Frequently Asked Questions

We deliver our projects on time, on budget and defect free.

We value engineer your project with you to ensure you get the most for your budget.

We use only skilled and reliable tradespeople and artisans and material providers.

We have strict quality control over our products and finishes.

We provide superior communication with a state of the art online portal that we provide to you for free during your design and build phases.

We offer strong guarantees.

Many builders offer stock production plans, then allow you to choose a few things like floorcoverings, countertops, and paint colors. Many people find that adding anything else they wanted to have included or substituted above the base specifications drove the price up dramatically. You may very well end up seeing your dream home’s twin, or worse dozens of your dream home around the corner or down the street!

However, working with a design/build company in a custom build process opens up an incredible and exciting array of possibilities for people who have looked at these other options and decided they just didn’t fit their needs or fulfill their vision and dream. We don’t limit your choices like other builders, we expand them to take you in exciting directions. We work with you to analyze your site properly to take advantage of the natural attributes and find any issues that could be problems. We design the home to your land, your use patterns and lifestyle, and your budget.

Our process has two main elements:

The Design Phase (to design your home)

The Build Phase (to build your home)

See “Our Ten Step Process” for more details.

Your design process starts with us listening, then collaborating on every detail as you discover your “must haves”, “like to have”, and the “well, if there’s still some money left” lists of preferences and priorities. We know what questions to ask to uncover the home of your dreams.

Where most builders want your “wish” list to be short and sweet and to get you under contract, we value engineer your choices and selections until together we have come up with exactly the right balance of your budget, preferences, and priorities.

All American Contracting, LLC. is unique in North Idaho, because we do both high-quality custom homes as well as custom remodels. Most new home builders do not remodel because it takes more time and experience to analyze and plan correctly, takes a different skill set as a builder. and many of the trades who do new home construction have no practical experience in remodels.

You are unique. You have different needs and wants than other people. Designing your home to fit your lifestyle makes sure your home will fit your family, traffic flow, hobbies, and entertainment needs. It will be an outward expression of who you are and what you like. ACC doesn’t just build homes from a plan book with a few available choices. We have a passion for helping our customers discover great design by creating unique houses, built with quality construction methods and creative use of materials. You don’t have to live in a space designed for someone else and for their lifestyle anymore.

Ron Hazard, AAC’s founder, and the owner has 35 years experience in custom building and remodeling, and has worked with some of the most notable designers in the industry. Ron will work directly with you end-to-end and will work hard to establish trust and make sure you’re satisfied with every step of the process, even after you move in.

Rons’ wife, Amy Hazard supports the project ensuring everything is done by the book, legally and financially.  All subcontractors are licensed, registered to work in Idaho, carry the necessary Workman’s Compensation and Liability Insurance, are paid promptly, and afterward, she obtains Lien Releases to give you peace of mind. Amy worked for 27 years for a major national bank as a Manager and Senior Vice President prior to joining AAC.

We build homes like they are our own, and each home is just a house until everyone is willing to put their signature on it as a sign of pride and accomplishment. We only build a handful of homes each year so that every client and project gets personalized attention. We deliver both craftsmanship and peace of mind.

We believe that each home should be built with an ethic of old-world craftsmanship and care yet   enhanced with new-world technology. Each home build is an opportunity to explore the latest in building technology and methods with our customers. We explore both passive and active energy saving systems during the design and specifications phase, and then build with the chosen green techniques as our best practices. We also explore repurposing certain building materials as part of the theme in the home, as these can add both an environmentally significant impact and a stunning visual statement as well.

North Idaho has many unique and world-class areas to live. We are world famous for our amazing mix of lakes, streams, rivers, and forests, as well as our outstanding lifestyle and abundant outdoor activities.

Finding land or lots can be challenging, and choosing the right lot even more so. If you are not currently working with a real estate agent, our daughter, Faith Hazard is a licensed agent for one of the best and largest brokerage firms in the area and the world.

We can help you find the location that is perfect for you. We are always looking for land or lots that “stand out” and have attributes, that special “something”; location, views, privacy, or perhaps some slope for a lower level with great views. If you are looking for opportunities for waterfront  (our specialty), on a golf course, or on a larger acreage for a secluded or equestrian lifestyle, we can offer help. We can even help you subdivide and develop your land.

