You don’t need a Central Oregon address to start building here. New Era Homes has built homes for buyers who stayed right where they were throughout construction and for others who lived a few hours from the site.
Building from a distance changes the conversations. Planning happens over video, and our team supervises construction on site while photos and schedule updates are posted to our project software.
How do you choose finishes without standing in a showroom? Who catches problems while you’re at work? When do you actually need to be here? Here’s how New Era Homes handles each one.
Start With an Online Consultation See the Full Build Process
Where You Need to Be, Stage by Stage
See what happens at each stage, what New Era Homes handles, and what you can manage from home.
| Stage | What’s happening | Where you need to be |
|---|---|---|
| First conversations and plan fit | A video consultation, a floor plan shortlist, plan changes, and a no-cost property evaluation before you buy | Wherever you are |
| Project planning (typically months 1-3) | Permitting and financing, while our team coordinates septic, well, and site development work | Wherever you are |
| Structural build (typically months 4-7) | Foundation, framing, roofing, rough plumbing, rough electrical, rough HVAC, inspections, and insulation | Wherever you areFollowing progress in the project software |
| Finish work (typically months 8-11) | Drywall, cabinets, interior trim, flooring, finish plumbing, HVAC, and electrical, the punch list, and final inspection | Wherever you areUntil the keys are ready |
| Move-in | Your completed home and keys | Central Oregon |
Timing reflects a typical New Era Homes project.
You may still want to walk your lot, tour a completed home, or see one in progress. We can group several decisions into one well-timed visit.
Make the Big Decisions from the Comfort of Your (Current) Home
You can handle most of the planning before you move. New Era Homes works through these decisions with you over video and records them in writing:
- Finding the plan. Browse the floor plan collection on your own time. Use the floor plan selection guide to narrow six favorites to two or three worth discussing.
- Changing the plan. We modify our proven plans to fit how you live, from room changes and a larger garage to an extra bathroom or a different approach to outdoor living. You can work through those options over video.
- Checking the land. We run a no-cost property evaluation before you buy to check zoning, setbacks, septic, utilities, and access. That matters even more when you can’t walk the parcel yourself.
- Setting the budget. Sort out your must-haves from your nice-to-haves before selections begin. The house is priced on its own, and the lot costs are listed separately, so you can see what drives the total.
- Choosing trim and finishes. Heritage Edition buyers choose from the Price Book. Premier Edition buyers have more choice in trim and finishes. Both can work through selections over video instead of across a counter.
“The planning process was a lot of back and forth focusing on our desired outcome while understanding the tough choices of cost/reward/tradeoff. Throughout this process, they provided excellent suggestions, alternatives, and modifications to create our unique plan.”
One Trip Can Cover Several Decisions
None of this means you’ll never want to come. Standing on your lot tells you things a photo can’t, and walking through homes we’ve already finished tells you even more.
When you’re ready to visit, tell us what you want to cover and we’ll help you fit as much as possible into the trip:
- Settle a batch of finish selections in one visit
- Tour New Era homes at different stages of construction, not just finished ones
- Walk the property you own, or the one you’re still deciding on
- Put faces to the names you’ve been seeing in the project software
Getting here is easier than you’d expect. Nonstop flights land at Redmond Municipal Airport from Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and several other western cities, a short drive from our home base in Bend and the rest of the area where we build.
Bring Your Questions to an Online Consultation See Completed Homes
Watch Your Home Take Shape From Anywhere
During construction, schedules, photos, messages, documents, and change orders stay together in Buildertrend, our online project management system. Most updates are posted daily, so you can follow completed work and see what’s coming without waiting for a site visit.
Approvals run through Buildertrend, too, so decisions don’t have to wait for your next trip. When a question comes up, you can review the details and photos, answer from wherever you are, and keep the build moving.
“New Era Homes has a homeowner website where they posted pictures of our home’s progress every day. We loved being able to check in and watch our home take shape. They also provided a calendar showing what was scheduled to be worked on and when. That level of communication and transparency gave us peace of mind and made the entire building process much more enjoyable.”
Your Build Has On-Site Oversight While You’re Away
New Era Homes manages the whole build on the ground, including inspections during the structural stage and a final inspection before completion. The Uncommon Standards apply to every New Era home, no matter where you are.
You’ll also know who to call. Questions go straight to the people managing your build, and out-of-area buyers repeatedly name the team members who kept them informed.
“We did a lot of research before choosing New Era, but were still worried about extra costs and things not being done the way we wanted them — mostly because we lived 3 hours away and knew we wouldn’t be able to be at the construction site during every step of the way. Once the build was on the way, we had nothing but pleasant surprises. . . . The construction supervisors caught every tiny little issue and made sure things were fixed.”
Frequently Asked Questions
No. You don’t need to live in Central Oregon during the build. New Era Homes manages the process from start to finish, while schedules, photos, approvals, and documents stay in the project software. New Era Homes has completed builds for buyers as far away as the Midwest, and you can still visit whenever it suits you.
Most updates happen daily. The schedule, photos, messages, documents, and change orders stay in the same software, so you can check progress when it suits you, even from another time zone.
Plan changes and many selections can happen over video, with decisions recorded in writing. New Era Homes can modify a proven plan, and larger changes usually cost more. We explain those tradeoffs before you commit.
Reach out before you buy. Our no-cost property evaluation checks a parcel for issues a listing may not show before you commit money. You can also compare bare land loans and home-and-land packages. Before making an offer, review building on your own lot in Oregon.
Plan for eight to eleven months from planning to keys, including one to three months for permitting and financing. Timelines vary, so bring a firm move date to the first call.
Start the Build From Where You Are
The first conversation covers your land or land search, the home you want, your budget, and your timing. You don’t need to be in Oregon or have every answer ready.
Start with an online consultation. We’ll map out what can happen from home, what needs your decision, and when a trip to Central Oregon will do the most good.