Building a House Pros/Cons Advice.

[Chadwilliam1]

My wife and I are looking into building a house. I dont like the idea of an HOA but we can not seem to find what we want in a house in existing construction. What kind of wisdom is there on building a house. This will be our second home we have 2 kids and Our house now is very tight in space but the main reason for moving is the bad school district and location.


Thanks Chad.

 

[Moose97]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Most new neighborhoods will have an HOA. If you want outside the city without the HOA and a little more "elbow" room, find a local builder and get with him. He can probably walk you thru the steps of designing a house to fit your needs and your budget.

 

[KEH]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Location of house on lot should be higher than road.

House should be as far as possible from road. There should be a screen of trees between the car and road to cut down on road noise and to prevent cars that run off road from running into house. Don't laugh, I've had cars run off the road on my side of the road but since I'm 200 yards from the road all they got was some fences.

Ground should slope away from the house on all sides so as to drain water away from the house. Gutters should empty into drain pipes which will carry rain water several feet from the house.

If having a basement, every effort should be made tokeep water away from it.

House roof line should be as simple as possible to cut down on future leaks. Chimney should not be built through roof, if having a chimney. Ideal wood heat source would be an outside wood burning furnace with as tall a chimney as possible. Too keep from neighbors complaining about wood smoke, chimney of furnace should be as high as possible.

Having built as simple a roof line as reasonably possible, be aware that with asphalt shingles nails still might work through the shingles causing leaks. Get good, if there is such a thing, professional advice to prevent this. The ideal roofing material has not been designed yet. Steel roofs may be way to go. Clay tile roofs probably last indefinitely but my understanding is that they are expensive and require a very strongly built house to support them.

House should be on one level. When you get old it will be difficult to climb stairs.

Avoid cathedral ceilings. They are expensive to heat.

Avoid log houses, or at least get some experienced advice. My understanding is that the logs crack and let air in, but get advice from someone who knows.

Insulate the house well. Use thermopane windows.

Use alunimum gutters. Cover fascia board with aluminum. Use plastic window framing.

Check types of siding. Brick lasts. Most others need replacing or painting.

Be sure your mortgage lets you pay it off early and will let you contribute extra payments in any amount to be applied to the principal.

Assuming you are on a sewer line, be sure there is a check valve on your line to prevent sewer back up into your house. Yes, it can happen.

Houses are a good investment except when the neighborhood goes to pieces around you. Watch out for signs of that and sell out if it starts to happen.

Good luck.

KEH

 

[Autorotica]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

KEH,

Very nice work on your list!

Orient your new home so the long side of the roof faces east to west and isn't shaded by much of anything or anyone. The potential for solar in the future might be tremendous!

Chris

 

[KEH]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Autorotica,

Thanks, result of My experience and others. Good catch on the orientation of a house for solar heat.

KEH

 

[ratdoggy]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Attic trusses in garage. So you can actually store stuff up there

 

[NES]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

If your building make sure that you have a deep garage. Go with at least 30' deep and have at least a 3 car garage. have the ceiling be 10' tall. With going for that 3 car garge have a double door be 18' wide and 8'tall.This way you can park full size vehicles next to each other. Make the single 10' wide by 8' tall in case you want to have a boat in there. The size of the doors will be a lot better than the minimum size of a 16' wide by 7' tall door. Especiallly better than the
8' wide by 7' tall door. That door would be impossible to put a dually wheel truck into. All the bedrooms should be separate from each other. At the minimum have a closet that would separate them. This you don't have to worry about waking anybody up. This also gives them privacy. Also a good website for houses are eplans.com or coolhouses.com. Best of luck to you.

 

[sselander]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

We planned ours so all bathtub/shower plumbing is accessible via a closet if need be.
We also have the Moen Moentrol shower valves with water shutoffs built-in to the valve.

 

[wssix99]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

How much time do you have? It will probably take you at least 1-3 years to get land, prep it, design a house, permit it, and build it. A lot of the time will be dependent on the area you are looking at. As well, a lot of folks underestimate the time they need to put in to the project, even with a full time builder. I'd plan 10-20 hours of week for planning, discussion, picking stuff out, etc. for the duration of the project. With small kids, this time commitment may be challenging. (The alternative is a longer construction cycle and a builder who will be pissed because they can't get decisions made.)

Pro - You get what you want.
Con - You quickly figure out that you don't really know what you want.
Con - When you figure out what you want, you may find that you can't afford it.

