Smart Home Tech Ideas for Your Custom Home So, how smart are smart homes? Depending on the types of products you choose, smart tech can save you time, money and simplify your life in ways you only dreamed. “Smart tech has become more of a priority for renovating homeowners—28% say that it’s at the top of their lists. And in the luxury home market, these features are now expected”- Houzz.com For now, smart devices are typically interconnected through a patchwork of devices, ranging from video doorbells to intelligent thermostats and everything in between. As smart technology evolves, it’s becoming more likely that we will one day be able to control every aspect of our homes using a single hub. Homeowners and house hunters are more conscientious than ever about… Read more »
5 Steps to Get Started on your Custom Home Build
You’ve Purchased the Land for Your Dream Home – What’s Next? You found the ideal piece of land to build the home you’ve been picturing for months, maybe even years. You’re finally ready to build and it’s an exciting time, knowing that your new home could be move-in ready in as little as 6 months to a year. Now that you’ve signed all the documents and officially own this blank canvas, it’s time to get to work! 1.Consult with a Custom Home Builder To simplify the process, your custom home builder can work with you through many of these steps. We recommend interviewing and consulting with builders as soon as possible. This is because they can get in on the ground floor and make sound recommendations for how to move… Read more »
How to Find the Best Custom Home Builders for Your Dream Home
Choosing the Right Builder is a Significant Step in the Construction of Your Home You’ve saved and daydreamed for years. Now it’s time to bring your custom home dream to life. From the very first 3D rendering to the unforgettable moment you step inside for the very first time, the right builder will be behind you, 100%. The home building company you choose should inspire confidence with expert project management. Here’s How to Choose the Right Home Builder Browse the list of builders from your local Home Builders’ Association You can narrow your selection down to business type and city to come up with a list of builders who work specifically in your area. Consider How Long They’ve Been in Business Every builder starts somewhere, but we do recommend that… Read more »
Top 10 Renovations that Add the Most Value to Your Home
Add Value to Your Home with a Blend of Function, Space and Universal Style Whether you’re considering listing your property or want to boost your equity for the future, it’s important to give thought to which improvements and home renovations can help you achieve this. There are endless lists of changes and updates that can be made to add value to the property. To keep it simple, we’ve created a list of 10 of our favourite major and minor home renovations that add the most value. 1. Upgrade the Kitchen The kitchen is the gathering place of a home and it’s where we spend the most time. In the kitchen we cook, bake, gather at the end of a long day and it’s where guests at all parties end up.… Read more »
What is a “Green” Home?
Eco-Friendly Green Home Builders Today’s technologies and sustainable materials make it easier and more affordable than ever to build your home “green” from the ground up. But what is a “green” home? Green Building Canada defines a green building as “a resource-efficient method of construction that produces healthier buildings which have less impact on the environment and cost less to maintain.” Environmentally responsible homes also help keep your utility costs down. Common features of a green home like higher levels of insulating material and high efficiency heaters and energy features can also add up to a higher resale value. At Lida Homes, we are trained and certified to Built Green standards. Built Green includes four tiers of certification (bronze, silver, gold and platinum.) These standards and our expertise ensure… Read more »
Net Zero Home Building
Thinking About Building a Net Zero Energy Home? Here’s What You Need to Know The process of building a net zero energy home can seem overwhelming at first, which might explain why not many homeowners have attempted one before. Fortunately, with today’s building material manufacturers and all levels of government keenly interested in supporting and encouraging sustainable developments, building a net zero energy home is more do-able than ever. What is a Net Zero Energy Home? A “net zero”, “net zero energy”, or “zero energy” home produces or creates about the same amount of clean, renewable energy as it uses. This results in the homeowner spending significantly less money on their home’s heating, cooling, and general electricity systems. Net zero homes are extremely energy efficient, sustainable homes that are… Read more »
Passive Home Building
An Introduction to Passive Houses: What They Are and How They Work While researching the custom home building process, you might have come across the mention of a Passive House, or Passive Home Building. Below is an introduction to the term Passive House, as well as some ways to tell if this is a possibility for your custom dream home. What is a Passive Home? A Passive House is a type of extremely energy-efficient building that requires very little heating and cooling energy, no matter the season. Any building, including single-family, multi-family, and commercial buildings, can qualify as a Passive House. Passive House buildings look like regular buildings, only they are built using a voluntary construction method or standard that originated in the 1970’s as North Americans were responding to… Read more »
LIDA Home’s Response to Covid-19
Keeping Our Staff & Customers Safe Post Covid Our lives have been turned upside down with the Covid-19 pandemic, seemingly overnight. However, LIDA Homes continues to offer the same unparalleled service we’re known for, while following the recommendations of health officials and WorkSafe BC. As we all navigate this post-covid situation, the safety of our clients and workers remains our #1 priority. Our team will continue to provide the clear and transparent communication that we’re known for, using our Proven Process, the foundation of our custom home and renovation experience. We can sum up the Proven Process principles into 6 main areas: Consultation Collaboration Contract & Design Construction Completion Continuing Care Virtual Consultations Working with customers outside of the Greater Victoria region is nothing new to us, so… Read more »
COVID-19 Series: LIDA and 1Up Form Philanthropic Partnership
The Covid-19 pandemic has been a disruptive economic force – shuttering businesses, stifling consumer demand, and reverberating fear through social masses. Not just fear of contracting the disease, but economic fear. Fear of unemployment, homelessness, and overwhelming uncertainty of the future. This fear disproportionately burdens certain sects of society, such as single parents who do not have the flexibility to adapt as easily as others. That’s why, we, as members of society and the local Victoria community, need to do whatever we can to quell this fear. To play our part, LIDA Homes has launched a philanthropic collaboration with 1Up Single Parent Resource Centre to support a newly-launched Covid-19 emergency food voucher program. LIDA will be donating a portion of all new sales to 1Up through these challenging times. We… Read more »
COVID-19 Series: A Broad Perspective
COVID-19’s rapid ascent to the centerpiece of attention across media channels and dinner tables on a global scale has caught many by surprise. Administrators are faced with the challenge of mitigating economic damage while coordinating a thoughtful and measured society-wide public health response. Such a task is certain to engender contention and dissonance. As responsible citizens, we can help “flatten the curve” by social distancing and adjusting our daily habits to minimize public interaction. These initiatives enable our healthcare system to appropriately manage inflows of critical care patients without overwhelming or unnecessarily burdening hospitals and medical personnel. We can also do our part by giving back to the community, which is why LIDA has partnered with 1Up Single Parent Resource Centre to donate a portion of all new contract sales through… Read more »
