Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

Thanks,

FayeC

FayeC writes:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

I haven't, but I was around when a parent had it done, and had a close
friend go through it.

Custom built home you design and have built on land you've purchased
will generally cost you more because you lose the economy of scale a
development brings to the table, but that can be offset by the markup
you save by not having to pay a developer for their risk taking on the
whole deal, but the big benefit is that you'll get exactly what you
want, and for a given price tag, you might find yourself enjoying more
land than you would in an ROI-minded development.

Your experience and final price though, will be very strongly
dependent on the general contractor/builder you select.

Marriages need to be strong to endure the fun of this process. I'm
not sure I would embark upon it without spending some time with a real
estate attorney as well, to make sure your builder and suppliers are
effectively held to task.

I guess it's hard to make any reliable generalizations I'm afraid.
But here are some things to think about:

If the contractors in your area are kept so busy with high volume
steady work from developers, then what you can save in markup by
cutting the developer out of the supply chain might not get offset by
what you pay a general contractor to build one home for a single
owner, versus gleefully building a boatload of homes insulated from
direct contact with us pain in the ass homeowners.

If you have the savvy and network of trades folks such that you can do
your own general contracting (i.e. pick the plumber, get them to do
their ****, pick the electrician, hold them to their word, pick the
framing folks, etc...), then you've got a shot at saving money and
getting exactly what you want, but instead of dealing with one pain in
the butt unreliable unresponsive member of the trades named "General
contractor" or "builder", you'll be dealing with a lot more folks.
:-)

Best Regards,
--
Todd H.
http://www.toddh.net/

FayeC wrote:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?

Yep

I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...

The pros to building are that you get some influence on the design, floorplan,
materials and finishes used. You may also be permitted to trade some sweat
equity (ie painting, cleaning services, etc) for a price reduction or upgrade.
The level of influence depends on whether you use a truely custom builder, or
are buying from one of the production line builders (ie Centex, Pulte, etc.).

The cons are that on an all things being equal basis, new construction is
usually more expensive than existing homes. Of course all things aren't equal,
and a hot neighborhood near good schools with older housing can trump a new
subdivision in the boonies.

You also will have a lot of expenses with a new home that you don't have in an
existing home. Things like back yard landscaping & window treatments.

Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....

If your local new construction market is that hot, you are going to have a very
difficult time finding a good contractor. Don't even think about acting as your
own contractor if you've never built a house before. Among other things, you
will never get the "good" subs to work for you and thus will be stuck with the
ones who can't find an established contractor to work for. That should tell you
loads right there.

My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

It sounds like you would be far better off buying an existing home right now and
start the long term planning for when your son is out of school...

"FayeC" wrote in message
...
Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

Thanks,

FayeC

You don't say where you are, but a building lot may be very expensive in a
built up area due to not many being available. In New York City and suburbs
people buy existing homes and tear them down for building lots to build
larger modern homes.

FayeC wrote:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

Thanks,

FayeC
Using the same materials building the same house you will generally save
1/3 maybe more. It depends on what the Real Estate people are getting
for homes whether in a development or not.
There is generally no ecomomy of scale. The Realtors sell what the
Market for that quality of home is.

On Thu, 29 Dec 2005 18:19:07 -0600, mortimer wrote:

Using the same materials building the same house you will generally save
1/3 maybe more. It depends on what the Real Estate people are getting
for homes whether in a development or not.
There is generally no ecomomy of scale. The Realtors sell what the
Market for that quality of home is.

It's been a long time since I have seen so much garbage in a single post.
You obviously know nothing of the building industry.

"mortimer" wrote in message
...
FayeC wrote:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

Thanks,

FayeC
Using the same materials building the same house you will generally save
1/3 maybe more. It depends on what the Real Estate people are getting
for homes whether in a development or not.
There is generally no ecomomy of scale. The Realtors sell what the
Market for that quality of home is.

Exactly how does an individual get land, improvements, building materials
and subcontractors cheaper than builders such as Toll and Hovnanian?

