Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Thinking of building a house and getting really excited. We are currently living in about 1350 sf...which is not really big enough,but we have survived....We have an idea to build a house about that size that we can evenutually add on a large master suite and more living space. Anyone ever done that? We really really want to be free of a mortgage.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 http://www.familyhomeplans.com/plan_details.cfm?PlanNumber=99690&src=search Something like this is what we have in mind.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Building is not for the faint of heart. Be really sure you're on the same page with your choices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyontheFarm Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Very Pretty plans. My girl friend is a custom home builder. She says that the couples who plan really well; are easier to work with and are happier when they move into the home. If you aren't building it yourself, talk to other people the builder has built for. Find out the good, the bad, the ugly. Just because a company finishes early every single time, doesn't mean the desire of quality was there. KWIM? Take your time planning, talk over everything, make one of those building portfolios and get samples for basically everything you are going to use to build your home. If it's not in writing then plan like it won't happen. Have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Building is not for the faint of heart. Be really sure you're on the same page with your choices. We built once. We loved our end product and we were pleased with our contractor overall, however some of his sub-contractors were so maddening that I thought we'd lose our minds. Paint subs that decided they didn't like our paint choices and arbitrarily painted the way they liked it thinking we would fall in love with their plan and then delayed closing and possession by 10 days while they redid it. Exterior steps built incorrectly, didn't meet code, because sub-contractor slobbed them up without measuring properly so that he could get home to watch a basketball game. Carpet installed incorrectly....we found the carpet guy sitting in the middle of the floor of the living room watching football on a t.v. he'd brought with him...meanwhile all around him the worst carpet seams you've seen went unattended. Subs that tracked paint from the outside across the newly installed carpet inside and didn't feel they should have do to anything about it. Kitchen cabinet maker who built THE WRONG CUPBOARDS and then told the contractor to live with it. Now, that one ended up being in our favor because he built a GORGEOUS set we could not have afforded and ended up having to install them for the original, far lower price of the cabinets we'd ordered....that one worked out! You get my drift. The entire process took six months longer than the original estimate and through it all, I ended up becoming good friends with the building inspector! :001_huh: And....we had a "good" contractor. The house was wonderful when it was finally done. It is just something that only a couple with a solid marriage should attempt because it is very, very stressful. There is immense satisfaction when it is done right. Oh, and don't start me on the landscapers....:glare: Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyB in TN Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 I'm a builder. We often build houses for people who walk through our houses in subdivisions where we are building several at a time and they love the houses and the quality but want it in a different place or a different floor plan, etc. I recommend finding a house you like with the quality you are expecting and then find the builder who built it. Get everything in writing, pay attention to the reputation of the builder. It is a good idea to understand that it is more expensive to build right now than it is to buy a pre existing home. Have fun with it, it is not a life or death endeavor, it is a house. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 The house was wonderful when it was finally done. It is just something that only a couple with a solid marriage should attempt because it is very, very stressful. There is immense satisfaction when it is done right. Oh, and don't start me on the landscapers....:glare: Faith :iagree::iagree: That's what I was trying to say. That's stress on TOP of job stress, family stress. It never goes right. It just doesn't and that's OK, you just have to be really honest with the process when you go into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 :iagree::iagree: That's what I was trying to say. That's stress on TOP of job stress, family stress. It never goes right. It just doesn't and that's OK, you just have to be really honest with the process when you go into it. :iagree: We've done it twice. The original house and the rebuild. Dh did a lot of the work as well. I know a lot who have built as well. There is a lot to it. Nearly always there is something(s) that goes wrong, unexpected expenses, delays etc. It is hard to visualize everything (at least for me) so it is hard to get everything perfect, regardless of how much you plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 We built and then added on when the triplets were born. Started out with three bedrooms, three baths, a couple of family rooms and a small laundry room. Kitchen, dining room. Attached garage. All one level. When we added on we converted the garage into a huge laundry room, made the existing laundry room more of a hall. Added a big room we used as a schoolroom and a new garage downstairs then made everything on top of that the master bedroom, walk in closet, bath, deck. It was easy and inexpensive to build up after we started on the downstairs. Moved the girls into the old master bedroom with their own bath and then the three boys shared two bedrooms and a bathroom. We were on the opposite side of the house and upstairs, and when the triplets were very little I had a bed in their room for a while. Now it's nice to be removed from all the teens! