SERVING KENNEBUNKPORT, COASTAL MAINE, AND NEW HAMPSHIREDesign-Build Custom Homes Built for Generations
CUSTOM HOMES, DESIGNED AND BUILTOur Design-Build Solutions
Our role is to remove the uncertainty from building a custom home by providing a clear plan, consistent communication, and execution you can count on from start to finish.
As a design-build contractor, Thomas and Lord identifies and executes custom design and building solutions that suit our clients' budgets and aspirations. For decades, we have drawn on the talents of the architects, engineers, and design partners we work with to deliver a project that stays organized and rewarding throughout.
In its simplest form, a design-build contract addresses all aspects of a specific project, sometimes beginning with land selection and acquisition. Benefits accrue to both the contractor and the client, largely in terms of oversight responsibility and accountability. From concept to completion, we work seamlessly to create an efficient and rewarding client experience, a process that delivers real value, and a final product that exceeds your expectations… More than you can Imagine.
What is the Design-Build process?We establish an honest schedule with defined milestones and decision points, so you always know what’s coming next and can make informed decisions without feeling rushed.
A Clear, Well-Defined PlanThrough a dedicated online client portal, you have 24/7 access to progress photos, schedules, updates, and key documents at any hour, so you stay informed and confident, even when you are managing the project remotely.
Complete Visibility and CommunicationEvery home is shaped by thoughtful design and enduring craftsmanship, creating spaces that feel intentional, refined, and relevant for decades to come, not tied to passing trends.
Timeless Design and CraftsmanshipFrequently Asked Questions
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We build custom homes and take on large-scale remodels along the coast of Maine and New Hampshire. Both run through design-build delivery, where the design and construction of your project are coordinated by one accountable team from concept forward.
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It depends on the scope of your home, but most of our projects move through three phases. Design comes first, where we work with the architect and design team to turn your vision into a complete set of plans. This phase varies the most, often a few months, and it moves faster when you come in with a clear sense of what you want. Pre-construction follows, usually a couple of months, where we finalize permits, selections, and the budget before any ground is broken. Construction is the longest phase, and for most custom homes it runs somewhere between twelve and eighteen months. Our remodels and additions are large-scale projects, so they follow the same process on a similar arc. The timeline we give you at the start is one we can stand behind, because the planning that comes first is what keeps it predictable.
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Pricing varies with the choices you make, many of them within your control, like your finishes, materials, and the level of detail you want. Depending on the project, we work on either a fixed-price or an open, cost-based structure, and we will recommend the one that fits your build and walk you through how it works. Either way, the budget is transparent and aligned to your selections before we break ground, so you know what you are committing to.
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That works! When you already have a design team, we join it, reviewing drawings as they develop, bringing construction and cost into the conversation early, and keeping the budget aligned with the design before decisions get expensive to change. If your plans are already complete, we build from finished drawings too, and we will walk you through what that means for your budget and schedule before you commit.
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Three things. Because we design and build under one accountable team, the drawings and the budget are reconciled from the start, not after you have fallen for a plan you cannot build. We treat pre-construction as a formal phase with real deliverables, so the major decisions are made before we break ground, not in the field. And we purposefully limit ourselves to four to eight projects a year, so each home gets the attention the details deserve.
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Organized and direct. You have a clear point of contact, a portal where the schedule, budget, and documents live in one place, and updates on progress and the decisions coming next. No vague reassurance, and no surprises we could have prevented.
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It starts with a short conversation. Reach out through our contact page, send us an email, or give us a call. We will spend twenty minutes understanding your project, your goals, and a little about you before we go any further.
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Give us a call, send us an email, or reach us through our contact page. We typically answer within one business day.
Every home we build follows the same path, from the first conversation to the day we hand you the keys. Here is how it works.
The First Conversation
Every project starts with a conversation, not a proposal. We want to understand the home you are picturing, the site, and how you plan to live in it before anyone talks about numbers. Because we take on only a handful of projects a year, this is also where we make sure yours is one we can give our full attention.
Design
This is where design-build earns its name. We bring in the architect and design partners suited to your home and your site, and we stay involved from the first concept, shaping the design and the budget side by side. Getting construction and cost into the conversation this early means the drawings you fall for are drawings we can actually build for a number that holds.
Pre-Construction
Pre-construction is where most of the work that protects your project happens. We review the plans for constructability, finalize permits and selections, confirm every trade partner, and align the budget to your choices line by line. By the time we break ground, the major decisions are already made, which is what keeps the build predictable once it starts.
Construction
Your home takes shape. You have a clear point of contact, a portal where the schedule, budget, and documents live in one place, and updates on progress and the decisions coming next. Your selections follow a milestone schedule so nothing gets rushed at the last minute, and the trade partners in your home have built with us for years and know the standard before they arrive.
Handover and After
At handover you receive the home and a complete record of it: warranties, finishes, systems, and who to call. The relationship does not end there. We look after the homes we build, and when you call with a question down the road, someone who knows your house answers.