When people think about building a custom home, they often picture the exciting milestones: the first day of excavation, the framing going up, or the moment the finishes are installed. But at Bauen Build, we believe the most critical work happens long before we break ground.
We call this preconstruction, and if you want a home that is delivered on time, on budget, and performs to the highest standards, it might be the most important phase of your project. It’s a relatively small investment up front that creates clarity, reduces risk, and often pays for itself many times over through avoided surprises, smarter decisions, and a smoother build overall.
What is Preconstruction?
In simple terms, preconstruction is the vital planning phase where we coordinate with you, the architect, engineers, and other consultants during the design process. Instead of being handed a set of plans and told to “go,” we join the team early to refine the budget, review how the house will actually be built (constructibility), and finalize the schedule.
Why does Preconstruction Matter to You as a Client?
At its core, preconstruction is about alignment—between your goals, your budget, the design, and the realities of how a house is actually built. This phase gives you clarity early, when decisions are still flexible and inexpensive to change, rather than later when changes are disruptive, costly, or not possible.
From the beginning, we work to deeply understand what matters most to you. That might be performance, durability, finishes, long-term operating costs, resilience, or simply the confidence that your home is being built the right way. Preconstruction is where those values are translated into concrete decisions—supported by data, experience, and a clear understanding of tradeoffs—so the home being designed truly reflects your priorities.
Avoiding “Ballpark” Pricing
Without a thorough review of the plans before they are finalized, even a detailed set of drawings can hide constructability challenges or assumptions that don’t allow for easy or cost‑effective solutions in the field. Preconstruction is where those issues are identified and resolved, before they turn into budget pressure or schedule risk during construction. Preconstruction protects you by setting clear expectations early on: exactly how the project will look, what it will cost, and how long it will take.
By having a builder onboarded early, we can provide real-time budget updates. If a design element starts to push the project over budget, we can identify it immediately on paper—where it’s a quick fix—rather than discovering it once construction starts when it’s far more expensive to change or possibly too late to change.
As our Operations Director Michael Wilks puts it:
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The more you can prepare for something upfront, the easier it will be once we are under construction.”
The Passive House Difference
While planning is important for any home, it is absolutely essential for high-performance and Passive House construction. These homes are intentionally designed systems, and in many cases, the structural elements themselves serve as parts of the air barrier.
We use preconstruction to:
- Solve Air Sealing Complexities: We plan exactly how the air barrier will remain continuous around framing and structural elements.
- Coordinate MEP Systems: We map out mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) runs alongside structural elements to ensure there are no conflicts once construction begins.
- Value Engineering: Our team—which includes engineers and scientists—looks for creative ways to meet the design intent while improving performance and reducing costs.
Value Engineering in Action
A great example of this happened recently with a shed roof design. The original plan called for notched-out roof tails, but during preconstruction, we evaluated an alternative: overframing with smaller elements.
The result? The overframing was more cost-effective and actually delivered better insulation value. Making that change on paper saved significant time and money compared to trying to solve it once assembly had already begun. In this case the savings was more than the amount the clients spent on pre-construction overall.
Value Engineering is about being creative from the onset, not just cutting scope or features from the home. As a company we generate thoughtful solutions to design challenges that don’t result in removing critical aspects of the home to ensure it is durable for generations to come.
The Goal: No Ambiguity
Ultimately, preconstruction is about removing guesswork. It gives us the opportunity to thoughtfully refine the scope—making smart adjustments or sequencing decisions that keep your project aligned with your goals—before we ever break ground.
When you walk onto your job site for the first time, we want you to feel reassurance—not stress. Because when the planning is done right, the building follows suit.
