Which AC Is Perfect for Your Remodeled Home?

June 7th, 2021

So you’ve just remodeled your home and you’re very happy with the results. Congratulations! Home remodeling can be a long, expensive, and arduous process that many homeowners need to save up for. Just the fact that you’ve gotten this far is something to celebrate!

That being said, the journey isn’t over yet. While temperatures are mild now, they’re going to get both hot and cold throughout the coming months and you’re going to need an air conditioner (as well as a heater) that works for your newly renovated home. It doesn’t matter if you need just an AC, a heater, or both, we’ve got you covered in this blog post.

Today, we’re going to discuss the best air conditioning installation in Sarasota, FL for homes that have recently undergone renovation or new additions. This is an exciting opportunity to upgrade your home to be more comfortable and energy-efficient!

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Why Build a New Home in Sarasota?

June 2nd, 2021

Many homeowners want a newly constructed home designed by a local home builder because they want to customize everything! With new construction, your home can be built any way you want. You can customize the floorplan and layout, as well as the sizes of rooms, and even where you want your switches and light sockets to suit your specific lifestyle. When it’s over, you’ll enjoy being the first to hang a photo on a wall or experience that “new home smell” created by new home building materials. Of course, there are numerous other advantages to building a new house in Sarasota, particularly when the cost can be comparable to that of an older home.

You’ll find improved low-maintenance building materials that can last a lifetime in today’s new manufacturing and construction era. Then there’s the ability for your own protection in today’s modern building options, which employs more sophisticated engineering, safety, and design techniques. Here are a few reasons for building a new home in Sarasota:

  • Air quality in the home (so important)
  • With a fortified structure, you can withstand hurricanes.
  • Building materials that don’t need maintenance
  • Savings on homeownership with new building
  • Reduced insurance premiums
  • Reduced utility costs
  • Houses that use little to no energy
  • Better floorplan designs

And a lot more!

Cost of a New Home Per Square Foot

When it comes to the cost of a new build, it is commonly believed that the price would be higher, but this can be a fallacy. Existing homes continue to rise in price due to supply and demand, and since newly built homes can take a year or more to build, most people never consider it, opting instead to remain in an older home that continues to rise in price to match the price of new construction homes. When you equate the cost of a 60-year-old home to a new construction home of comparable size and character in most markets, you’ll find that the newly constructed home costs anywhere from 0% to 2% more. When you consider the cost savings of owning a modern-built home, which includes annual repairs, insurance, and monthly water bill expenses, you’ll see that the older home is draining your bank account.

So, how much do you plan to pay? The most often asked question is how much per square foot. It’s the equivalent of asking to buy a car by the pound. The cost of bedrooms versus the cost of the kitchen, or if the garage and covered porch are included in the price, both influence the price per square foot. In reality, you can have the same total square footage house plan for two different designs, and the square foot price difference may be as much as $60 or more.

If new construction house prices are measured apples to apples, they would be very close to existing home prices. Even if a home is brand new, the bank appraiser and tax assessor will value it based on what other homes in the area have sold for. Homebuilders won’t sell homes for more than a bank would allow, but existing homes are eager to match today’s sold rates.

What is the Average Time to Build a Home?

In most cases, the construction process does not begin before the building permit is given. This indicates that the home builder is free to proceed. So, there are two parts to this question: pre-construction and construction.

Elements and time periods that the contractor has no power over prior to construction:

  • 30 days for new construction.
  • 15 days to choose a house design.
  • 30 days for the architect to change the plan and matching building lot information.
  • 45 days from the time the bank or appraiser reviews the completed proposal and approves the loan.
  • 30 to 60 days for project approval by the Building Department

The actual construction tasks are described in the Building Process section below, but the total time period will vary between 12 and 18 months. It is possible to complete a well-built home in six to nine months, depending on the weather, home design, and building systems. The building inspection process is one of the main factors for the longer timelines; unlike other states, Florida has a very comprehensive inspection list. This is also to your advantage since some states can only have four checks for the whole house, allowing for bad workmanship to go undetected. It’s not unusual in Florida to have 25 or more inspections. When a contractor must pack up his job and return to finish after the local building inspector has reviewed his partial work, the time limit is extended. For instance, before starting to mud the drywall joints, the drywaller must conduct a screw inspection.

Factors To Consider When Selecting a Custom Home Builder

First and foremost, meet with many builders to gain a deeper understanding of how each one operates. Some can try to persuade you to sign a special deal if you sign today, while others will be there to justify every move and stand by your side to ensure you’re making the best decisions possible. The easiest way to figure out who you’ll be dealing with for the next few months is to conduct an interview. Be sure to ask good questions during the interviewing process such as:

  • How long have you been working in this area?
  • Do you specialize in luxury new construction?
  • How often do you switch subcontractors?
  • Is there a warranty on your homes?
  • Do you have a physical office?
  • If you have a license and insurance?
  • Do you have a sample construction contract I should look at?
  • What banks have you worked with for new construction loans?
  • Do you outsource big chunks of work or specific items?
  • How do you think your price structure stacks up against the other options?
  • How much customization can I do?

Once you’ve finished the interviewing process and asked a few basic questions, you’ll be able to say who you feel most at ease with. Contacting the new construction lending bank and agreeing that they will authorize them for construction is the most critical follow-up. Each new construction lender will conduct a thorough background check to ensure that they are able to share the risk of construction with your preferred contractor.

The Vision Group LLC is a great option for new luxury construction in Sarasota, Fl. They pay attention to the details and have the experience in this area to educate and inform new clients on the many options and their pros and cons.

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Which Air Conditioner Should You Choose?