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 :bigear::bigear::bigear: We're looking at having a home custom built in another 3 yrs or so. Just taking notes :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 When we were considering building we looked at garage plans with apartments attached or above. Then we could live there while we built a regular house. Never happened, but I looked at thousands of house and garage plans. I like your plan, but those secondary bedrooms are quite small. I'd probably forgo the garage for a bigger secondary bedrooms, but that's just me. As far as the building? You truly need to know what you're getting into. It can be stressful, it can take longer than you think, there are a thousand and one daily details to concern yourself with. (This is all from watching dh in the business for years). Delays are expected, misunderstandings happen. You really need to be a good place in your marriage, emotionally, financially, and able to handle a good deal of anxiety. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaKinVA Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 We're finishing up a custom home now. We'd definitely do it again, but we still learned a lot. First, plan, plan, and plan some more. Go ahead and bid out some costs of finishing (to give you an idea of what things cost), However, whatever house you build will depend upon the lot dimensions, easements, frontage, slope, etc. You really can't plan effectively until you have a lot. The builder and the contract...there are different types of contracts, know what kind you are getting. Our loan officer (and my husband and I) thought we were getting a cost-plus type of contract. It was a whole-project type of contract, which means our builder kept all of the mark-up for stuff we did, even though we paid for it all. He gave us "credits" for actual cost of what *he* would have put in. That, and make sure your builder's estimates of the house you're actually building...not based upon a different house he build 5 years ago :glare:. We got hit with a bill at the end of the project, after I had carefully bid out the job and planned every part of it. Hence, we are selling our home to wipe out the debt, and going to rent...unless dh's job steps in and changes those plans in the next few weeks. Would we do it again? Yes. I was able to find really great quality things, for incredible prices. DH and I did a lot of the finish work, and for the most part got a pretty nice house out of the deal. We've learned some hard lessons, and would be much more careful about the builder contract (what's included, not included, overs, etc.). In fact, the plan is for us to build with my parents in 4 years or so, if the gov't doesn't transfer us to Norfolk. Best wishes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 We had our house custom built. It was the best experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat. We very much enjoyed the process. We had only one minor snag (a window was put in the wrong spot) but since we visited the site every day, we spotted it when they were framing the house and called the builder and the next day it was corrected. Our house is a split level. We couldn't afford to do the whole thing right away so we just had the upstairs finished and left the lower level as a giant basement. Few years later we had saved enough money to pay cash to finish the downstairs. So depending on the style that is definitely a doable option. Even with severe rain delays our house was finished in 4 months. But if you are doing the work yourselves, I'm sure it will take longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jar7709 Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Our current home was a semi-custom build, similar to the one you've posted but larger (4bd/2ba, great room, 2100 sq ft). The builder had something like 9 home plans to choose from and while there were options in choosing cabinet colors, extra skylights, stuff like that, they were not as flexible as many builders. But, we loved their standard options and upgrades and the house plans were laid out in the practical manner we wanted, so it worked out well. Yes, it was stressful and took about a year start to finish, which was not too bad for this area, but added to that stress was that I became pg during that interval and near the end it looked like the baby would arrive before the house did. Luckily, we were able to move in with three weeks to spare, during the hottest part of the summer....I think the builders took pity on me when they saw this hugely-pg lady waddling around an unfinished house stressing out, they were afraid I'd drop that baby right then and there. ;) I might not recommend that approach, but it proved to be pretty good motivation to getting the project finished on time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 We accepted an offer on our house! Closing first of August. Now the race is on to find a place to live. Ugh. So happy/excited/nervous/anxious/scared. Not complaining because after all this is what we prayed for. As to building....I forgot the very important point that my dh would be contracting the build and doing A LOT of the work himself. He has 20 years of construction experience before he went back to school for engineering. What we HOPE we can do is find land and get a house in the dry with the cash we have. We are working those figures up now...if we can do that we will then live in it and finish it as we go and have no mortgage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 When we were considering building we looked at garage plans with apartments attached or above. Then we could live there while we built a regular house. Never happened, but I looked at thousands of house and garage plans. I like your plan, but those secondary bedrooms are quite small. I'd probably forgo the garage for a bigger secondary bedrooms, but that's just me. As far as the building? You truly need to know what you're getting into. It can be stressful, it can take longer than you think, there are a thousand and one daily details to concern yourself with. (This is all