Custom Builders in Jonesboro, AR

Ridge ground and drained farmland

The ridge runs through the middle of Craighead County, and Jonesboro's high ground keeps it clear of the periodic flooding that reaches the lowlands around it. East and west of the ridge, the land was drained for farming, and it is still level, open ground.

Those two settings ask different things of a builder. A ridge lot may slope, so expect questions about cut and fill, a stem wall or a walkout basement. A field parcel is usually flat, which makes layout easy but puts the focus on pad height and where rainwater goes. Ask each builder which kind of site they work on most often.

Shops for row-crop operations

Rice, cotton and soybeans are processed in Jonesboro, and the outlying towns in the county remain largely agricultural. A farm shop here often has to house a combine, a sprayer or a grain cart, so start with the biggest machine, measure it with any header or folding parts in their working position, and plan door height and clear width from there.

Post-frame is a common choice for wide machine sheds because it goes up quickly on a simple footprint. Red-iron steel suits very wide clear spans, a heavy overhead crane or a building that may later hold a commercial use. Ask each builder to price the same footprint both ways if they offer both, and to say how the slab is reinforced for loaded equipment.

A custom home on a city lot

Arkansas State University and St. Bernards Medical Center are the city's largest employers, and plenty of buyers want a home within a short drive of either. Inside the city, that usually means a lot in a developed subdivision rather than raw land.

Builders who develop their own subdivisions often work from a set of plans that can be changed, while others start from a blank sheet. Ask which approach you're getting, how many design changes the price allows, and what happens to the schedule if you add one after framing starts.

House and shop on the same acreage

If you're buying land outside town for both a home and a farm building, decide early whether they share a roof. A barndominium puts living space inside a barn-style structure. Two separate buildings cost more in foundation and roofing but keep dust, noise and fuel smells away from the house.

Either way, set the house on the highest practical spot and keep the shop's apron and turning room clear of the driveway you'll use every day. Grain trucks and trailers need more room to swing than a pickup does.

Pad height and water on level ground

On flat farmland, a few inches of elevation decide whether water runs away from a building or sits against it. Check the parcel on FEMA's flood maps before you buy, then ask builders how high they plan to set the pad, where they'll send runoff from the roof, and whether ditching or a culvert is part of their price or yours.

For a machine shed or seed storage, ask about setting the floor a step above the outside apron and sloping that apron away from the doors. Water that blows in under a big door then has somewhere to go, and a combine or seed tender parked inside stays dry. It costs little to plan at the start and a lot to fix with a saw after the slab cures.

City or county paperwork

Craighead County has two county seats, Jonesboro and Lake City, which can confuse people new to the area. For land inside Jonesboro's city limits, confirm current requirements with the city's Inspections and Planning and Zoning offices; for land outside them, check with Craighead County before you sign a contract.

Lining up bids from different trades

A home builder's quote and a post-frame company's quote rarely cover the same things. One may include dirt work, plumbing and finishes, while the other stops at the shell. Write one page that lists the footprint, wall height, doors, slab, insulation, electrical and any living space, and send it to everyone.

Ask each builder to mark what's included, what's an allowance and what you'll need to hire separately. That turns a stack of different-looking numbers into something you can compare line by line.

Builders listed for Jonesboro

Two builders on this page are based in Jonesboro. Both build custom homes, and one, Koehn Contracting, also lists garages and light-commercial steel buildings. Square Post Buildings, based in Hoxie, builds post-frame and steel farm buildings and equipment sheds across northeast Arkansas. Companies that build pole barns and metal buildings statewide round out the list. Our Batesville and Searcy pages cover more builders who work in this part of the state.

Ask each one for recent projects near Jonesboro you can go and see, plus references, a written scope and the warranty in writing. Before any deposit, look up each license with the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board.