If your home was destroyed or damaged in 2017’s Northern California firestorm, you have my condolences. Losing a home is traumatic, and the subsequent decisions about rebuilding can seem overwhelming. Here’s how consulting a Santa Rosa architect can help you make sense of your choices and turn this awful event into an opportunity to build your dream home.
Navigating Insurance Claims
An architect can help with your rebuild in surprising ways. In addition to creating a plan that works within your budget, an architect who’s involved at the outset can help ensure your insurance settlement will cover your rebuilding needs. For example, she can provide you with supporting documentation to make sure your insurer covers the costs to rebuild at the same size and quality of your previous home.
Repair or Rebuild?
If your home was damaged rather than destroyed in the firestorm, you may be grappling with the question of whether to repair the damage or to start from scratch and rebuild. An architect can help you determine what will work best for your needs and within your budget.
Questions to ask include:
- How extensive was the damage?
- How long would it take to repair vs. rebuild, and how long can I afford to be out of my home?
- What are the costs – financial and time-related – of each choice?
- Can I make the improvements I want to make with a repair, or would they require a rebuild?
- How do I feel about my old home? How would a repair vs. a rebuild affect my emotional health?
Build Your Dream
If there is any silver lining to the tragedy of losing a home in the firestorm, it’s that you now have an opportunity to build a home that reflects what you loved about your previous home while better suiting your current needs.
Talk to your architect honestly about what you liked and didn’t like about your home, and don’t be afraid to tell her your wildest dreams for your new one.
A Santa Rosa architect who knows your area can help reconcile your dreams with the realities and requirements of the location you’re building in, help make sure your project falls within your budget and that the process goes smoothly.
For example, many suburban developments feature groups of homes that are based on a limited number of designs or are restricted by neighborhood covenants. An architect who is knowledgeable about your specific area can make suggestions that will help you avoid a typical “cookie-cutter” suburban home design while still conforming to your development’s regulations and restrictions.
A Santa Rosa Architect Knows the New Permitting System
The permitting process can be one of the most frustrating and time-consuming elements of any building project. The City of Santa Rosa and Sonoma County have both put into place new permitting systems intended to streamline the building process for those affected by the firestorm. A local architect will be familiar with the new process and can help guide you through it, from debris removal requirements through construction and inspection. Also, plans designed and submitted by an architect may get priority in the permitting process, helping your project get from plan to complete faster.
Local Connections
A Santa Rosa architect will have connections to many of the area’s best professionals – many of whom are especially busy in the wake of the firestorm. The reliable contractors, structural engineers, surveyors and HVAC installers in my Rolodex are all continually booked for rebuild jobs. Fortunately, lots of the area’s best professionals are eager to work with local architects with whom they have good, longstanding relationships because they know the job will go smoothly and because it’s good business. That can translate into a faster, smoother project for the architect’s clients.
Support During a Difficult Process
Finally, it’s important to realize that you aren’t alone during the process of repairing or rebuilding your home. Your architect should be with you throughout the process, with an understanding and sensitivity to the unique emotional and financial demands of rebuilding your life after a fire.