We owner built. We did not have substantial construction experience but the person we were hiring to do the framing, siding, roofing and finishing was a good friend and we never would have done if we did not respect his work and have a good relationship with him. We used the subs he recommended, most of which also happened to be people that we knew from church or our kids' schools, which helped a lot. The biggest problem with being an owner/builder with no substantial construction experience is getting subs---you have no existing relationship with subs and they know it is going to be a one-shot deal with you so they have less motivation to work with you or to do extra good work for you. My husband took something like 8-10 weeks of time off from work during construction plus he was at the site every night and weekendit takes a LOT of time to be your own general contractor. We did not need financing, but I think it would have been somewhat difficult to obtain it if we did. We built a 3,200 sf home (not counting the screened porch, covered porch or attached garage) with another 900 sf of finished space in the basement. We did not have any major problems. We saved some money, but I don't know if we save a lot. My husband had always wanted to build his own home (he had originally wanted to do all the work too but luckily had grown past that phase), so cost savings wasn't a big issueÂhe mainly wanted to control the final product as he wanted a really well built house. It also took about 1 to 2 years of research before we even started buildingÂyou need to research everythingÂfoundation systems, foundation waterproofing systems, HVAC systems, roof ventilations systems, insulation, framing systems, floor systems, roof systems, windows, soffits, etc. My husband would do it again because he really liked doing it. You need a really strong personality, or at least to be a really strong person, to be an owner builder. We also designed our own house. I would have preferred to work with an architect, but my husband had always wanted to design his own house too so he/we did. We really like our house, but I think an architect would have helped make it even better.

threeshebabes,

I haven't owner-built but my son and his wife did last year. He had experience in building from working with a friend who is a contractor. My son helped him build his home 2 years ago and he helped my son last year. There were no problems, they started in April and moved in Sept. It is a 2700 sq.ft. home, 2 story. They had no problem with financing but that was last year(before all the mortgage problems) and they went through a credit union. This home is in eastern WA and I'm sure they saved alot of money because Dh and I built later on last year and had a GC and spent more than they did on a smaller home. However, we are more rural than they are, which makes a difference, harder to get subs so travel time can be more expensive. My son used his friends' subs and they are located about 30 miles from a large city. Hope this is helpful; I think if you know someone in the home building business you are way ahead, without any knowledge in this area I believe it could be difficult. By the way, their home is absolutely beautiful, if I can find a picture I will post it!!
Good Luck to you!

Did you or your spouse have construction experience before you built? No

Did you hire a general contractor to act as a consultant?
No- I researched just like you

Were there any MAJOR problems/mess-ups? None.

How difficult was it to secure financing? No problem. We used a small local bank. No downpayment either due to the 20% difference in the amount financed vs. appraisel amount

Where did you build? Western, IL

Approx. what size home did you build? 2100 SF

Did you feel you saved a tremendous amount of money -- i.e.enough to make it worth it? You bet!. We spent $250k and the house appraised at $300k

I guess I qualify as an OB now although I didn't start out that way. We wound up firing our contractor halfway through the job due to his massive incompetence and dishonesty. It then took us several months to convince our bank to let us finish the job ourselves rather than risking getting involved with another crooked builder.

Being a general contractor is far more about project management than it is about construction. The GC lines up sub-contractors, makes sure they show up and do the work they're supposed to, handles paperwork, and makes sure everybody gets paid when they're suppoesed to be paid. Many GCs probably couldn't hammer a nail in straight if they had to. To be a GC you need business skills and project management skills, and you need to know (or be willing to find out) what a construction job should look like when it is finished. It helps in dealing with subs to learn the lingo but you don't have to be able to hammer, saw, hang sheetrock, run electrical lines, or anything else. If you OB, plan to spend at least 20 hours per week and possibly more than that on the job.

I just WISH we had just gone the owner-builder route right from the start. Neither DH nor I have any construction experience whatsoever but we had looked into being our own general contractors before we hired our builder. We even took a class on building your own home but then decided that we just didn't have the necessary time to devote to the task. Was that a mistake!

