Hello! I previously posted asking what were some must haves if you were to build a home. All great suggestions that I am trying to incorporate.
We closed on the land on Christmas Eve. We have a floor plan, but not finished yet. We also have to go through 3 sessions with an Architectural Review Board. The first one is coming up in 2 weeks.
We met and talked with 3 different architects before settling on this one. We sent them a list of must have’s, like to have’s and I had a pinterest board that I shared. We then met at the site with the builder so they could see the orientation of the land and any issues that had to be dealt with specifically. We sat together as they started drawing out the floor plan, and it was a real fun and interesting process. Once we were mostly happy with the floor plan the other architect drew the outside.
Now is the hard part of shrinking the house down a bit. That was just the - let’s get what you really want in there, with the correct proportions. I’m going for a cozy, lodge feel. We plan on 2 first floor bedrooms, 2 upstairs. The goal is also to also keep an eye on resale.
The builder knows our budget and is working with the architect. He then generates how much we can spend on each room, and item. What we save on one area can be used in another, etc. I’m hoping to go through the process and gain any insight and advice of what you did you loved, what you did that didn’t work out so great, and any recommendations of things you wished you considered.
The budget is the hardest part. It’s so easy to start going over! Be sure you do your homework of pricing out your must haves. When we built our last house, the budget our builder gave us for kitchen appliances was laughable.
We just went through it again with the renovations of our new house. The biggest thing was shopping around. I was able to save on my flooring and backsplash materials, along with my appliances and fixtures, by going through the vendors my contractor recommended instead of the ones that my kitchen designer suggested. Our contractor gave us his discount and we saved more than 50% for the same exact products and materials.
The budget is the toughest thing. Make sure your must-haves (specific to brand, etc) are actually in the budget.
When we did our addition, we replaced all our windows. 29 plus a slider. Despite telling the builder the brand we wanted, they subbed in another. By fixing that single item, the 10% over-budget allowance was more than gone. We had priced the windows ahead of time and knew the line item in the budget was way off. Pay attention to those details when you look at the estimate. The more items you can pick out/choose ahead of time, the better. By the time our construction started, I had chosen everything I cared about.
One thing that served us well when we built a previous house was to have a contract addendum with specs for everything that was important to us. For example, we specified the make & model of the HVAC system in detail. During construction, the HVAC sub tried to convince the builder to use a much cheaper system and the builder then tried to make the change without our okay. I was glad it was in the contract.
If you’re handy and can do simple DIY projects then you might save a great deal by delaying installation of tile backsplashes, upgraded lighting and switches, among other things. A certificate of occupancy may require a switch controlled light for each room but it doesn’t have to be anything fancy, even a bare bulb in a basic holder is okay. Your GC’s mark up could be 20% - 25% for the materials or fixture + installation. These days I’d pay it, since dh is banned from ladders after too many accidents, but at one time we saved thousands by doing a lot of finishing details ourselves.
I’d happily divert my budget from high end finishes to structure and systems that couldn’t easily be upgraded later. However, if you’re already thinking about resale then you may need to keep your finishes in line with what’s selling in that market.
Good luck! Hope it’s a fun project and that you’ll share the progress.
“If you’re handy and can do simple DIY projects then you might save a great deal by delaying installation of tile backsplashes, upgraded lighting and switches, among other things. A certificate of occupancy may require a switch controlled light for each room but it doesn’t have to be anything fancy, even a bare bulb in a basic holder is okay. Your GC’s mark up could be 20% - 25% for the materials or fixture + installation.”
This!! Great advice. Anything cosmetic that does not affect CofO can be done later (cheaper, fancier, using a brand your contractor doesn’t do, etc.).
I think the line item idea is a great one. When we redid our house we worked with someone who was related to a friend. Even then, kept trying to replace this and that. We held firm. WE will make the decisions. They know they can cut a lot and make more by changing things. Having specs in writing means if YOU want a change you get to keep the profit and you can compare items. Still, you’re brave. I don’t think we could ever build a house under budget. Just like too many extras. And DIY sounds like pulling teeth. I guess many contractors know that many people don’t want to lift a finger.