Before You Build℠ Podcast

Are you worried about going over budget on your custom home build? You're not alone—but what if I told you budget overruns aren't inevitable?

In this episode, I'm sharing the 3 biggest budget busters that cost home builders TENS OF THOUSANDS in overages (we're talking $15K-$50K+ mistakes!), plus my proven system to avoid them completely.

If you're tired of hearing "just expect to go 20% over budget" and want to build your dream home WITHOUT the financial stress, this episode is for you!

Ready to take control of your home build? Join BYB!👇

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Building a custom home with your spouse doesn't have to be stressful or dramatic. It can actually bring you closer together ... and I'm sharing exactly how to make that happen.

Learn the simple strategy that helped me get along great with my husband throughout our build and has helped hundreds of my clients build their dream homes without the drama.

Spoiler alert ... you don't need to agree on everything – you just need to respect what matters most to each other.

We'll cover:

✅ Why building together feels so overwhelming (and why that's tota...

Planning your custom home? Before you dive into Pinterest boards and floor plans, there's one crucial question that will determine whether you truly love your home for decades to come. In this episode, I'm sharing the most important consideration when planning your custom home ... and it's probably not what you think!

I'll explain why location matters more than design decisions, how to evaluate potential properties, and the real cost of getting this wrong. Plus, I'm sharing my own current location search and what I've learned in the process.

In this episode, you'll learn:<...

Okay, real talk. Those generic "must-have" lists all over Pinterest and home-building blogs set you up to build a house that might have some cool features, but most likely won't even work for YOUR family's lifestyle.

In this episode, I'm spilling the truth about why there are NO universal must-haves when building a custom home, and I'm sharing the four questions that'll help you figure out what YOUR family actually needs (spoiler: it's probably way different than what those lists tell you).

We'll cover:

Building your first custom home should be exciting, but there's one massive mistake I see first-time builders make over and over again ... and it's costing them thousands of dollars and major regrets on move-in day.

In this episode, I'm breaking down exactly what this critical mistake is and how you can completely avoid it with the right planning process.

You'll learn:

Feeling confused about construction loans? You're definitely not alone... and you're not the only one who finds this part of home building overwhelming.

In this episode, I'm breaking down how construction loans actually work so you can approach this part of your build with confidence instead of confusion.

Understanding construction loans is crucial to avoiding costly surprises and timeline issues that could derail your build.

We'll cover: 

✅ How construction loans work (and why they're different from regular mortgages) 

✅ Timeline requirements and what happens if your build goes over schedule 

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Not sure whether to hire an architect or a draftsperson for your custom home build? You’re not alone ... and you’re definitely not the only one confused by this decision.

In this episode, I’m breaking down the real differences between an architect and a draftsperson so you can make the smartest choice for your project, your budget, and your design needs.

Whether you’re looking to save money or you want a one-of-a-kind design, understanding your options is key to building a home you’ll love for decades (not one filled with regrets!).

We’ll...

Thinking about finishing your basement? Whether you're building a custom home or planning a future reno, this episode shares 3 simple custom basement details that are totally worth it—and easy to overlook.

From a clever built-in cooler to the one upgrade I’d do in every home from now on, I’m walking you through the little things we added that make our basement more functional, fun, and guest-friendly.

These aren’t just cool ideas—they’re practical, everyday features that you’ll be so glad you planned ahead for.

🎧 Tune in to learn:

You might think building a confident home starts with picking finishes or trusting your builder to guide you. But here’s the truth most people don’t hear (until it’s too late): the real secret is planning—real, intentional planning—long before construction begins.

In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on what it actually means to “plan ahead”. We’ll talk through the kind of behind-the-scenes decisions that make all the difference when it comes to building a home you truly love—and how skipping this step can leave you feeling rushed, overwhelmed, and full of regrets...

Possibly you haven’t started building yet—but here’s a heads-up: at some point during your build, your builder’s going to say, “We can’t do that.”

Sometimes that “no” is legit. But other times? It’s just not standard.

In this episode, I’m walking you through a real story of a homeowner who dropped something she really wanted (and still regrets it 😳)—and how YOU can avoid the same fate. You’ll learn exactly what to say, what to ask, and how to advocate for the things that matter most… *before* you're caught off guard.

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Feeling excited (yet OVERWHELMED!) about building your dream home? You’re not alone—and you’re not doing it wrong.

