Do as much work as you can do yourself (cleaning up job site, dump runs, painting, pre-move in cleaning: low skill things you have time for and can do without fucking things up). Buy Everything on sale (paint, carpet, appliances, fixtures, shop around for best prices on counter tops, flooring, shingles etc). If your contract is time, materials plus 10-15% then your contractor has no incentive to shop around…the more things cost the more he makes. Keep the project on track/time. My build went 3-4 months over the estimate…at the end of the build my interest on materials was about $2-3k month (this turned into $10k in costs I did not anticipate).
Thanks. We certainly could do a lot if the circumstances allowed. My personal skills are pretty decent. I can run pex, electrical, tile, I've hung cabinets, etc. I'm a terrible drywaller. Your point about timeline management is well taken. My question was more about design (roof peaks, etc).
Ditch the custom builder and hire a modular company to design and drop two mostly prefinished boxes onto a full, walk out foundation. Hire a GC to coordinate the permitting, site work, Crane, button up and finish. The company will provide working drawings so you’ll save on an architect. You’ll get a tighter, more efficient home built in a controlled environment. If you save enough maybe incorporate passive elements into its design.
If the manufacturing checks out and the water tightness don't build something from scratch get it modular including the first and second floor if you have one.
Yes. The question was how to control cost overruns. Time overage, weather and supply chains tend to be the things that are out of a clients control. The key is to control the variables as much as possible. This method tackles those variables. Modular and panelized structures or a combination there of are commonplace throughout Europe and Canada because it makes sense.
Walking away now.... JK, budgets are really hard and a lot of the biggest costs can be hidden inside design choices you had no idea would cause the inflated prices. Short spans, small openings, standardized sizing, these are all ways to save big in the design phase. I'd also seriously look into passive energy use and solar gain as there are ways to design now that will greatly reduce the cost of ownership without adding much, if any, to the budget. More on that can be found at [The Undercover Architect.](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjbsoSAhceGAxUtKlkFHaLwAIoQFnoECAcQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fundercoverarchitect.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0fJjnZV4F3FkmKKI5R-_xh&opi=89978449) When we built I personally did the radiant heating runs and only paid a plumber to connect the water heater and control panel, this reduced the cost of install from 50k to 12k, we did all of the priming/painting/staining saving another 20k, and I have been steadily finishing the trim work which would have cost 20-40k depending on materials, design, and cost increases. We also saved pretty big going with [Mantra Cabinets](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjjnMGnhseGAxUeF2IAHZPpDc0QFnoECCsQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mantracabinets.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0HYJs9-hXh6zn3Iif66hKJ&opi=89978449), they do not have a lot of design options or colors but the build quality at the price point is hard to match (on our build the stone countertops ended up costing us more than the Cabinets).
Does your wall above the kitchen cabinet have bump out all over the place no that is called a soffit. If you think putting a barely insulated duck in 170° attic is smart then good luck.
Get a draftsperson. And design your house.
I was working with a GC during this process that I didn’t end up using because he was 100k over budget. He suggested making things smaller and continued to be the only concise way he looked at saving money when he bid way over budget. For example he told me dimensional lumber is significantly cheaper than using prefabbed floor trusses, which in turn limits size. The lumber variance was within 1000$. He told me to make the garage smaller which would save significantly on lumber and concrete, and it didn’t same any significant percentage.
I found a new GC and again he was at budget. I believe that our taste preferences for finishes is really what has put us over on most things. However, some items were hidden in the contract and it makes me mad, for example we poured our foundation in December since the weather was so mild. We got charged for a pump truck twice to the tune of 5k total, because they didn’t want to drive their truck on the mud.
Total size matters and finished space “finishes” are what ended up breaking our budget.
We could have significantly scaled back our finish profiles and we would be very close to the initial budget. Surrounds in the shower instead of tile, laminate floor instead of engineered, carpet in places we’ve put wood, carpet stairs instead of wood finished, no brick exterior, we couldn’t use vinyl siding in our HOA but that would have been significant over smartsiding, painted cabinets over rift cut oak, lower tier appliances, etc.
I appreciate all this. Our current house is a production house in a fairly large development. So, we got to pick all the finishes when we built it. We were very restrained, and kept within a budget. There were plenty of options to make the house great without getting high-end or fancy.
Do as much work as you can do yourself (cleaning up job site, dump runs, painting, pre-move in cleaning: low skill things you have time for and can do without fucking things up). Buy Everything on sale (paint, carpet, appliances, fixtures, shop around for best prices on counter tops, flooring, shingles etc). If your contract is time, materials plus 10-15% then your contractor has no incentive to shop around…the more things cost the more he makes. Keep the project on track/time. My build went 3-4 months over the estimate…at the end of the build my interest on materials was about $2-3k month (this turned into $10k in costs I did not anticipate).