We can help you analyze any land regardless of which real estate agent you select, or if you are interested in a parcel before you make a purchasing decision to make sure it is buildable and will work for your plans and goals.

The Design Phase is usually an exciting and creative time where the dream home is built “on paper”, and using our online software portal allows you to see every detail and plan every aspect of the home.  Each project is a unique creation, a prototype tailored to fit your the exact needs. There is no “one-size-fits-all” in our clients experience. There are lots of variables in project size and scope.

We sometimes spend months with our clients on the planning phase until final drawings, specifications and costing has been completed, and provide you with a completion date for the project to be fully built.

Unlike some builders who don’t give any detail on what is included, we list every specification, include product names, model numbers and even photographs so that everything is clearly communicated,  eliminating surprises and selections errors. There are no hidden costs or extras. Nothing is overlooked. You are in control of the budget with your choices.

We provide options and advice to help you make educated choices that give you control. Communications between you and our team are always available and easy to review, as everything is done with a clear paper trail online in the project portal.  Updates to the schedule and variations, or Change Orders are always posted on the project portal for your review and acceptance before work is done so there are no surprise charges you don’t know about.

We serve many clients from out of the area, and are very familiar with those challenges. During the Planning Phase, we hold online meetings via the web where we discuss plans, share our screens, and send you downloadable files and photos to review. This is all very easy to use, and saves a tremendous amount of time and cost of travel.

During the Build Phase, we continue to use a project portal we provide for scheduling, communications, changes, and documentation of the progress using job site photos to keep you up to date and informed. You know what is coming and what is happening each step of the way. You watch the progress as we deliver your home on time and on budget.

As in any complex building project, complications can occur even after all the details have been worked out.   Experience and attitude is what can make the difference between a failing project and a simple speed bump. Usually, these challenges are easily overcome and unnoticed by our clients, as we believe it is our responsibility to manage our projects in such a way as to relieve you of any unnecessary stress. In any case, communication will always be transparent.

An example of an issues is if in a remodel something is discovered behind a wall, or in a building site where there are unseen conditions, such as a house size boulder underground. Experience sometimes can help discover these things early. Planning departments can also change the rules and throw a monkey wrench into a client’s vision, which can cause months of delay, so having a builder like Ron with experience in creating subdivisions and land development, and having good relationships inside these departments can really help get things resolved quickly.

If the issue is one where you should be involved, we do our homework first to provide choices and let you make an informed decision. We draw the line at a compromise where it affects either our promise to our clients for quality, or what they were promised would be delivered. We do not take shortcuts like some builders and cut things out that our clients were promised to save cost. We never switch a specification our customer is expecting.

We treat our workers as consummate professionals because over the years we chose them by hand and have a great deal of respect for their abilities. We “inspect what we expect”, and have detailed checklists and quality control agreements in place with all our tradespeople covering expected performance and appropriate jobsite behavior.

Our tradespeople have both the business and skill levels we need to do the highly detailed work we design which is often not available anywhere “off-the-shelf”, and many of them come from handcrafting backgrounds where the term “artisan” is more appropriate.

The mentality and attitude we require is also important, because we want a company made up of people that care about the customer and the quality of the work product. Not all builders are artists. Artists build with passion and heart, and often give up more lucrative career choices because they love what they do. We are not high volume production builders by choice.

Because we only build a few homes a year, our payment schedules typically require a deposit to reserve a building slot. The contract documents will detail the exact amounts of the deposit, and will have a payment schedule that is triggered by milestones of completion, which are photographically verified and available on your project portal for you to see anytime from any computer or smartphone. That way, you are assured that the work has been completed before you issue a payment.

Ron Hazard personally inspects each job and keeps detailed site inspection reports for each area on the scope of work, which are available to you on your project portal. Besides periodic visits by the customer to identify special upgrades or enhancements, a final walkthrough with Ron is scheduled to identify any finishing touches, which are then completed to your satisfaction.

We schedule a special “hand-over day” and a photo shoot celebration for your homes “birthday”. We leave you with your “Home Book” complete with your warranty, instructions and manuals on all your appliances and a maintenance guide to help you care for your home. We even have a little surprise for those raving fans that refer us to friends.