How to Design + Build Homes Without Hidden Costs

With over 15 years of experience, Graeme Daley has set out to create truly customized homes while eliminating the surprise costs that are often sprung on clients during construction.

"A lot of my inspiration comes from large estate homes that I saw while growing up in Indian Hill and from when I traveled around the U.S. and Europe," says Daley, founder and CEO of Daley Design + Build. "My passion is historic buildings, which is why in many of my designs you’ll see historical influences.

"I love taking a blank slate and coming up with a concept of what we’re going to do. I look to see, ‘What will make this home special and unique? What can give it a different feeling than other places?’ That’s why people want a custom home. They don’t want a house that looks the same as another house on their street."

A graduate of the University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning, Daley put his diverse background of design, mechanical and industrial engineering, as well as landscape design, to

good use.

"When I start learning about a new client, I’m able to use my past experiences that have given me extensive practical knowledge which allows me to focus beyond just the house itself," explains Daley. "For example, the kitchen is used for cooking and entertaining, so I look for the best way to design that space to be conducive to those tasks, and specifically craft it to the client’s needs."

Daley’s upfront and transparent approach to pricing should be refreshing to anyone who has had a custom home built before.

"A lot of builders will start building the house and have the client make selections in process," says Daley. "So, a client won’t find out the real price until the end of the deal.

"Our process thoroughly vets out the design and we bid out big ticket items like lumber, the foundation and cabinets in order to nail these real numbers down for the customer to see before a construction contract is signed and I begin building. Just like when you buy a car, you don’t expect to have a surprise fee pop up when you hit 10,000 miles – I want clients to know what they’re getting into right out of the gate and not halfway through the project when it’s too late to turn around."

Daley focuses on high quality and low quantity.

"We will only create three or four homes each year and those homes will be very customized and of the highest quality," says Daley. "We pay a lot of attention to detail. My goal is to set the customer up for success from day one by making their best interest my number one priority."

For more information, call 513.315.4447 or visit daleydb.com