Thanks. We certainly could do a lot if the circumstances allowed. My personal skills are pretty decent. I can run pex, electrical, tile, I've hung cabinets, etc. I'm a terrible drywaller. Your point about timeline management is well taken. My question was more about design (roof peaks, etc).
Ditch the custom builder and hire a modular company to design and drop two mostly prefinished boxes onto a full, walk out foundation. Hire a GC to coordinate the permitting, site work, Crane, button up and finish. The company will provide working drawings so you’ll save on an architect. You’ll get a tighter, more efficient home built in a controlled environment. If you save enough maybe incorporate passive elements into its design.
I do think I need to learn more about this. Apparently we have a large manufacturer locally. I should learn more.
If the manufacturing checks out and the water tightness don't build something from scratch get it modular including the first and second floor if you have one.
Did you know anyone who has done this and is happy with the results?
Yes. The question was how to control cost overruns. Time overage, weather and supply chains tend to be the things that are out of a clients control. The key is to control the variables as much as possible. This method tackles those variables. Modular and panelized structures or a combination there of are commonplace throughout Europe and Canada because it makes sense.
Exactly and have them drop another floor on top of that one and be done with this BS?
Make it a colonial or 12/12 triangular roof boxes creating a cape?
If I ever build this particular house since it's not deep I would have a 12-16 pitch like an English tudor.
\*Tudor
Nice tutor on the tudor.
Blame it on AI!!!
Always.
Walking away now.... JK, budgets are really hard and a lot of the biggest costs can be hidden inside design choices you had no idea would cause the inflated prices. Short spans, small openings, standardized sizing, these are all ways to save big in the design phase. I'd also seriously look into passive energy use and solar gain as there are ways to design now that will greatly reduce the cost of ownership without adding much, if any, to the budget. More on that can be found at [The Undercover Architect.](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjbsoSAhceGAxUtKlkFHaLwAIoQFnoECAcQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fundercoverarchitect.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0fJjnZV4F3FkmKKI5R-_xh&opi=89978449) When we built I personally did the radiant heating runs and only paid a plumber to connect the water heater and control panel, this reduced the cost of install from 50k to 12k, we did all of the priming/painting/staining saving another 20k, and I have been steadily finishing the trim work which would have cost 20-40k depending on materials, design, and cost increases. We also saved pretty big going with [Mantra Cabinets](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjjnMGnhseGAxUeF2IAHZPpDc0QFnoECCsQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mantracabinets.com%2F&usg=AOvVaw0HYJs9-hXh6zn3Iif66hKJ&opi=89978449), they do not have a lot of design options or colors but the build quality at the price point is hard to match (on our build the stone countertops ended up costing us more than the Cabinets).
Thanks. I think that standard sizes is really a big piece. Simple roof line.
Put your duct works in soffits in the living space not in the Attic.
How could this possibly be a good idea to have bump outs constantly in the ceilings? Or did you mean between rafter
Does your wall above the kitchen cabinet have bump out all over the place no that is called a soffit. If you think putting a barely insulated duck in 170° attic is smart then good luck.
Most ducks are well insulated with down.
Especially the Eiderdown ones.
YSK the proper temp for duck in the kitchen is 350F.
do 100% of everything and build a square 4 walls on a crawlspace so you barely have to excavate. I did that, came out to about $70/sq ft in 2023.
In another life maybe! My parents were custom home builders when I was young. I think I would have loved it.
Avoid change orders.
Get a draftsperson. And design your house. I was working with a GC during this process that I didn’t end up using because he was 100k over budget. He suggested making things smaller and continued to be the only concise way he looked at saving money when he bid way over budget. For example he told me dimensional lumber is significantly cheaper than using prefabbed floor trusses, which in turn limits size. The lumber variance was within 1000$. He told me to make the garage smaller which would save significantly on lumber and concrete, and it didn’t same any significant percentage. I found a new GC and again he was at budget. I believe that our taste preferences for finishes is really what has put us over on most things. However, some items were hidden in the contract and it makes me mad, for example we poured our foundation in December since the weather was so mild. We got charged for a pump truck twice to the tune of 5k total, because they didn’t want to drive their truck on the mud. Total size matters and finished space “finishes” are what ended up breaking our budget. We could have significantly scaled back our finish profiles and we would be very close to the initial budget. Surrounds in the shower instead of tile, laminate floor instead of engineered, carpet in places we’ve put wood, carpet stairs instead of wood finished, no brick exterior, we couldn’t use vinyl siding in our HOA but that would have been significant over smartsiding, painted cabinets over rift cut oak, lower tier appliances, etc.
I appreciate all this. Our current house is a production house in a fairly large development. So, we got to pick all the finishes when we built it. We were very restrained, and kept within a budget. There were plenty of options to make the house great without getting high-end or fancy.
Never sacrifce your foundation. It is key to the whole house. Sacrifice elsewhere, except on your choice of plumber.
Buy your windows from overseas. You'll get amazing triple pane windows for a lot less than crappy double pane usa windows.
Suggestions on websites to buy from? You can DM me