On Mar 25, 9:22 am, "RicodJour" wrote:
On Mar 25, 12:12 pm, wrote:


snip

He's got the 40K "savings" and how much time did he put in to earn
it? Would he have earned as much or more putting in those hours in
overtime at his regular job?

It's pointless to argue details for a specific case, as everyone's
situation is different. I am pointing out that there are a lot of
intangibles and hidden costs that must be taken into account if
someone is doing something other than pretending to understand what's
involved so they can proceed with building their house. If I
mentioned the increased risk of getting hurt traipsing around on a job
site, some might counter with with, "I have insurance." That does not
offset the increased risk. Similarly, all the things you and I have
learned over the years, some learned the _hard_ way, are not included
in books, anecdotes or covered by an architect's once a week visit.
And let's face it, the type of person that looks to be their own GC to
save money will rarely spring for the architect's paid site visits at
$125 a pop (or whatever). Rookie didn't mention an architect in any
capacity other than preparing "very detailed drawings." Have you ever
seen a set of plans that didn't have errors and omissions? Me
neither.

People point to change orders as being a contractor's way of gouging
the homeowner. Obviously that does happen with some contractors, but
that's the contractor, not the change order mechanism. If an owner
wants to move something, that change can cascade back through the
construction process, requiring existing work to be reworked to allow
the change. It also can interfere with the scheduled flow of work.
It's a disruption. People charge for disruptions. I know I am
preaching to the choir, and you are well aware of how it works, but a
newbie owner-builder probably doesn't. They're thinking, "Well, hell,
just pull out that one, add a trim piece and put in the new one. How
hard can it be?"


snip


There are no free lunches. If you think it's free, you've missed
something. That was all I was saying.

R

Folks,

A few remarks:
1 - Only the person doing the remodel can assess how much their hourly
cost is. It can range from $20 to $100. I do my math thinking
about how much I would pay the sub to do the job and if I could do it
with the same quality level. In many cases my answer is "yes" but I
am handy and a technical (engineering) background. Does my job
hourly rate is higher or lower? That would be comparing apples and
oranges. I have to think how much I am spending to have the job done
and if I can do it myself in a decent amount of time with a decent
quality.

2 - "Sweat Equity" - that is a major if one wants to increase the
value of his/her home without spending more than the home is worth.
And belive me, many people do that mistake. In many cases we have to
do the job ourselves not only because of budget constraints but also
to not throw money away. Unless the latter is not an issue. In my
case it is.

3 - A good architect will produce very good drawings that will require
minimum corrections. In my case she came to my house a couple times
and we took all measures. After that we just exchanged e-mails where
she sent me the drawing for me to check or I sent her photos to
clarify some doubts. Does it work for everyone? Yes if you can
read drawings and your architect is good and flexible. Actually,
she even made some changes we asked after the demolition and framing
started (due to some surprises that any old house has) without gauging
the cost. After framing is done there's no more need for the
architect since it's just plumbing, insulation, electrical and
drywalls...

4 - One example of savings. The average bid for the electrical was
$5k. I did everything myself, even adding a lot more more stuff, for
around $2k in material and about five weekends of labor. The change
orders would likely have brought the job to $6 or 7k. Installation
passed inspection with only one remark where I had to change one
junction box that was too small for the volume of wires and add one
extra outlet because of code distances. Was it worth the weekends
my wife and I did not go out (and spent more money in movies, etc?
You bet. When I add the other stuff such as the GC costs and other
things I did myself the savings go easily to the mid-five figures.
I simply could not afford it.

5 - I am not saying this is for everyone. The person has to dedicate
him/herself to it as a second (or primary) job. Not everyone will
find it gratifying. In my case it is. I like doing/fixing stuff
around the house and most of all, saving a lot of money in the
process.