from watching dh in the business for years). Delays are expected, misunderstandings happen. You really need to be a good place in your marriage, emotionally, financially, and able to handle a good deal of anxiety. The house we just sold (!!!) has 3 bedrooms...the master is a good size, but the two small ones are 10 X 10 and that is just. not. big enough. So I agree about the small bedrooms. Dh sent me another plan this morning that is 2400 sf which we do not think we can afford, but he thinks he can cut it down without destroying the basic lay out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 Our current home was a semi-custom build, similar to the one you've posted but larger (4bd/2ba, great room, 2100 sq ft). The builder had something like 9 home plans to choose from and while there were options in choosing cabinet colors, extra skylights, stuff like that, they were not as flexible as many builders. But, we loved their standard options and upgrades and the house plans were laid out in the practical manner we wanted, so it worked out well. Yes, it was stressful and took about a year start to finish, which was not too bad for this area, but added to that stress was that I became pg during that interval and near the end it looked like the baby would arrive before the house did. Luckily, we were able to move in with three weeks to spare, during the hottest part of the summer....I think the builders took pity on me when they saw this hugely-pg lady waddling around an unfinished house stressing out, they were afraid I'd drop that baby right then and there. ;) I might not recommend that approach, but it proved to be pretty good motivation to getting the project finished on time! That is so cute. :) I won't be able to pull that trick though. That ship has sailed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 We accepted an offer on our house! Closing first of August. Now the race is on to find a place to live. Ugh. So happy/excited/nervous/anxious/scared. Not complaining because after all this is what we prayed for. As to building....I forgot the very important point that my dh would be contracting the build and doing A LOT of the work himself. He has 20 years of construction experience before he went back to school for engineering. What we HOPE we can do is find land and get a house in the dry with the cash we have. We are working those figures up now...if we can do that we will then live in it and finish it as we go and have no mortgage. YEAH! This is the way to go. If your dh is in the driver's seat and has the experience to back it up, you'll be soooo much happier with your end process and will have control over the subs when you do need to hire something out. It will take longer. But, I do think it is the better way to go. We did the entire house renovation here (taking a 100+ year old church and turning it into a home) ourselves. It took two years and was a bazillion times less stressful than our other building experience even though DH had all of the physical labor while working a regular job. We were just really patient and made sure dh took breaks. :hurray: Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 The house we just sold (!!!) has 3 bedrooms...the master is a good size, but the two small ones are 10 X 10 and that is just. not. big enough. So I agree about the small bedrooms. Dh sent me another plan this morning that is 2400 sf which we do not think we can afford, but he thinks he can cut it down without destroying the basic lay out. :party: on the contract. I would also consider having a trailer brought in (if you can) and build a garage. That way all the tools would be there and safe, especially if they are dh's. But that's obviously not as exciting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 :party: on the contract. I would also consider having a trailer brought in (if you can) and build a garage. That way all the tools would be there and safe, especially if they are dh's. But that's obviously not as exciting. Do you mean a trailer like to live in while the house is being built? Dh has mentioned having a semi trailer on site to store materials and tools safely... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 We had our house custom built. It was the best experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat. We very much enjoyed the process. We had only one minor snag (a window was put in the wrong spot) but since we visited the site every day, we spotted it when they were framing the house and called the builder and the next day it was corrected. Our house is a split level. We couldn't afford to do the whole thing right away so we just had the upstairs finished and left the lower level as a giant basement. Few years later we had saved enough money to pay cash to finish the downstairs. So depending on the style that is definitely a doable option. Even with severe rain delays our house was finished in 4 months. But if you are doing the work yourselves, I'm sure it will take longer. Dh seems to think he can get it in the dry in about 3 months. He will sub out some things---I will insist...I don't want to see him kill himself...he ain't no spring chick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 We're finishing up a custom home now. We'd definitely do it again, but we still learned a lot. First, plan, plan, and plan some more. Go ahead and bid out some costs of finishing (to give you an idea of what things cost), However, whatever house you build will depend upon the lot dimensions, easements, frontage, slope, etc. You really can't plan effectively until you have a lot. The builder and the contract...there are different types of contracts, know what kind you are getting. Our loan officer (and my husband and I) thought we were getting a cost-plus type of contract. It was a whole-project type of contract, which means our builder kept all of the mark-up for stuff we did, even though we paid for it all. He gave us "credits" for actual cost of what *he* would have put in. That, and make sure your builder's estimates of the house you're actually building...not based upon a different house he build 5 years ago :glare:. We got