On Thu, 29 Dec 2005 14:22:39 -0500, FayeC
wrote:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

You should be concerned. What happens if you own the land, have the
house built and it is screwed up? Well, if You can't live in it
without paying a ton of extra money to fix problems, you either pay
the money or try to find somebody else who wants a screwed up house.
If you buy from a builder and they own the land and there is a problem
you walk and they get to find somebody else. I doubt you'd save any
money anyway; you'd either have to find a builder who wasn't busy with
their own stuff to do yours, or be your own general contractor and try
to find decent subs who weren't busy doing 50 houses for the developer
down the street; neither prospect is likely to be pleasant. It may
not be what you want to hear, but if you can't find a pre-owned house
and can't afford a new one in a development, you're probably better
off renting.

catalpa wrote:
"FayeC" wrote in message
...

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

Thanks,

FayeC


You don't say where you are, but a building lot may be very expensive in a
built up area due to not many being available. In New York City and suburbs
people buy existing homes and tear them down for building lots to build
larger modern homes.



Does not that house look weird: a new, big modern house surronded by
a bunch of old, small bungallows?

"Chris Hill" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 29 Dec 2005 14:22:39 -0500, FayeC
wrote:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch instead of build a built
house?
I mean....what are the pros and cons about building versus buying...
Our local market has been over inflated by several new developments
and while it was feasible to buy a house here it is not anymore but we
need to stay in the area as my son goes to a special school in town.
I am wondering if it would be cheaper to buy land/lot and then build
the house ourselves....
My concern is in regards to dirty contractors and all that....
Any tips and tricks passed along will be appreciated.

You should be concerned. What happens if you own the land, have the
house built and it is screwed up? Well, if You can't live in it
without paying a ton of extra money to fix problems, you either pay
the money or try to find somebody else who wants a screwed up house.
If you buy from a builder and they own the land and there is a problem
you walk and they get to find somebody else. I doubt you'd save any
money anyway; you'd either have to find a builder who wasn't busy with
their own stuff to do yours, or be your own general contractor and try
to find decent subs who weren't busy doing 50 houses for the developer
down the street; neither prospect is likely to be pleasant. It may
not be what you want to hear, but if you can't find a pre-owned house
and can't afford a new one in a development, you're probably better
off renting.
What, you never heard of custom builders? Not everyone does cookie cutters.

aem sends...

We are currently building a house. We bought 2 acres of land and 9
months later started construction with a General Contractor. Where we
are building, there are no major home builders in large developments
but we didn't want subdivision living, either. We spoke with 4 or 5
general contractors who we contacted because they were recommended by
numerous people in the community. We also looked at homes under
construction by each of the contractors and in a couple of cases talked
to the home owners (while the contractor was not there!). You can also
call the local builder's supply warehouses and ask about the
contractors because they will know about various contractors and if
they pay their bills - If they aren't paying their bills then they
might be having financial trouble.

It has been our experience that it is more expensive to build a custom
home then to buy an existing home. Let me follow that by clarifying
that we are building a truly custom home that I designed. It is not a
home that is a stock plan from a mass home builder where they 'tweak'
things and call it custom. We are selecting everything from the brand
and style of windows and doors and stair ballusters to the toilets.
The builder doesn't build large quantites of the same home and get
great pricing on materials.

Pro: You get to choose everything yourself.
Con: You get the shock of what things really cost.

We looked at existing homes but couldn't find what we wanted in the
area. Another thing to consider is that although it may cost more to
build a home you should have less money in initial upkeep repairs... at
least that's what I'm hoping for!

Another thing, we had gas heat before that was costing a lot to heat
the home. The new house will have geothermal which is much less
expensive to operate. Along the same lines, our new home in general
will be more energy efficient just because of the improved building
materials (and also the good windows we put in).

Building is not for everyone. It takes a lot of my time and causes a
lot of stress. We also had to sell our house and move into an
apartment temporarily before we could build.

You also can go to a home builder that builds in developments and some
will build their stock plans on your land and it can be less than a
custom home. In our research, these homes were ok. I have several
relatives that went that route and are happy with their decision
(somewhat!) and it cost them less than what we are paying. When
looking at their model homes, it may help to have someone with you that
can look past the pretty furnishings and wallcoverings and look at
details of the trim work, structure, and building techniques. Heck,
just walking through the second floor of one of the model homes, I
couldn't believe how much the floors bounced and doors didn't close
(some hardware was even falling off).