Pro - Your wife will get a lot of things she is looking for in a house.
Con - Many marriages don't survive the construction process. (Really... it's stressful.)


Aside from getting what you want, there's a big financial concern these days. In many areas of the country, a new custom house on Day 1 is worth less than it cost to build it. (The housing crisis has left a lot of cheap houses on the market.) This phenomena will make it so you will have to front more cash for the project, (if you can get a banker to give you a loan, which is hard these days) most likely far in excess of 20% of the total cost. If you are going to move when the kids grow up, you may be better off financially to rehab another house to your needs. Getting the value back out of a new custom house could require that you make a long term commitment to being there. As pointed out, designing for accessibility in older age (elevator shafts, wide hallways/doors, bedroom on the living floor, etc.) is probably a necessity given the market we are in.

The other current financial dynamic is interest rates. Rates are going up, so with every day you wait to move, the higher your cost will be over the life of your loan. Who knows that interest rates will be like 2 years from now when your new house is finished. (You'll most likely have a construction loan with terms undesirable for a long term mortgage and will have to convert to a normal mortgage once the house is done.)


I'm in the process of building a custom house right now. (We are building a highly energy efficient home with plans to live there long term.) We'll be moved in this spring, but we really missed the prime time for this (financially and on labor cost/availability) by about a year. We're in a rush against interest rates at this point. On financing, our banker isn't giving us credit for our energy efficiency on our appraisal, so that is driving down the "value" of the house after construction. (We're paying a high premium for concrete walls and a geothermal heating/cooling system.) We've had to go in with 30% cash for the project, as a result. If we weren't swinging hammers on the place, ourselves - we'd have to be in deeper with our equity.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Do you and your wife have a good marriage ? I've heard from many people that building a house can be one of the hardest things that a couple can do. If your marriage can survive that, it can survive anything.



I'd go with poured basement walls and a full basement. If you build a single story home, a full basement doubles the size of your home. I'd give the basement serious consideration. It can make for the perfect family room, cool in the Summer and if you put in a wood burner, it'll be nice and cozy inthe Winter. The latter would be very handy during the Winter when the storms roll in and the area is susceptible to power outages.

 

[kd3pc]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

+1 on Nuts comments....on the marriage being good....building is one of the most stressful things you will ever do.

I have been told that you will build 4 houses, before you get it right and what you want. We have built two, and still happily married.

We have twice gotten the drawings completed (still have them) and set to build again, when life gets in the way, or the economy tanks.

We have opted to find the best, most economical to heat/cool house that we NEED and are very happy doing so.

Our last "dream" home is being rented, about 6 hours from here, as another collapse of the economy in 2008 destroyed our lives, again. One day, perhaps when I hit the lottery, I can move back, but for now someone else is paying the mortgage down. I am at the age where there are not enough years or health left to recover. So we just try and enjoy what we have, now.

 

[1jjpop]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

In our town most sewer lines from the house to the street is 4'' in dia.I had to replace mine , I used 6'' pipe.Cost was not very much higher. Used bagged cement at each joint near trees. That was 30 years age , I talked to present owner. They have not had any sewer problems. I felt job was very well done.

 

[Lombie]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Spot on, wssix99. Great perspectives. There are so many highly-qualified members in the Forum who can provide sound planning and construction advice. I was hoping someone would touch on some of the other related factors.

Unless someone is in a position to pay cash, their first step should be a phone call with a good lender.

For a few years after the housing market collapse, construction financing was very difficult to find. If a lender did offer it, their conditions were tough because declining property values created problems with appraisals. They didn't know what the property would be worth once it was completed.

Today, some lenders are offering programs again, but qualification guidelines remain strict and construction loan interest rates are high. It would **** to invest a lot of time, excitement, and energy in planning if financing wasn't feasible.

As wssix99 pointed out, there's also a race to roll the construction loan into a conventional one upon completion of construction. Nobody knows where interest rates will be in 12+ months, but there's a lot more room for them to rise than to fall...

Btw, depending on where you live, buying to build in a subdivision might be a good compromise. Financing is less complicated and some mass builders offer "semi-custom" options that could allow you to incorporate some of your preferences. Unfortunately, you'd still have to deal with an HOA.

Whether building from the ground up or existing construction, shopping for a new home is an exciting time. Have fun and happy hunting!


Sent from above

 

[ez-duzit]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Unless you simply have more money than you know how to spend, why build when there are so many houses for sale?

 

[strtcar]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Make at least 1 stall 11' wide or more, this way you can get a 2 post lift in there

 

[justanengineer]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Unless you simply have more money than you know how to spend, why build when there are so many houses for sale?