I had done my homework and had spent a huge amount of time on this board before we ever broke ground - so I had a good idea of what to look for in quality work. It quickly became evident that my builder didn't have a clue and apparently he couldn't have cared less. His subs were obviously the cheapest he could find and often, I suspect, were undocumented day laborers. They didn't follow installation specifications for installed materials like Tyvek sheathing, my Jeld-wen windows, or the roofing shingles. I know because when things didn't look right to me, I got the specs from the manufacturers and checked their work myself. They also often didn't follow building codes - which I found out because I had put it in my contract that I would separately hire a third-party inspector to inspect all stages and that any work not meeting code would have to be redone at the builder's expense.

The framer hired by my builder used I-beam trusses between the first and second floors instead of the open-web trusses I had specified. The framing was completed while I was out of town for two weeks and by the time I got back, the house was already sheathed and the roofer had started work. So it was too late (eg., economically unfeasible) to make the builder have the entire roof and second floor taken down so that the right trusses could be put in. My plans called for the HVAC units and all ductwork to be within the heated/cooled envelope of the house. When I demanded that my builder check with his engineer to ensure that holes could be cut through the i-beams large enough to accomodate the HVAC ducts, he assured me that would be "no problem." That was a lie.

Even the holes that had to be cut through the i-beam trusses for plumbing drain lines weakened them enough that my third-party inspector insisted that extra trusses be installed to bear part of the load. No doubt putting those in was a major expense that the builder had to eat. There was no way HVAC ductwork could be run between the floors as designed. Instead, the HVAC units were put in the unairconditioned attic along with massive amounts of flexible ductwork. Instead of an attic that could someday be finished out to add a couple more bedrooms, I have two big HVAC units and what looks like a massive silver spiderweb totally filling the attic space. I also lost closet space in all my bedroom closets because ductwork chases down to the first floor had to be put somewhere.

When I exploded about the lost usable square footage and the additional on-going costs associated with having the HVAC and ductwork up in the attic (we live in central Texas!) my builder tried to tell me that EVEN IF the framer had used open-web trusses, the ductwork still would not have been able to be run through the trusses and that "everybody puts HVAC units in the attic." DUH? Open web trusses are designed to allow ductwork and plumbing to be run them!! Had the man NEVER read anything about energy efficient building practices? Nope. He just trusted that his framer - who hardly spoke English - knew what he was doing.
Despite all this, my builder kept telling me that he was a "professional" and that I should just relax and let him do his job. HAH! I can't think of a single task that ever he actually handled completely correctly from start to finish.

Then, shortly after the HVAC units were installed, I got hit with a $54,000 lien because builder had not paid for my windows and patio doors even though he had been given draw money specifically for that purpose! That lien was immediately followed up by threats of two smaller liens from two other subcontractors (the portapotty provider and the exterior paint contractor)! And the builder admitted he didn't have the money to pay any of the three.

At that point I was more than ready to fire him but my bank insisted that I could NOT do so. We paid off the liens and the unpaid subcontractors and I took over handling ALL monies and paying the subcontractors and suppliers directly instead of having draws go to the builder to pay them. No more money was going to flow into the builder's hands until my house was completed, at which point anything that was still left of the original contract price would be his "profit." By that point, the only thing the builder was doing was hiring subs and ordering materials. I was paying a third party inspector separately to check all work that I didn't feel competant to inspect myself. I was handling all the paperwork and making sure everybody got paid. But then the kicker... I discovered that builder was having materials delivered to my build - which I was paying for - and then having his subs (whom I was also paying!) move them to a spec house that he was building and install them there. I had had enough. I fired him.

After taking over as GC, I had to spend as much time/effort on UNDOING some of the mistakes he made as on moving forward to finish the build. And the money he wasted/stole from us has forced us to cut back on the level of finishes that we had originally planned to have.

My advice: Go take a course on building your own home. Spend time reading and learning everything you can about the building process. Learn the language. If you are reasonably intelligent and willing to devote the time, you CAN build your own home. Plus, there are businesses (Owner-Builder Network and UBuildIt.com are two that I know about although I've not used either one) that will help you by providing you with pre-vetted lists of sub-contractors and guiding you step by step through the process. If your state or your bank requires you to have a licensed builder, these organizations will be the builder-of-record for you. Of course they charge a fee for their services. I don't know how much but it is significantly less than a builder's profit margin. You can also hire a third-party inspector to make sure that you're getting everything built to code. Just make sure that all your subcontractors know that they don't get paid until your third party inspector signs off that the work is up to code.

