Room will be 17 ft wide
Framing process for custom home build
Our kitchen will be 19 ft wide
Framing process for custom home build
Formal dining room that will have a cased opening
Framing process for custom home build
3-Car Garage with Extra Storage Space

Lumber Price 2022:

We signed the contract with our builder in March 2022, when the lumber price was around $1,150 per 1,000 board feet at one of the price peaks in the past couple of years.

Our contract was quoted based on this high peak, but we were told that our actual lumber price wouldn’t be locked in until 5 days before the lumber shipped.

In September 2022 when they ordered our lumber to start framing, the price was around $500 per 1,000 board feet so we’re supposed to get a nice credit back for the price difference.

The timing worked out pretty well for us!

Framing process for custom home build
We managed to get a lower lumber price than what was bid in our contract!

Framing: First Floor with Ceilings

At the end of the first month of construction, we ended up with the first floor ceilings framed. We had a much closer idea of how our home would turn out at this point!

For reference, we opted for 10 ft ceilings on the first floor.

Framing process new home construction
Framing carpenters working on the second floor subfloor
Framing process for custom home build
Dining Nook and Living Room
New home construction framing process
Framing carpenters working on the second floor subfloor
New home construction framing process
Second floor sunset views at the top of the stairs
New home construction framing process
What will be our rear covered porch with vaulted ceilings
Framing progress for custom home build
Back of house views

Selection Meetings During First Month of Build

During this first month of building our custom home, we also had to meet with SO many vendors for selections:

  • Cabinets
  • Finalize Plumbing
  • Finalize exterior selections (masonry, stucco, siding)
  • Interior selections (shower doors, mirrors, staircase)
  • Fireplace
  • Flooring and Tile
  • Landscaping
  • Electrical blueprint walkthrough
  • Millwork

Because we weren’t expecting to be digging so early, it really caught us off guard and we had to cram a lot of these meetings, which was pretty stressful!

Summary: First Month of our Custom Home Build

Overall, the first month of building was very exciting! Every time we showed up at our lot to check on the progress, we were pleasantly surprised at how fast things were moving.

There was no lag time at all! We were also blessed with great weather and I think it only rained one day.

The framing stage is progressing really fast and we’re excited to see how our home will turn out!

First Month Build Recap:

Number of Work Days for Each Stage

  • Excavation – 2 days
  • Install Foundation – 3 days
  • Foundation Walls – 4 days
  • Backfill – 1 day
  • Basement Steel Beams – 1 day
  • Install Electrical Panel – 1 day
  • Plumbing Rough-in for Basement – 1 day
  • Framing: First Floor – 8 days

Check out our Instagram Reel of our Month 1 Build Progress:

Follow @vivandtim.home on Instagram for more behind-the-scenes of our custom home build!

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