In this episode, I’m walking you through 3 simple mindset shifts that will help you approach your home build with more clarity and confidence. 

Before you dive into layouts and finishes, the real foundation for your entire home build experience starts with your mindset.

We’ll cover:
 🔑 Why your home should reflect your lifestyle, not just square footage
💰 How to think about your budget in a way that feels empowering (not li...

Building your dream home? You’ve probably spent hours planning the big things—your floor plan, kitchen design, and must-have features. But what about the small details that can make or break your home’s functionality?

In this episode, I’m sharing 15 commonly overlooked details that people building for the first time regret not doing—and how you can avoid them. From outlet placement mistakes to traffic flow issues and not adding enough windows, these are the things you’ll be so glad you planned for before you build!

🎧 Listen now to avoid costly mistakes and future home...

One of the biggest concerns when building a custom home is going over budget. 

However, YOU don’t have to fear this because I know it’s possible to build within (or very close to) budget … you just need to know where to splurge and save when building your home.

In this episode, I’ll walk you through the best areas (in general) to splurge and save when building a custom home. 

I’ll also share the choices I personally made while building my own home—because sometimes it helps to hear real-life examples. 🙂

This episode is for anyone out there who is building a lake house and, more specifically, looking for trending exterior paint colors for lake houses in 2025.

I decided to record this episode because, ironically, a significant number of my clients inside BEFORE YOU BUILD℠ are planning to build a lake house. 

For some, it’s a secondary home, but for others, it will be their primary residence.

Either way, they obviously want to get their exterior colors RIGHT!

And hey … even if you aren’t planning to build a lake house, this epis...

Sticking to budget when building all starts with avoiding three common mistakes that I see people make ALL. THE. TIME. 

These mistakes can lead to significant budget overages (especially mistake #3!).

BUT … I’m not gonna let them happen to you!

These are all 100% avoidable ... and I'm so glad you’re listening to this episode so that you'll know exactly what to avoid.

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EPISODE SHOW NOTES: carolineondesign.com/mistakes-to-avoid-when-building-a-home
BEFORE YOU BUILD℠ PROGRAM: carolineondesign.com/before-you-build
FREE CLASS: carolineondesign.com/free-training
WEBSITE: carolineondesign.com

👉 Grab a seat...

If you plan on building your dream home in 2025 (or 2026 or even 2027), you're in the right place!

I'm here to help YOU bring your dream home to life … within budget and without regrets. 😘

This podcast is a great place to start ...

The short, binge-able episodes are full of actionable home-build tips and advice to help you feel more confident as you prepare for, and build, your dream home.

And, if you want to dive deeper and work with me in 2025, I invite you to join BEFORE YOU BUILD℠. 🙌

Tune into this...

One of the most important keys to staying on budget while building is getting accurate home construction quotes BEFORE you hire your builder.

However, it can be a little tricky to get quotes when you most likely don’t even have a floor plan when you’re interviewing builders. 

So, how do you get (accurate) quotes from builders without a floor plan? 

It all starts with a crystal clear vision of your future home.

In this episode, we’ll discuss some (really important) things to consider when creating your dream home vision s...

Building a custom home is a HUGE investment in both time and money. Obviously, you want to get it RIGHT! I want this for you, too, so I’m giving you a huge tip in this episode … stay tuned because this is a custom home build MUST DO!

EPISODE SHOW NOTES: carolineondesign.com/custom-home-build-must-do
BEFORE YOU BUILD℠ PROGRAM: carolineondesign.com/before-you-build
FREE CLASS: carolineondesign.com/free-training
WEBSITE: carolineondesign.com

👉 Grab a seat in my FREE CLASS, 'The 3 Most Expensive Home Building Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them!)', at carolineondesign.com/free-training

If you’re feeling overwhelmed about your upcoming home build and you don’t know how you can possibly feel confident designing an entire house, this episode is for you. All it takes to feel confident is to have CLARITY before building your house.

There’s a reason that ‘Clarifying Your Vision’ is the very first step in my BEFORE YOU BUILD℠ Blueprint that I teach my clients.

A clear vision is an essential component to feeling confident (and in control) as you go through your home build.

It is the absolute foundation for every si...

This episode is a little different than my typical episode … it’s more of a personal explanation of my top floor plan regret that I have for my own custom home. 

