One of the most significant investments is, of course, your home, and building it from the ground up is quite the undertaking. The design of your home takes time. Magazines, social media and television shows make us think everything needs to be together when we move in. We have to remind ourselves that these are staged to some degree. We’ve learned that developing our style evolves once we settle into the space. 

It’s okay if you can’t decide on specific design elements early on. For example, if you want wall lighting in the hallway someday, add the electrical box and leave it covered. But don’t feel you need to have the fixture installed right away. Take time to select the pieces you want after living in your home. And if that takes two to three years, that’s okay too!

Key Reminders

After being here one year, here are some key takeaways we’ve learned along the way:

• It’s great to start with a neutral palette and add pops of color as the seasons change.
• Furniture planning tools are lovely, but if you have something that will work when you move in, bring it along. Live with it and then decide if it will continue to work or if you want to replace it with a different piece after that.
• We have found that it was much more fun choosing elements once we were home than if we had make decisions early on. Since moving in and living in our home for a year now, we’ve added some paint to the bench in the mudroom/family foyer off the garage. We had window coverings installed. And we also added beautiful built-ins in the study.

Post-closing benefits of building

We built a home for the location, school district and land. We loved our Monticello floor plan, of course, and being able to change some things to our specifications. But we also liked the idea of nearly all the components in our home having a warranty. (The specifics of the Drees warranty can vary by region of the country. However, most Drees homes come with a one-year warranty and 10-year structural warranty.)

There are a few ways to contact Customer Care for assistance post-closing. We almost always write a friendly email explaining the concern and attaching pictures. This is easier than a phone call for us, and the images are essential to help the Customer Care team and ensure the right technician is sent to the home for a solution. While having to troubleshoot some matters can be frustrating in the moment, we remind ourselves to be kind and patient. Help will come, and the issue will be fixed the right way.

Making a house a home

We are so proud of the place we call home. Building this has been a journey, and it’s not over. Our family is growing. We brought a puppy home a few months ago. We are hopeful to bring a child into our lives next year. And we know our space will evolve with us, around us.

Thank you to everyone at Drees Homes who have worked with us to ensure we have what we need. We are grateful for you and look forward to what’s next!

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About the Midwest Husbands

David and Edward Guerra are a dynamic husband-husband duo who share their journey of growing into their New England Colonial home. With Latin roots, they bring a unique perspective to home décor and lifestyle content creation. Their mission is to promote positivity and a sense of adventure with their audience by providing a mix of content on relationship-building and travel-inspired ideas for any home. Visit their website or check them out on Instagram.

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Ready to start designing your dream home?

From Instagram inspiration and Pinterest pins to your final floor plan, Drees makes it easy to bring it all together. We know your home is more than a dwelling. It’s an expression of who you are and what you value. Designing a custom home is a very personal endeavor, and we want to be here to help you every step of the way.

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