My advice, talk to people in your community- a lot of people - and see
what they are saying about the builders around you.

http://www.hadd.com/reading.php I have read several of the books on
this page and particularly recommend "Your New House," before you even
settle on a builder. Also, the book "Better Houses..." has a website
with supplementary material, very good for avoiding design mistakes
that aren't always that obvious until you live with them. I think
these two especially would have made every house purchase better for
me, and would have allowed me to find out some things in time, about a
bad builder, that I unfortunately didn't find out until it was too
late. If you get "Your New House," DON'T get a 1st or 2nd
edition...they may have been good when they were new, but they aren't
up to date enough. Get a 3rd at least. The newest, I think, is the
4th edition.

As for pro's and con's, IMO the pro's are that if you have a really
good builder you should get a better quality house than most, and get
what you want. But the reality is that many people have problems with
builders skipping steps or making mistakes, and not fixing it. If you
educate yourself so you can choose the good kind of builder, and spot
the mistakes yourself, you're ahead. IMO buying an existing home means
you just can't see how well it's built as easily. But there are
certainly some good homes available, that beat most new homes today
hands down. Get an inspection, new or not.

On Thu, 29 Dec 2005 14:22:39 -0500, someone wrote:

Has anybody here built a house from scratch...

Yes.

Several times.

I want a custom design. I find a unique site conveniently located,
and then design a house to suit THAT SITE. But then I have degree in
Architecture, as well as years in commercial construction.

Most people's DIY designs look it. They are usually crap (generally,
the people only design "in plan" and not in 3D).

Most people will screw up the contracting part royally, and NOT
because of "dirty" contractors. A professional contractor expects
professional specs, professional decision making (time is money), and
a professional General Contractor who knows where each trade's
boundaries are.

It is a huge PITA for them to deal with an amateur who doesn't know
squat, expects the contractors to be mind readers, ASSumes the
contractor knows the owner wants something that isn't called out in
the plans and specs, and then accuses the contractor of being "dirty"
for insisting on sticking to the contract (and wanting extra money to
deviate from the contract, i.e. "change orders").

Bottom line - if you have to ask, you should NOT do it. TANSTAAFL.


Reply to NG only - this e.mail address goes to a kill file.

(v) wrote:

Most people's DIY designs look it. They are usually crap (generally,
the people only design "in plan" and not in 3D).

As are most of the "book" or "online" home plans. They seem to be either 26 year
old designs, or the same plan with 100 different variations in closet placement.

Would love to see some current designs.

"Clark W. Griswold, Jr." wrote in message
...
(v) wrote:

Most people's DIY designs look it. They are usually crap (generally,
the people only design "in plan" and not in 3D).

As are most of the "book" or "online" home plans. They seem to be either
26 year
old designs, or the same plan with 100 different variations in closet
placement.

Would love to see some current designs.

It is a case of form following function- you start with a footprint of size
X, and have similar requirements (kitchen, Y bedrooms, Z garage bays, so on
and so forth. ) The odds are the designs 2 people come up with will have
elements in common. As long as people live in square houses, and lumber
comes in square 2-foot increments, houses will likely end up staying pretty
much the same. The biggest change in last 75 years has been the trend to
more open plans, and lower ceilings (except for great rooms and entry
halls). But that is likely a function of modern HVAC systems allowing people
to afford to heat the whole house.

Now if cost is no object, of course, you can build a sculpture to live in
shaped however you want. But for most of us, a house is a financial stretch,
so we want to get the most space we can per dollar of materials, so we end
up with the same dozen or so boxes, stacked to fit our lot and lifestyle.

'V' is right about most people's design thinking being 2D. My father is an
experienced designer, much better than I will ever be at it. I have watched
the design process all my life, as he goes from clients requirements list
and stack of clippings, through the various meetings to shake things out,
and comes up with stuff that flows well, is actually buildable (unlike what
some newbie architects turn out their first year), and looks good on the
lot. He thinks in 3D. He must be doing something right- he has plenty of
repeat clients, as they move up the career or family size ladders.

aem sends...