+1.

I'd suggest revisiting your "needs" and/or expanding your search. If youre using a realtor and relying on them to find you a home based upon your criteria, you should consider firing them for failing to do their job. Being in a good sized city like Cinncinatti, unless your criteria is unrealistic, common sense tells us that you should be able to find a house in a fairly short time period.

 

[Ross/Kzoo]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Not all developments have HOA. I find them to be a regional thing. I don't like HOA's because it's another way for the developer to get into your pockets. I would to the particulars of his overhead and how much he's getting paid for his expertise. Some HOA's maintain a common area and I'm sure don't lose any money on any of their "services". Around here are many "condominium plats". The developer can can get it approved at breakneck speeds and his road construction isn't accepted by the county or city road commissions. They do not plow or maintain those streets, you do. The first few years have low HOA fees but as the infrastructure deteriorates so does your bank account.

 

[csp]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Are you looking for someone else to be the general contractor or are you wanting to take this job on yourself?

 

[HoosierMark]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Being from SE Indiana and having a son and daughter owning houses in Cincinnati now, think about taxes (real estate and earnings taxes). That means look at the location and determine what the true cost of the location will be. A lot of Cincy people have moved to IN for the school funding situation. However, one school district has so much debt from rapid expansion that the taxes on homeowners are really high. Location is everything when you build. You can build, remodel, renovate but you will always be in the same location. Visit the site at different times to check on noise and air pollution. You may be surprised by how things change. Consider future growth of the area also. A house will be there a long, long time and areas change.
When orienting the house think about window placement in relation to furniture placement. Also think about orientation towards the sun with the windows. In the winter it is nice to have the sun stream in but in the summer you want it overhead. I prefer the back of the house to face south or east so I do not have that hot summer sun in the late afternoon when I want to sit outside.
Think about garage placement, if you can, keep the doors away from the north or west that will be much nicer in the winter winds and snow. Also, if you can, put a drain in the garage floor. If not, the snow often melts off the car and runs to the garage door and freezes the door tight to the floor.
I am very familar with SE Indiana real estate so if you are interested in coming west, PM with any questions you have and I will try to help you.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

The builder is everything ! He can make it painless or a living hell !!! I don't know how to pick a good one, but it is important.

Think seriously about extra electrical outlets and switches. Most builder put in the minimum. Bedroom ceiling fans are nice even with central air. Make sure they install the correct electrical box in the ceiling and run wire to the switch box by the door. My in-laws went one step further. Every duplex outlet in a bedroom is split. One is hot at all times, one is switched. Yes, they have 3 switches at the doorway.

A laundry tub in the garage is nice for washing up, even if you don't plan on having the washer and dryer out there. If you live in a cold area, make sure that those pipes can easily be drained for winter.

 

[HoosierMark]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I agree about the ceiling fans, I am having my house wired for one in each bedroom plus the garage and basement and porches. A friend has one in the garage and loves it in the summer for a nice cool breeze. I also put a 220 outlet up on the wall in the garage for a heater. I just want to take the temp up above 40 on days like today (-5 degrees)

 

[Chadwilliam1]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Thanks for all the good advice I have a lot of research to do.

 

[NES]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I forgot to mention as far as the width of garage go at least with 36' This way you can have garage doors with big widths on them. You'll still have plenty of room to open the door of the vehicles without worrying of hitting the walls.

 

[Autorotica]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I pulled 12/3 wire up to my ceiling fans from the switch. The black wire is switched and hooked to the light, the red wire is hot all the time and hooked to the fan. We use the pull chains to turn on/off the fans but the switch on the wall to control the light.

Chris

 

[metal tech]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I went thru this a few years ago. Visit every Open House you can, you may see something in the house that you'd like in your house that you didn't think of, take a pic of it!! Look at the house your in right now, what would you change if money was no object?? When you build from scratch you have the option to change anything you want before it's built, once it's done it expensive to change it. My realtor advised me to avoid a house with lots of hallways, it's dead space that is only used when your in it. If possible think about different construction methods/materials, 2x4's vs 2x6 walls or even ICF walls if your in an area with tornados or other extreme weather.

