If I had a real solution to this, I wouldn't be going through so much beer. On a good day, can't wait to move in. On a bad day, don't care if I ever do. Neice was asking me the other day for some advice about building [she hopes to start soon], and I said: Don't. Just Don't. Buy something existing, buy a modular so all you have to do is choose the color of the carpet, live in a pup tent-- just don't even think about building from scratch. But today, I called her back and told her to dis-reguard all that: Sun was shining, finished another tile floor, started to believe there might really be an end to this endless stress and constantly crushed expectations someday. Maybe. Just try not to put too much effort or worry into things that are easy to change, like paint color; or impossible to change, like the neighbors. Don't expect to enjoy every step of this very long journey, and don't forget to stop beside the trail to take stock and gather strength every once in a while.

I feel your pain, reyesuela. It seems that professional quality work is not a thing to be assumed in any profession anymore, much less the construction profession. Getting charged for the work? yep, a d*mn sure given. Getting decent, safe quality of work much less attention to detail? not a given. With only a bit of overgeneralization, one could say that houses were proudly built to *last*, going back maybe over 30 years ago. Since then it's all too often become a matter of "make it able to hold together long enough to get a check, and then everything can fall apart, and the client can sue you if they have the emotional and mental energy." Simply put: even if you pay premium rates, you no longer can expect to get what you pay for. Which is why Bill and mongo (and several folks over on john bridge) are the demigods they are. They still have the intelligence, knowledge, and ethical commitment to deliver an 'old-fashioned' product. It's almost like a tease to read their posts, though, because you then know that good quality is out there, and yet you have to deal with the pompous sub-par bozos you have available IRL. Yes, you have to babysit to get anywhere near what you want, but I sure wish that people who claim to be professionals were "old enough to babysit themselves". It's seriously exhausting and after a while, demoralizing. My whole DIY world started because cabinetmakers we hired to make the kitchen cabinets, and whom I had even gone to the shop to see them being built, messed up the order in a mind-bogglingly bad-faith way. I said "enough" and decided to go for Ikea cabinets and the rest is history. While it's interesting, I also would have had a whole lot more energy for other things these past almost 6 years than learning to do things I should be able to pay professionals to do correctly. I don't like how the world is going in general these past years. And this is a symptom.

michoumonster, I somehow missed your comment last month, but thank you! CamG, thank you! I used to have my dish cabinet above my DW and hated it. I couldn't reach into it well with the DW open. I put my dishes in a drawer on the other side of the sink (about a step away) and my glasses in a 12" deep cabinet in the island just opposite the dishwasher. I sacrificed seating for one person in the island to add 2 12" deep cabinets (one on each side) to take the place of some of the wall cabinets I was losing with the window. I really wanted the light from the big window so I was willing to sacrifice the upper cabinets for it. Laura517, I know how you feel. You spend so long planning and looking at everything but when it comes to making real decisions it's so hard. I like my 2 trash cans a lot, so I'd go for it if you have room. Everyone recommended recycling in the prep area - probably closest to the refrigerator is the right place. The windows in most of my house are double hung, but I went with casement in the kitchen because double hung would be too hard to open and close. I then decided to switch to casement in my great room and one other room. In all three cases there is a larger stationary window between two smaller casement windows so it doesn't stand out that it's different. I like casement better and would have done if everywhere, but there was a cost difference to consider. By the way, for anyone reading this whole thread, I made a mistake. My hood is the Zephyr Gust, not the Breeze. Don't know what I was thinking...

This is what the budget looks like that we were given. As I mentioned before, we are also working with a fund control and they verify all purchases and receipts and will not fund a draw until the work has been verified as complete by the bank inspector and only fund draws according to the budget. Re the high permit fees: we are in southern California. The builders are working on another project right now where the fees were just as high. It's what they cost here in our particular area, so they knew what to expect, they just didn't plan for it. ETA: done if the permit fees were school fees ($8k) TIFF, building permits ($4k), septic permit, grading permit, park fees, etc. Each one is thousands of dollars and that's how they add up so quickly. I have all the receipts, those are just the ones I remember off the top of my head. If a professional's help is necessary, we will seek it. For now we have a meeting with them on Friday to discuss this stuff more in depth and we'll see how that goes. We have a good relationship with them so far, and would like to resolve this between us if possible. Also, I don't know why my picture is upside down. Sorry. Also, also: in case it isn't clear, someone else (houses14) posted some issues they are having regarding windows that have nothing to do with my contract/permit fee question. Just to keep people from getting confused.