Define what you are buying
A completed home, a custom build on your land and a plan offered with a particular lot are different purchases. Establish which route is being proposed before comparing headline prices. Confirm whether the land is included and whether design work has started.
The reviewed companies offer several approaches. New Leaf describes integrated design and construction, while Shaddock Custom separates homes, lots and build-on-your-lot work. Ask each firm to identify exactly which service and agreement it is proposing.
Make the site work visible
Ask for an itemized approach to access, demolition where needed, utilities, drainage, soil investigation and engineering. A finished architectural plan does not settle the work required to prepare a particular property.
Record which costs are fixed, estimated, excluded or carried as allowances. Identify the information still needed to replace an allowance with a firm scope, and who pays for that investigation.
Compare contract models directly
DFW Custom Homes describes fixed-price contracts with allowances; Stewart Custom Homes describes cost-plus construction. Those labels do not by themselves explain every fee, exclusion or change.
Request the actual proposed agreement and a worked example of a selection change. Compare how each model treats unused allowances, substitutions, builder fees, unexpected site conditions and delays.
Include services beyond the building shell
List architectural, interior, landscape, pool and engineering responsibilities. Determine which are inside the construction contract and which require separate contracts. Do the same for inspections, testing, punch-list work and warranty handover.
Keep one written schedule of the plans, specifications and assumptions used for each bid. When the scope changes, ask for an updated comparison instead of relying on an older total.
Treat award and inventory prices as context
An award budget category refers to the submitted project, and a listed home price refers to that property. Neither is a current quote for a new home on another lot.
This guide does not give a metro-wide price per square foot because comparable current bids have not been collected. Seek written estimates tied to the actual site, design and finish schedule.
Sources & dates
- DFW Custom Homes contract description · checked 2026-10-28
- Stewart Custom Homes contract approach · checked 2026-10-28
- New Leaf services · checked 2026-10-28
- Shaddock Custom building routes · checked 2026-10-28
- Texas builder selection guidance · checked 2026-10-28
Questions or factual corrections: send a sourced correction.