May 24th, 2021

It’s springtime, which means in only a month or two, temperatures are going to soar. And according to the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center, they’re going to be some of the hottest temperatures we’ve experienced in our area to date!

If you’ve got a home with a faulty air conditioner, or perhaps you just recently bought a home with no air conditioning, then you’ve probably been frantically searching around for the right system to choose from. Don’t panic.

When it comes to air conditioning in Sarasota, FL, there’s no better team at this than ours!

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“Some Rooms Just Won’t Cool. What Gives?”

May 10th, 2021

Our community is made up of homes. Those homes are made up of rooms. And our rooms are probably large enough to be made up of sections. There’s a lot of air that needs to be cooled on those scorching hot summer days, and it’s important to know about any problems you might be experiencing.

If you’ve got a room that’s constantly hot, or that’s just not cooling to the temperature you set on the thermostat, there could be a few things going on. These problems with your air conditioning in Sarasota, FL could be directly related to the temperature you’re setting on your thermostat, or to the condition of your AC system, or even to the condition of your ductwork.

Unfortunately, unless you call our team for help we won’t be able to give you an answer that’s 100% certain. But perhaps today we can steer you in the right direction. Let’s talk about some reasons why a specific room might not be cooled to your standards.

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Are Your Ducts Sweating?

April 26th, 2021

Air conditioning systems are designed to keep us from sweating too much, but your sweating ducts could be a serious problem. Yes, air ducts can start to sweat due to changes in temperatures and humidity, and yes, this can be a huge problem.

Homeowners often try to reconcile something wrong as to whether or not it’s normal. While sweating ducts might seem normal, because your AC is on full blast and it’s humid outside, but they’re really not. Sweating ducts can quickly lead to mold growth and more humidity. Basically, this could be a huge signal that your home needs duct repair in Sarasota, FL.

Our team provides comprehensive duct services in the Sarasota area, and we have been since 1970. Let’s get into the details behind sweating ducts, and why your air ducts are more important than ever.

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What’s Wrong With Your Drain Lines?

April 12th, 2021

Believe it or not, your air conditioner has to deal with a fair share of moisture every year. As it cools your home, it also dehumidifies it and draws water out of the air as a byproduct. That’s why every air conditioning system has a condensate line that allows condensing water to travel out of the unit and outside where it enters the environment. Interesting, right?

That is until your drain line starts causing some serious problems for your home comfort, your air conditioner, and more. It can clog, it can be dirty and cause mold to grow, and it can even cause so much damage that it causes your ductless mini split or other air handlers to fall off the wall because of moisture.

Today, we’re going to focus in on common drain line problems and point you in the direction of our air conditioning repair in Sarasota, FL if you need professional help.

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Why Is Your AC Struggling?

March 29th, 2021

Why is the earth round? What’s the meaning of life? Certainly, there are some questions that you’ll just never know the answer to, right?

We hate to be harsh, but that’s not true. There absolutely is an answer to the question of “why is my AC struggling?” and we hope to answer it right here and now. Sure, if you don’t really care about the answer to that question, you can always just call our team of professionals to repair your system lickety-split. But most homeowners want to know the ins and outs of their system and exactly how much money they should be spending on it.

So, let’s talk about why your air conditioner is having a rough time. We’ll go through some clear reasons why you need to call us for air conditioning repair in Sarasota, FL. Don’t worry, our phone lines are open and we’ll even provide a handy link at the bottom to get you in touch with us!

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Do You Need to Replace or Repair Your Furnace?

March 15th, 2021

That’s a good question. You might have thought you’d get to this blog post and hear us just give you a one-word answer and call it a day, but that’s just not the case. In order to be a responsible HVAC provider, we need to tell you the truth. And the truth is, the decision to replace or repair your furnace depends on many factors.

Ultimately, the choice is yours. If you tell us that you’d rather pay for furnace repair in Sarasota, FL over a replacement, then we’re not going to argue with you. The only thing we will say is that it might be more cost-effective to go with the latter option.

Determining how much it will cost down the line is the main game we play when we decide between repairs or replacement. Today, we’ll try to simplify this decision and make it easier for you going forward.

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We Won’t Give Up on Your Old Heater: Here’s Why

March 1st, 2021

Look, we’d like to preface this blog by telling you clearly that if your old heater isn’t working well, we’ll always advise you to get it replaced. If it’s running up your heating bill, needing repairs every year, and overall just a big nuisance, then we won’t beat around the bush. However, if you’ve still got a few years left in your heater, we won’t ignore that fact either.

While replacement services can be great, many HVAC technicians will jump to replacement because it’s the easiest way for them to make the most money. It’s true, an amateur will just want to throw out your whole system and replace it with a brand-new one if they can. What’s important is that you know the kind of heating service in Bradenton, FL that you need.

If you know when your heater can keep chugging along, or when it should be replaced, then it’s harder for amateurs to take advantage of you and easier to work with pros like us!

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Everything to Know About Your Furnace’s Heat Exchanger

February 15th, 2021

Look, we know that here in Florida, the focus is usually on air conditioners. You only use your furnace for a tiny fraction of the year, so why would we spend an entire blog post about such a small component of your heating system?

Well, don’t let the heat exchanger’s size fool you, it’s one of the most important aspects of your furnace, let alone the safety of your home. While you might not use your furnace as much as your AC, a gas furnace that’s neglected can quickly become a safety concern if you’re not careful. We see this happen to furnaces in Lakewood Ranch, FL all the time, and we’d like to inform our customers about the importance of proper heater care.

So, want to know more about the most sensitive component of your heating system? Keep reading and we’ll tell you!

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