hit with a bill at the end of the project, after I had carefully bid out the job and planned every part of it. Hence, we are selling our home to wipe out the debt, and going to rent...unless dh's job steps in and changes those plans in the next few weeks. Would we do it again? Yes. I was able to find really great quality things, for incredible prices. DH and I did a lot of the finish work, and for the most part got a pretty nice house out of the deal. We've learned some hard lessons, and would be much more careful about the builder contract (what's included, not included, overs, etc.). In fact, the plan is for us to build with my parents in 4 years or so, if the gov't doesn't transfer us to Norfolk. Best wishes! Wow Lisa. THAT is the kind of thing that terrifies me....but dh knows all about this stuff so I feel fairly confident.... I saw you mention building again soon and was :confused: because I thought you just finished a house! Makes sense now. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 YEAH! This is the way to go. If your dh is in the driver's seat and has the experience to back it up, you'll be soooo much happier with your end process and will have control over the subs when you do need to hire something out. It will take longer. But, I do think it is the better way to go. We did the entire house renovation here (taking a 100+ year old church and turning it into a home) ourselves. It took two years and was a bazillion times less stressful than our other building experience even though DH had all of the physical labor while working a regular job. We were just really patient and made sure dh took breaks. :hurray: Faith That is encouraging....2 years is a long time, BUT a renovation like what you are describing is MUCH more work than building a house from the ground up. Or so dh tells me. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennsmile Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Enjoy building. We love our house mostly. Things I would have done different, bigger kitchen, smaller bedrooms, bigger closets for food storage and bigger kids bath. ;) Love my wood stove, my bedroom & bath. Wish my laundry room was bigger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 That is encouraging....2 years is a long time, BUT a renovation like what you are describing is MUCH more work than building a house from the ground up. Or so dh tells me. ;) Absolutely. We were trying to preserve as much of the original woodwork as possible and think of creative solutions for getting the necessary rooms into the space while working with pre-1900 construction. Not an easy task! Plus, so much had to be brought up to code and it's easier to just wire and plumb from scratch than fix and hook up to the existing. Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WistfulRidge Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 We accepted an offer on our house! Closing first of August. Now the race is on to find a place to live. Ugh. So happy/excited/nervous/anxious/scared. Not complaining because after all this is what we prayed for. As to building....I forgot the very important point that my dh would be contracting the build and doing A LOT of the work himself. He has 20 years of construction experience before he went back to school for engineering. What we HOPE we can do is find land and get a house in the dry with the cash we have. We are working those figures up now...if we can do that we will then live in it and finish it as we go and have no mortgage. Congrats!! You're living my dream... so keep us updated :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted June 20, 2012 Share Posted June 20, 2012 Do you mean a trailer like to live in while the house is being built? Dh has mentioned having a semi trailer on site to store materials and tools safely... Dh seems to think he can get it in the dry in about 3 months. He will sub out some things---I will insist...I don't want to see him kill himself...he ain't no spring chick. I mean like a mobile home. You could sell it afterwards to recoup the cost. We ended up buying a fixer-upper and dh spent about two months getting it ready while we lived at my parents. It is absolutely a dream to live in something my dh spent so much time and care finishing. It's a 1920s bungalow with all of the original charm left. He was even able to save my original floor to ceiling pantry in the kitchen. There is something special about living in a space you know your man built. Really there is. We've been married almost 20 years and remodeling something since, but most of our houses were in various stages of completion. This one is mostly done. It's just a cool feeling, so if can grab that, I would. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted June 20, 2012 Author Share Posted June 20, 2012 I mean like a mobile home. You could sell it afterwards to recoup the cost. We ended up buying a fixer-upper and dh spent about two months getting it ready while we lived at my parents. It is absolutely a dream to live in something my dh spent so much time and care finishing. It's a 1920s bungalow with all of the original charm left. He was even able to save my original floor to ceiling pantry in the kitchen. There is something special about living in a space you know your man built. Really there is. We've been married almost 20 years and remodeling something since, but most of our houses were in various stages of completion. This one is mostly done. It's just a cool feeling, so if can grab that, I would. I 'get' this. I LOVE what my dh can do with his hands. He is so talented and such a pleaser...I heart him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Just seconding what Faith and Mouse said... building a home together was the catalyst that destroyed my parents marriage. When my father started talking about building a home with his current wife, my mother literally snorted (they ended up buying instead - whew!). But when I hear about people who have made it work and gotten a home they love, then I know some people make it work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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