 

[lugnut71]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I just built a house in 2012 and put a lot of thought into it. Put outlets in my soffit for Christmas lights, floor drain in the garage, sink in garage, ceiling fans in one end of garage where exercise equipment is, ran speaker wires throughout garage and family room. Installed all the tv wiring up high in every room and hung all the tvs on wall and jacks/outlets are hidden behind them, put can lights in the soffit all around works really nice. I also put my crawlspace access in the garage instead of outside and love it, seems like I am under the house weekly. Even put nailers in the framing where I planned to hang TV's, mirrors and towel bars, worked awesome. I also insulated all my interior walls to keep noise down between rooms, was very well worth it.

 

[lugnut71]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

My old house had squeaky floors like crazy, so on the new build I glued and screwed every sheet of subfloor down, no nails, no staples. I know builder don't it that way cause it takes more time but its worth it years later.

 

[Ohmthis]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I just built a new home about 1.5 years ago. I have a few questions for you. Do you have an idea of what you want? Style, size, materials? Are you going to have a builder or sub it out yourself? Will you be doing any of the work?
We had to put up 30% to get a construction loan. I also agree with affordability of what you want. After we go the bids back for everything we wanted. We had to stop and go over wants and needs. I did about 60% of the work on my house and it really wore on me. My wife and I had our disagreements, but we had a plan and stuck to it. Being prepared is the best way to get through it. We had a 10% contingency for an oh sh1t things.do all the research you can on builders, taxes, lending, areas, plans, etc. Get multiple bids on it, and go from there. Good luck!!!

 

[Falcon67]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1561589675/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Good info here - get some background know-how so you can think better about the whole project.

 

[Streetbu]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I have never heard ANYONE say they like a HOA. Only heard complaints and problems about them, ESPECIALLY from car guys.

 

[nbears747]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

Just went through this. Wife and I got 2 little kids, had a small house, wanted more house and more garage space, wanted out of the HOA. Shopped the national builders in the area, wasn't impressed, all were WAY to expensive, all in strong HOA's. Eventually found a local builder that we hit it off with, was sub-contracting everything but had reasonable prices. The market was so strong in our area that no builder was signing contracts that were contingent on the sale of your current home so we signed for the new place, sold our current house, moved into temporary housing while the new place was being built, and then move into the new place once it was done. Brutal.

My advice: Think about building a house long and hard. Take your time and make a comprehensive list of what you and your wife MUST have in your new house. Take this list to your builder and get all prices up front, in writing. Make sure you know what is included what is not included, and what it may cost to change something during the build. Read the contract and understand everything in it. Fortify your marriage, and prepare to test it with waiting and stress on you and your family. Prepare yourself for some disappointment, every builder cuts corners and no house is perfect. Try to minimize any surprises by visiting the site often and bring up any concerns or questions promptly. Take lots of pics throughout the build. I only communicated with the builder by e-mail (which he hated) that way I had a record of who/what/when it was said. Worked great.

In the end we spent way more than we wanted, it took longer than we wanted, and if I never see the builder again it will be too soon, but we feel we got a good value for our money and we got our dream house and a really nice garage. Would I do it again? I don't know yet. I am happy with the house, hopefully it will hold up. Good luck to ya.

 

[wssix99]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

I have never heard ANYONE say they like a HOA.

I'm a car guy and like HOA's. They ensure that their owners have a stable investment, ensuring that neighbors won't do anything to undermine the value of their property. They also make my custom house look more special and keep libertarians out of the neighborhood.

 

[Kels]

Re: Building a House Pros/Cons Advie.

The builder is everything ! He can make it painless or a living hell !!!

That is so so so so true.

I Kinda of had a house built a year ago "manufactured home" so it was much easier and less in-depth then a full stick built. I have always wanted to have a house built that I designed, I still do! But after learning what I did during the site prep and everything with the current house, I am glad that I waited to design my own stick built and went a most cost effective way at the moment. I learned a lot!!! the experience will change how I handle the process of doing stick built if I get the chance to do it.

Here is some tips:
1. Your contractor/builder is so key! It is so important that you have a good connection with them and can communicate well! I can not stress this enough. You will be stressed building if you have poor communication or your contract doesn't return calls your stress level is going to sky rocket! not to mention things might not get done as you thought they would.

2. Get EVERYTHING in writing. EVERYTHING! When the contractor says oh don't worry about the pile of stumps from logging we will put it on the back of your property out of site... GET that in Writing, if he leaves and all you have is word of mouth and a pile of **** out your front door you need that contract!

2a. After you find a few contractors you like have them show you several of their houses in person not pics. Why??? Well if they have happy customers they will be able to show you some houses. Look at the quality, are things square, how good is the workmanship? You should also talk to prior customers, ask them if they where happy in the end also ask them is they where able to contact the builder and hear back from them easily, did they have any communication problems or surprises.

