Building Your Dream Home
 

We are in the process of beginning construction of our new home. We have decided to be our own contractors, and hire out the various stages of the building process. Right now, we are at the very beginning stages.

While we would love to build a nice big roomy house, practically we can't afford it now. So, we have decided to put in a basement, and have about a 1300-1400 square foot house total. Problem is, we have been looking for house plans for the design of a 600-700 square foot house, and then of course the basement, which are not easy to find.

Can anyone share their experience with building, being your own contractor, any tips, ideas, websites to share? Also, if you know of where to find small square footage plans that are reasonably priced?

And... if you've built your own dream home, and want to share your story, with pictures, etc., I would love that too!

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

First tip, and the most important one: take your time in the planning stages! I mean take a lot of time. We didn't, and we ended up with an exterior door that didn't have an exterior light switch! Sigh.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

I can't say we ever built our own place. We did put a double-wide out onto 10 acres and that was a long, slow process! I imagine building would be even longer and slower. We are planning to build another mini-storage building this spring.....not quite the same thing. ;)

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

LOL.. you are spot on Timmy! Amazing how those little details can really take on such huge importance later. Any other tips?

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

We have done a double wide before too, and yes, it can be a long, slow drawn out process. We have considered doing a single wide, putting it under a pole barn, living in it while we build the house. Lots of ideas floating around in our heads, lol!

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Yeah, put in too many power outlets, pull too many CAT-5s (or whatever), and have too much storage space. It may be just enough. :lol

If we had it to do over (which we may!), I'd get a lighting control system built-in. Put in Insteon afterward, and, as it turns out, that's a pretty unreliable system. I've seen others mentioned on forums that have a much better reputation. Can't recall any names, but you could probably find them.

Insteon's pretty cool, when it works right. But we've had 4 of 5 things fail on us. Some under warranty, some not.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Well, I need to find some creative ways to make room for storage in a 1300 sq. foot house, lol!

Haven't even gotten so far as to consider a lighting control system. We's poh foks!

We are trying to do this as economically as possible. We've even considered trying to go off grid, but found that this is even more expensive, initially of course.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Built my own house, gonna start on another one next. Soon as I got it finished I realized that I had forgotten some things.

I did all the concrete, framing, drywall and tile. Subbed out the electrical and plumbing.

One of my sons helped me at that time and was a great help, lots of work though.

Lots of frustration also!LOL

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Any tips to offer, things to "be sure" you do, or don't do?

We are putting in a basement, which I am excited about. We will have a wood stove in the basement to heat the house. Two bedrooms will be downstairs, and two upstairs. An open floor plan is what I have in mind for the upstairs for the kitchen and living area. We may be able to push the sq. footage to 1500 feet. Still haven't found a floor plan yet that really satisfies us.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

I wish i had built a larger utility room. Large families need more working space. Smaller bedrooms and larger activity rooms is the way to go.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

I agree. Right now our utility room is downstairs. I look at it in a positive light, get lots of exercise going up and down stairs, lol. However, in the new house, I hope to have it on ground level.

And I also really, really hope we can find a floor plan that somehow allows for a mud room. I agree that smaller bedrooms, and large open main rooms are what will work better when dealing with smaller floor plans.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Our utility room is downstairs too. Yes, there is the exercise factor! However, I wonder how that will work when I'm 80. LOL!

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

The other thing I would do would be, if possible, to build a walk out basement with activity rooms or a great room downstairs. That way I could put all the kids and grandkids downstairs and not be bothered by the noise.

Then there is the case for alternative heating and cooling.

Been looking at that recently.

Anything to save on energy costs.

As funny as it sounds I would probably go with 2x6 wall firred our to 2x8 for the exterior walls. This extra 1 1/2 inch of insulation would make some difference in heating and cooling.

In the present house I insulated every wall, including the interior walls. Makes a huge difference with sound. No hollow sounds in the house. Will do the same on the next one too. But I have been studying the r-value on the 2x8 walls and it would make up quickly in recouped heating/cooling cost what the extra 1 1/2 would cost to put up.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

The house that we had before this one had zoned hot water heat. Loved it but also like the a/c that my forced air has now.

Hot water heat is super economical. Zoned is the way to go.

Will probably consider this in the next location and just have a separate cooling system somehow.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Interesting Monterrey! We have considered a daylight basement, but our property is flat. We have also considered digging further down to make a daylight walk in/out basement too, but that is cost prohibitive at the moment. We have a huge treed parcel of land, so for heat, wood is the way to go for us, and we certainly don't need air conditioning up here, lol. We plan on putting a den downstairs, with the wood stove, and two bedrooms.

Re: Building Your Dream Home
 

Niece built this home with almost duplicate flipped Space in basement except kitchen area became laundry storage area. Turned out really nice.

http://www.theplancollection.com/hou...290/big-images