     Patricia Holly (Househunting) | Thursday, January 11, 2001 - 04:02 pm 
I am curious about a cost difference between a house already standing (let's say brand new) and buying the property and hiring someone to build the same house.
I don't like the new housing developments going up around me. I feel like I am starring in the Truman Show. I love the older homes in the area but many of them need major renovations that I don't have the skill to undertake. I have come across several blueprints for old styled homes using new materials and updates in the important areas such as the kitchen and bathroom making it ideal. There are nice pieces of land available to build on since we are still in a relatively rural area. What are the drawbacks to doing it this way in terms of the mortgage and total cost of the house? |
| Christine Baker (Admin) | Thursday, January 11, 2001 - 08:50 pm
There are actually entire books on this subject, and I think I could write one myself.
I found that there are three main problems:
1) finding a good builder who CARES about what you want
2) finding quality building materials
3) finding out what you want and need
Last June I had somebody build a 16x24 porch with the framing for a "possible" enclosure. I'm still fixing the screwups, especially the leaks the guy caused the way he attached it to the wall. And he built it so high that one of the doors to the house scrapes on the porch floor, and I could list another 10 "defects."
Getting decent lumber in quantity is almost impossible in AZ. Half the lumber that was delivered he had sent back. Still, I now got the first broken 2x6 at one corner and one of the big horizontal beams is twisting so bad, don't know what to do about that at all.
Just about ALL rafters were black or green with mold.
Inside house walls I'd use metal studs, and I've started to manually pick out lumber at the Home Depot whenever I get near one and have the time.
I've never met anyone who didn't have at least some problems with their builder. One woman actually got a job at the local hardware store so she'd learn who sucks and who doesn't. Still, her builder ignored her request for a bathtub you can lay back in. It was the one thing she had really wanted.
I know a couple who built their house themselves, with the help of friends, when they retired about 10 years ago. It took over a year, but they got what they wanted and are happy.
The coolest thing is that I don't think there's a single nail in the entire house. When they want to change something, make a room bigger, he gets the phillips drill and takes an entire wall off without doing any damage to the lumber.
I think that's totally cool. While I asked the porch guy to use screws, he didn't. So I told him AGAIN, and again he didn't. He just liked his nail gun because it's faster and easier. I was paying for the materials AND by the hour. I'll never understand why he wouldn't honor my request, but that's guys for ya. I think.
During my real estate years I've seen couples get divorced due to construction and major remodel problems.
All in all, I really recommend against it unless money is not an issue or you know quite a bit about building. Especially if you can't be there ALL THE TIME to see what's going on and check up on everything, you're bound to get screwed.
And as far as cost goes, obviously a "custom" home is a lot more expensive, and so are construction loans.
I'd recommend you buy an older home that's already been upgraded. It might take you quite a while to find a good deal that will work for you, but it's worth it.
The challenge is finding a good home inspector. You can get some estimates to upgrade plumbing, heating, whatever and it will be a lot less hassle than building an entire house.
Also, home improvement loans are much easier to get than construction loans. |