Although this is a personal story about my own home build experience, I know it will help anyone out there who is toying with the idea of doing what I did (and now regret).

I'm also sharing a BONUS at the end of the episode ... my second biggest floor plan regret :).

EPISODE SHOW NOTES: carolineondesign.com/floor-plan-regret
FREE FLOOR PLAN QUESTIONNAIRE: carol...

I recently decided I was going to try to create a floor plan design with ChatGPT. 

I was looking online at different floor plans, and I found things I liked about each one, and then I thought, "Well, why don't I just create my own, and I'll have ChatGPT do it?" 

I thought I could plug everything that I wanted in, and a beautiful floor plan would spit out, and voila, I would have it. 

That's not exactly what happened. 

A floor plan did spit out, but it was far from beau...

My business coach recently asked me, 'What movement would you love to create for the people you serve?' In other words, how do I want to help YOU and others who are building their dream homes?

I had SO many thoughts automatically run through my brain. I knew these things deep down, but I haven't done a great job of explaining exactly how I want to help YOU. Tune into this episode because I'm sharing it all :).

Grab a seat in my FREE class, 'How to Build Your Dream Home On Budget WITHOUT Sacrificing...

In this episode, we’re talking about the MANY MANY MANY benefits of planning before building your house. 

I see these benefits first-hand with my home build experience, as well as with my clients as they go through and complete the home build process.

I’ve started a movement to get people to PLAN before they build because I know there are SO. MANY. BENEFITS. to doing this.

It’s IMPERATIVE to PLAN if you want to stay on (or close to) budget when building.

It’s IMPERATIVE to PLAN if you want...

Are you starting to work on your custom floor plan and want to make sure you do it right? (i.e., you want to avoid making costly floor plan mistakes that you’ll later regret.) If so, tune in!

In this episode, we’ll cover common mistakes people make when creating a custom floor plan (or tweaking a stock plan). Unfortunately, I even see some builders (and the occasional architect) make these floor plan mistakes simply because they overlook the little details.

But don’t worry … you'll have a big advantage over *those* people because you'll k...

If you’re worried about building and designing your dream home because you aren’t a designer (and you don’t want to hire one), I’ve got good news for you. You don’t need a designer … you just need a crystal clear vision BEFORE building your dream home.

Tune in to learn WHY a crystal clear vision of your future house is so CRUCIAL.

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EPISODE: carolineondesign.com/before-building-your-dream-home
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BEFORE YOU BUILD℠  WAITLIST: carolineondesign.com/join-byb-waitlist
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FREE CLASS:  ‘How to Build Your Dream Home On Budget WITHOUT Sacrificin...

I’m sharing 3 BIG (actually, huge) mistakes that most people make when building a house.

These three mistakes lead directly to going over budget on your home build. 

For many people, this can be significant budget overages.

But don’t worry, half the battle of staying on budget is knowing what mistakes to AVOID.

You’ll be armed with this knowledge and you’ll know exactly what to avoid.

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EPISODE: carolineondesign.com/mistakes...

This episode is a little different than usual, but I think it’s going to be super helpful to a lot of people.

Soooo … I got some GREAT questions from a woman who attended my free masterclass.

I answered her questions in a voice memo and I’m sharing that exact voice memo (unedited and all) in this episode.

I’m doing this because there are some golden nuggets that I think anyone building a house can take away from these answers … whether you choose to...

PSA for anyone who is looking for a builder right now or will be in the future. The lowest home build bid does NOT mean the lowest price.

Let me repeat that … the lowest home build bid does NOT mean the lowest price.

In this short and sweet episode, we’ll talk about why it’s VERY important to consider more than just the bids (or price quotes) when selecting a builder.

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EPISODE: carolineondesign.com/lowest-home-build-bid

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FREE CLASS: ‘How to Build Your Dream Home On Budget WITHOUT Sacrific...

Avoiding home build budget overages is one of the TOP home build concerns that I hear over and over from clients inside my private BEFORE YOU BUILD℠ program.

This is a VERY common fear among people getting ready to build their dream home. 

Sooo ... if you’re feeling nervous or confused about the budget piece of home building, you are definitely NOT alone.

But believe me ... the more information you know about the home build budget BEFORE you build, the better your chance of sticking to that elusive budget :).

I didn't go ov...