3. I would attend many open houses just to make a list of things you really really like and to see new ideas and products.

4. Think hard about where you have doors and such (outlets, cable hookups etc.) I ended up with a door that I wish I had moved 3 feet to the left and it would have made a big difference.

5. plan on delays especially waiting on the county for permits they can drag their feet county added 2 months to my build just waiting on them... oh they are good at making mistakes so watch them.

6. If you are restricted to a budget on your upgrades think hard about them We upgraded/spent more on structural/efficiency (Energy star home, insulation, windows, appliances, etc) I would go over board on the floor as well, screw and glue and at least 16 O.C. 12 if possible... hate squeaks!

7. If you do build it yourself, even if you do something simple id spend some extra on making your house YOURS. If you have always wanted a covered porch then do it, you will appreciate the personal touches when you are done.

8. Oh also if you know you want cherry hard wood floors and your getting quotes from the builders you need to make sure they know what special materials your looking at or your quote could vary greatly from the actual cost.

9. I would do a lot of ground work on what you want in finished product from square footage to door nobs find what you like. find a builder that has a similar style then meet with them with your style book/bag O goodies you collect.

Is building stressful... YES Is it rewarding... I think so!

My marriage did survive it! There where days we where both crazy stressed!

 

[gc427]

Hire only PROS and stay away from CONS!

Lots of good advice already here.

 

[mikegt4]

I too am a Cincinnati refugee, at least from the northern suburbs. I built my own house in western Butler county. Reily, Ross and Morgan townships all have a lot of nice non HOA homes available in a rural or semi-rural environment. Ross and Talawanda district schools are very good. Access to Hamilton, Harrison and Cincinnati is easy.

There is lots of great information posted here and I agree almost 100% with what '35 Dodge Hot Rod' said. Most houses seem to be built to minimum code and then the "must have" gingerbread is added on. I built my house with SIPS (structural insulated panels) which are a great way to build. I designed my house as well which was a great learning experience. I did all of my own work except for the foundation/concrete work. I have helped my son with a lot of repairs on his typical track house in Fairfield and I can say it's like comparing the build quality of a Yugo (his) to a Porsche (mine). For simplicity, a single story ranch with a full basement (daylight access would be great) would be the best in this area. Everyone around me has a pole barn or multi-car garage out back.

 

[nicksnothereman]

My wife and I are looking into building a house. I dont like the idea of an HOA but we can not seem to find what we want in a house in existing construction. What kind of wisdom is there on building a house. This will be our second home we have 2 kids and Our house now is very tight in space but the main reason for moving is the bad school district and location.


Thanks Chad.

Do you mean building your own house (with your hands) or paying someone to build it for you?

Depends on the area but here there are a ton of regulations and it's mostly hoa so finding "independent" land and having a house built is quite expensive. If you do it on the outskirts you have problems with utilities (here!) especially water (because this is the desert).

Anyway, you should always remember that when you're buying land you don't know what they're going to do to the surrounding land in the future. So, if you pay a ton of money then have a mcdonalds or a ********** built across the street you're pretty much stuck. At least with organized communities you have a decent idea about what you're getting and typically somewhat cheaper/more flexible for you to sell.

 

[MDSPHOTO]

Don't do it. We found a sociopath for a builder that we fired halfway through the build and finished it ourselves. People say its either the best or worst experience of your life and ours was the latter. Builder folded a week after we fired him and left us on the hook with suppliers and subs for thousands of dollars that we had already paid him for.

 

[TxFig]

I know I'm new here, so please be gentle.

Unless you simply have more money than you know how to spend, why build when there are so many houses for sale?

Why?
Because some people (myself) have more time available than money. And doing the work yourself can save a TON of money.



What the OP is asking is something my wife and I actually did 7 years ago. So "maybe" I am uniquely qualified to answer the OP's question....

My wife and I are looking into building a house. I dont like the idea of an HOA but we can not seem to find what we want in a house in existing construction. What kind of wisdom is there on building a house. This will be our second home we have 2 kids and Our house now is very tight in space but the main reason for moving is the bad school district and location.

There is so much to talk about I'm not sure were to begin. As I said, my wife & I did this 7 years ago.

