How to Buy Wholesale Materials When Building a Home

Building your own house gives you the opportunity to have your home exactly the way you want it. You can make the kitchen large enough to fit a double oven and commercial fridge or add a built-in bocce ball court in the backyard. But building your own home is expensive, especially if you are trying to source materials on your own. Many professional builders have bulk discounts and commercial trade deals in place that lower their material costs. And these wholesale discounts are frequently available to anyone who is buying materials in bulk, which means you may be able to take advantage of wholesale discounts when purchasing materials for your new home.

Wholesale buying enables retailers to buy large quantities of products from manufacturers to sell in smaller quantities to individual customers. Because the retailer needs to make a profit, they buy at a low wholesale price, then sell the products for a higher retail price. Typically, only retailers purchase wholesale which requires buying a minimum quantity of goods to get a discount. Buying at wholesale means you would have a minimum quantity to meet before you could purchase and could end up with a surplus of an item. But because home building requires so many construction materials, it may make sense to buy some of those materials in bulk to save money rather than buy at retail.

It's cost-effective to purchase those materials you need in higher quantities at wholesale prices. You can determine which materials you'll need the most of by making a list of everything needed for your upcoming construction project. Many builders use their building plan throughout the project and stay organized by dividing their materials list into separate sections for the frame, interior rooms and exterior of the structure.

It is essential to estimate the retail cost of each type of building material you need because some materials may not be available at wholesale pricing and some may be more efficient to buy at your local hardware store at retail. You can use your building plans to determine the amount of lumber, concrete, shingles and other items needed to complete the foundation, frame and roof of your new house. Determining interior square footage is quickly done by multiplying the length times the width of each room to accurately order flooring, cabinetry and paint.

A convenient way to source wholesale building materials is online. Working with online construction wholesalers allows you to order different materials from different vendors, securing the best price. You can also easily compare prices and even set up price alerts to make sure you're getting the absolute best deal on your building materials. Because wholesalers sell only in bulk, make sure the amount of material you need meets their shipping minimums. If you don't want to shop online, many local lumber yards, hardware stores and wholesale construction dealers in your area may offer discounts if you are willing to buy in bulk. At some local hardware stores, you may be able to get a builder's discount on all your purchases.