One great advantage that we offer our customers is we are both builders and  a full service log home company. Often a log home dealer does not have much construction background. Dealerships are sometimes offered to homeowners simply because they purchased a log kit from the company and that company wants an office in that area. As log home builders in Montana we offer expertise and extensive knowledge of both the log materials and construction. If you are out of our area we have other log home builders we can refer you to. For log stacks we will travel anywhere in the US.

Beyond Price of A Log Home

It is easy to slip into the mentality that the cheapest price tag is the ‘best price’. The customers who benefit the most from talking and working with us are those who are willing to set aside price, for a moment, and see what they are purchasing. The best blend is quality + price, not price alone. If a homeowner really wants to focus on these two together, then the first step for them is things like selecting a floor plan, exploring photo galleries, letting themselves dream, and talking about the construction specifics of log sizes, wood species, and things of this nature.

From this process, then we are able to answer questions, listen to your needs and wants, and direct you towards the home that is the most suited to your unique situation.

When Price is the Bottom Line

If you are building a log home in Montana, or elsewhere, it is important to remember that the log home kit is only one component of the whole project. There is also the cost of the property, construction of the home, the finish materials you choose, and other costs like well, septic, driveways, etc. Overall, when we have taken a more expensive fully precut log home package and built it to completion it cost us less overall than a cheaper log home package. How can that be possible?? Because a cheap random length log home kit requires much more labor and machine time on the job site to fit it all together. The dollars that were ‘saved’ in the sticker price of the log home kit were more than consumed by the labor costs and machine time on the job site. Random length cabin grade logs are the worst as far as consuming time and labor.

Blending Price and Quality

The best solution is the blending of price and quality. We are building the Yellowstone Plan log home in Gallatin Gateway Montana beginning in June 2012. The owners have done an excellent job of understanding this and are getting themselves an outstanding log home– all worked within their overall budget.  This couple fell in love with our handcrafted log home style. They decided to invest in more expensive handcrafted log home shell, while making choices in other areas of the home to economize. Instead of granite counter tops they chose an attractive Formica laminate material. For cabinets they selected Hickory stock items instead of a $40,000 set of handmade cabinetry. Instead of more square footage of living space within the home, they decided to eliminate the loft and go with an attached two car log garage. To them, this was important.

When you begin shopping for log home builders in Montana or elsewhere allow yourself the privileged of starting with floor plans before you begin shopping prices. Try to focus on what is important to you, i.e. a ranch layout, an attached garage, an open loft, or a huge master suite, and then work from the price per square foot to arrive at your final costs.  If you would like help with your planning process just give us a call.

Cowboy Log Homes