Well... kinda. We actually started the construction 7 years ago. We began searching for the RIGHT property 19 years ago (yes, the property search took us 12 years). Part of the reason it took us that long was it took a while for my income to catch up to our needs/desires. But part of it is simply that it takes TIME for us to really mentally settle on what it was we wanted/needed - and with a project of this magnitude you want to have your plans fully fleshed out. IOW - know EXACTLY what it is you want to end up with before you begin framing the foundation. For us, that took 12 years.

Quick note to back track to something others have said. <soapbox> Building a house is no more stressful on a marriage than doing anything else with your spouse. If your marriage is good, it'll remain good. If it's on the rocks, it'll still be on the rocks. The old cliche' that "building a house will break up a marriage" is absolute nonsense. </soapbox>


Ok, back to the house.

Like you, detested HOA. And I didn't even live in one. But living in a city limits was bad enough (like when the street nazi aka "city code enforcement officer" came and cited us for our portable basketball goal hanging into the street ... when we lived on a cul-de-sac and ALL the neighborhood kids liked playing). So I had to find property where not only did I need to avoid an HOA, I needed a place where I could train my dogs, shoot my guns, and basically do whatever the ... I wanted. more of that 12years of looking...

But eventually we did find it.

The good aspect of waiting that long to find the right property is that it gave us plenty of time to draw house plans. Yes, we had looked through books of plans. And visited countless open houses to get design ideas. But in the thousands of plans we looked at, we could never find what we really wanted. So we bought graph paper and began drawing plans ourselves. We probably went through a dozen or more house plan layouts we liked, then decided to alter. In the end we decided to start with a list of what features we wanted, then design the house around those desires. For us, this list included:

• All of the kids bedrooms had to be EXACTLY the same size (with decent sized closets, also of the exact same size).
• "open" kitchen / dinning room / living room layout (ie. kind of all 1 big room)
• lots of "hidden" storage (ie. built-in hallway cabinets)
• no "funky" corners which create wasted space

Here is the plan we ended up with:

(continues)

 

[TxFig]

(continuing)

The next thing we had to do was decide how much of the work we COULD do and be WILLING to do ourselves.

Note that we knew that in order to afford this house, we knew we were going to have to do alot of the work ourselves.
Plus after looking at tons of new houses at open houses (and walking around at houses under construction), we knew there was alot of things we wanted to be done "our way" (to be blunt, too many builders do things "quick and easy" because it's cheaper and quicker).

We also knew that we did not have the know-how of how the entire process flows (ie. I would hate to pour the concrete and then figure out that a plumber should have roughed in the pipes that run under the building). Which means we knew even though we were going to do alot of the work ourselves, we still needed a builder/contractor to be in charge of the entire project.

I'll be honest - finding a builder would work with us the way we wanted was not easy. We talked to at least a dozen builders before we finally found one we liked and felt like we could trust. The guy we ended up picking was actually a fairly young guy who only built ~6-10 homes per year (all of them custom homes). Early on (before we signed any paperwork) we defined our relationship as:

"you are in charge. For those things we are going to do, we want you to treat us like a sub-contractor working for you. That means if we are doing something wrong or not doing it fast enough, you need to ride our butts."​

Maybe we were lucky, but it worked out to be a near perfect relationship.


Alright - this is already pretty long (for page 2). I'll finish up with a simple list of "things we did vs things other sub-contractors did). Btw: when I say "we", I am talking about me & my wife (both in our early 40's), & 3 teenage daughters (and for the electrical, a long-time electrician friend). I should also add that even on those things where a sub did the work, either me or my wife was on the site almost all the time (something I recommend even if they are doing all of the work....)

Things other sub-contractors did:

• foundation concrete
• basic framing of the house
• plumbing INSIDE the house (including the prep before foundation was poured)
• sheet rock walls & ceiling
• cabinet work (cabinet guy also did all the trim work)
• brickwork (outside and fireplace)
• A/C installation

What we did:

• site prep work (leveling ground,etc)
• All electrical work (including running computer, TV, & telephone wiring)
• All insulation
• outside plumbing
• wood floor installation
• All painting
• Daily worksite cleanup (sounds trivial, but it's a big deal)

I'm sure I'm forgetting something here.

 

[Ross/Kzoo]

Don't do it. We found a sociopath for a builder that we fired halfway through the build and finished it ourselves. People say its either the best or worst experience of your life and ours was the latter. Builder folded a week after we fired him and left us on the hook with suppliers and subs for thousands of dollars that we had already paid him for.

Sorry that you had a problem but that doesn't happen to everybody if they do their homework. I've had the same builder build me 2 houses and after 10 years he did an expansion and remodel and later this year will be building another house for me.