How To Become A Residential Builder: What It Is and Career Path

What is a residential builder and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

The average residential builder salary is $44,544. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an business major. It usually takes more than 10 years of experience to become a residential builder. Residential builders with a OSHA Safety Certificate certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 2% and produce 20,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreResidential BuilderUS Average

Salary

3.5

Avg. Salary $44,544

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 2%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.11%

Asian 1.46%

Black or African American 6.01%

Hispanic or Latino 18.10%

Unknown 3.92%

White 69.39%

Gender

female 17.21%

male 82.79%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.4

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.1

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a residential builder

Explore residential builder education requirements

Most common residential builder degrees

Bachelor's

47.3 %

Associate

23.1 %

High School Diploma

16.7 %

Start to develop specific residential builder skills

Skills	Percentages
Residential Buildings	27.31%
Safety Codes	17.18%
Plumbing	14.75%
Construction Process	11.27%
Residential Homes	7.77%

Complete relevant residential builder training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New residential builders learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a residential builder based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real residential builder resumes.

Research residential builder duties and responsibilities

Manage the office for a small business; invoicing, accounts receivable, accounting, taxes, payroll, etc.
Utilize industry knowledge to anticipate and communicate changes and adjustments effecting project plans, specifications or design.
Work on top of stilts, ladders, and the top beams of buildings.

Prepare your residential builder resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your residential builder resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a residential builder resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable residential builder resume templates

Build a professional residential builder resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your residential builder resume.