Whether you plan to hire an architect or not, the key to designing the perfect floor plan for YOUR family (that is functional, can grow with you, and you absolutely LOVE) all lies in the very first step. 

And in today’s episode, I’m going to tell you what that very first step is so that you can move forward and start creating the perfect floor plan that will work for your family now (and into the future).  

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EPISODE: carolineondesign.com/perfect-floor-plan

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FREE CLASS: ‘How to Build...

Before creating YOUR Home Build Success Plan, you need to really think about what a successful home build looks (and feels) like for YOU.

More specifically, how you will feel while you’re building and how you’ll feel about your house at the end of your build when you move into your brand new home.

I’m going to share what most people consider to be a successful home build.

You might relate to some of these things.

You might even relate to all of them.

You might even h...

This episode is a VERY informal kitchen design Q+A session I had with Anne-Marie Klobe, Kitchen Designer. This Q+A session was not intended for my podcast but rather for clients in my private 'Before You Build' program.

However, there are SO many golden nuggets of kitchen design advice that I wanted to share with all of you! The sound quality isn't my usual standard, and the call is extremely informal, but the tips are SO worth listening to.

In this episode, we cover:

Your initial quote for your home build can be a little frightening, BUT it's OK!

Your initial quote is just that ... an INITIAL quote. 

It doesn't mean it's the final price of your house.

It's just a starting point.

Believe me ... it's MUCH better to get a crazy high quote BEFORE you start building because this allows you time and space to pare your future house down to a comfortable price before you break ground.

Tune into this episode to learn about a concept I teach inside BYB (i.e...

If you’ve been listening to this podcast for a while or you know anything about my signature program, you know that I am ALL about planning, planning, and more planning before you build a house.

This (planning) is what I teach, and it’s exactly why I’ve named this podcast and my group program ‘Before You Build’.

I teach this because I know the power of planning before you ever even consider breaking ground on your new house.

Planning is honestly the key to eve...

I’m chatting with Holly, the founder and architect of Hereabout, about her floor plan design process.

Holly has more than a decade of experience in residential architectural design, and she started her business, Hereabout, to bridge the gap between budget and design for people who want a thoughtfully designed floor plan but might not want to pay for (or spend the time on) creating a custom floor plan from scratch.

In this episode, we cover:

Hiring the *RIGHT* builder is one of the most important parts of creating a home build experience that is both positive and successful. 

In other words, your builder plays a crucial role in bringing your dream home vision to life … without completely blowing your budget. 

I’m going to illustrate the importance of WHY you need to hire the right builder for your project and then I'll share some tips to get you started on the path to finding the right builder for YOU.

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Episode Show Notes: carolineondesign.com/hi...

I’m in the middle of a live launch week promoting my group coaching program (the ‘Before You Build’ Program), so I wasn’t planning on doing a podcast episode this week. 

However, I’m getting soooo many great questions about the BYB Program from potential clients that I wanted to hop onto the podcast and share the questions (and my answers) with you.

If you aren’t familiar with the ‘Before You Build’ program, I’ll give you a quick overview plus tell you NOW is the BEST time to join BYB!

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Episode Show...

You might be getting the WRONG home build budget advice.

In this episode, I share a cautionary tale about how you can’t believe everything you hear about 'going over budget when building'.

It's ok to question the so-called 'facts' because there ARE ways to build your house without completely going over budget.

I know this because I didn’t go over budget when I built my house, and now I have clients in my group coaching program who are coming in under budget too … and that’s in today’s market.

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E...

Googling ‘How To’ posts is a great way to gather as much info and knowledge as possible when building your dream home. However, all the info in the world doesn’t make up for a lack of CONFIDENCE in yourself to bring your dream home to life.

Gathering insight, tips, and knowledge will help you to feel more knowledgeable … but you also need to feel full CONFIDENCE in yourself as you go through the home build process and make the tough decisions.

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Episode Show Notes: carolineondesign.com/when-building-your-dream-home
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If you plan on building your dream home in 2024, you're in the right place! 

I’m Carrie … a Home Build Coach (it’s a term I made up but you get the idea). My mission is to help women feel confident building their dream home. I do this via my ‘Before You Build’ (BYB) program.
BYB is a step-by-step framework and group coaching program that equips you to confidently build a house you LOVE and is perfect for YOUR family (now + into the future) ... without blowing your budget.
Sounds pretty amazing, right?
I can’t wait to hel...