Carefree building? Marijke and Peter opted for custom building in Bruges.

Building a house without worries and making optimal use of the available space: that was the main goal for Marijke and Peter. Their search began in Sint-Andries, where they bought a piece of land. Soon, some uncertainties emerged: "Our deed stated it was arable land, but not official building land," Marijke explains. "Through connections, we got in touch with someone from Hectaar. Even before we became clients, they immediately jumped in to investigate thoroughly. For free and quickly. That gave us so much confidence: we knew right away that we wanted to continue building with Hectaar."

Building without worries

The choice for Hectaar was quickly made. "We absolutely didn’t want to follow up everything ourselves," Peter says. "It's such an intense process, and Hectaar has the experience for that. People sometimes say that building a house takes years off your life. We wanted just the opposite: building with peace of mind." They felt this peace during the first conversation with Louise, head of sales at Hectaar. "We immediately felt welcome. Louise listened attentively to everything we found important, and you can see that in the design," Marijke explains. "Our plot isn't large, yet they used every square meter cleverly. For instance, we wanted the attic to be livable in the future, so they considered that from the beginning. The house feels spacious."

From idea to design

The architect translated their wishes into a practical and sleek design. "We wanted a modern house, without frills. Louise and the architect provided good suggestions that we hadn't thought of ourselves," Marijke says. "Since it’s an enclosed house, they suggested a passageway from the garage to the garden. This way, you don't have to walk through the kitchen with dirty shoes. The garage also received a glass back door, which brings a lot of daylight into what would otherwise be a dark space."

Space usage on the upper floor was also optimized. There are three full bedrooms, a study, a bathroom, and a separate toilet. "The bathroom was initially planned to be more spacious," Marijke says, "but Louise advised making it a bit smaller to create a walk-in closet in one of the bedrooms. A golden tip!"

Professional guidance from start to finish

When the building process began, project manager Sofie took over from Louise. "We found that a bit daunting at first," Marijke says. "But Sofie immediately reassured us. She knew our file inside out and was always reachable."

Because Marijke and Peter live opposite their plot of land, they could closely follow the entire process. "We watched the house grow day by day. If we noticed anything, one phone call and Sofie would sort it out."

Any potential issues had been spotted by her and communicated to the contractors before we even noticed. Huge thanks for the swift follow-up and smooth communication. The construction started in November 2024, and in less than a year, we already received the key."

Making choices with confidence

Throughout the building process, Marijke and Peter had to make numerous decisions, but thankfully, they were never alone. "From the start, we were provided with a clear roadmap, with deadlines for the choices we had to make. It was reassuring and very handy. We had ample time to review everything, and we were warmly received at all suppliers."

Making choices wasn’t always easy for them, but thanks to the guidance, everything went smoothly. "If we were unsure about something, we could always rely on Louise and Sofie. They always shared their professional opinion. That gave peace and direction," Peter says. Even changes in a later stage didn’t cause issues. "For instance, we had the planned bath replaced and adjusted the staircase to better match the choice of laminate. Everything was followed up flexibly and professionally. And each time, Sofie and Louise took the time to think along."

They are more than satisfied with the end result as well. "The shower is beautiful, thanks to Nele's advice at Van Marcke. And the kitchen is exactly how we wanted it, also thanks to Nathalie from Kaster. Everything feels well-thought-out. You notice that Hectaar works with reliable partners who all aim for quality."

Recommended for anyone wanting to build without stress

Would they recommend Hectaar to family and friends? They don't have to think long about that. "Without a doubt! We’ve already done it. An acquaintance of ours has also started with Hectaar and even specifically requested Sofie as project leader and the same contractor for the structural work. That says it all, right? With Hectaar, you know what to expect, and you get back quality and humanity. You know exactly in advance what you will have to pay when, which also makes it easy." Originally, the house was intended to be rented out, but now one of the children will live in it. "That led us to make a few adjustments during construction, but that was no problem. The additional cost was limited and certainly justifiable, affordable and not a large sum. What do we appreciate most? The transparency, the guidance, and the fact that you really work with people who treat your home as if it’s their own."

We are very satisfied with the whole process from start to finish. I know from experience that building is difficult and takes a lot of energy. Hectaar has a very fine team of workers who are very competent in their profession. A big thank you to the Hectaar team for making our dream come true."

Are you also dreaming of a home that perfectly suits you? Or are you looking for a building partner to construct your dream home? Contact us via verkoop@hectaar.be and discover what Custom Building can mean for you.