I designed my plan myself and I would love to see the house built as designed. The house we are in the process of finishing will eventually be "okay" but it will never be the house I dreamed of. So there is some chance that when we get this house built we will sell it and rebuild the same design in a new location. But next time I will definitely OB from the get go.

Did you or your spouse have construction experience before you built? None. I contracted everything myself with the help of the builder.... while teaching school.

Did you hire a general contractor to act as a consultant?
Just the man who framed and finished. He had contacts with most of the subs.

Were there any MAJOR problems/mess-ups? Nothing major.

How difficult was it to secure financing? That was one part I was worried about, but it turned out to be the easiest part of the whole process.

Where did you build? North Louisiana

Approx. what size home did you build? 2600 HSF

Did you feel you saved a tremendous amount of money -- i.e.enough to make it worth it? YES! We built our 2600 HSF house (including the lot) for $180,000... believe it or not! It would appraise now, 2 years later, for at least $240,000.

Wow -- I am amazed at all the information that has been shared so far. Thank you so much. A bit more about me: I am very detail oriented and rather organized --but probably the most important helpful thing might be that I have the time. I have been a stay at home Mom for the past decade but now my youngest is in school and therefore I feel I could and would be on-site daily to check progress, etc. -- at least until 3 pm! :)
Bevangel - your experience sounds so frustrating! But unfortunately, horror stories like that abound, I guess. Of course there are good contractors out there but obviously there are some incompetent ones also. Yours was obviously not only incompetent, but also apparently a dishonest slimeball too! UGH! Obviously, I've never built a home (with or without a GC) but we've undertaken a few home-improvement projects here and there and to be honest, I have not once been impressed with any contractor we've used. Every time they seemed terribly disorganized, unreliable (wouldn't show up or return calls for days on end) and always seemed to be juggling too many other projects along w/ ours - and couldn't keep them straight. I've had my moments when I've thought to myself: surely I could do this...especially if I did have a friend or acquaintance with experience to call on or consult with, etc.
Anyway -- thanks so much for sharing so much info with me!

Anyone else care to give me a rundown of their owner-builder experience? I'd love to hear anything any of you would like to share about it....!

I choose not to be an owner-builder, even though I felt fully up to the task of managing the project from prior DIY remodels and a contracted addition in which the GC did absolutely nothing but collect a check while I did all the work. Still, I decided not to primarily for 2 reasons:

One - time. I work full-time and go to school part-time. I am finding my homeowner duties researching and pricing items for a 100% custom home to be quite proficient at sucking up any last bits of my free time, and when we break ground I will be at the site every day. It's a cost plus contract, so I am involved with every decision.

Two - knowledge. I wanted to use some construction methods and philosophy that you won't see covered adequately in books and classes which are designed to work for the average stick-built home.

I did not bid my project. I chose the right builder for the job early on, and I am learning how much he is adding to the project in knowledge and contacts. We can both send the same list out for bids, but his bids come in much cheaper, often from the same supplier. He has a good reputation and working relationship with the city and other involved parties, and I don't... an important consideration when attempting to use something other than the most generic common method for something, like having a conditioned crawlspace.

So far, I can safely say he's earning his fee, and he might turn out to save as much money for me as he costs. I am sure we will have times ahead when we butt heads over issues, but in all honesty I can say he's bringing things to the table I couldn't bring until I've built a few houses like this one. That doesn't mean I couldn't have project managed the house, but I might not have known of all my options.

It doesn't have to be either or. There are intermediate paths to GC vs. OB. You can hire a GC but do a hands on cost-plus contract like me. Or you can hire a construction manager to guide you along while you take up many of the GC duties. In fact, your bank may require it!

We're building now- 3350 sq ft in western PA. Owner builder construction loan required a 2% fee (points). I know we'll save some money, but more importantly we'll have room for all the extras that get added along the way.
I have minimal construction experience myself, but my father in law is an electrician by trade and involved in construction his whole life. He has been onsite almost the whole time. Without someone that can be there on a very regular basis, I'd caution against owner builder. I am making phone calls on a regular basis through the day to check materials, talk to upcoming subs, etc. He's onsite coordinating things and helping with subs.
If you don't have a lot of availability or experience, I'd try finding a contractor willing to coordinate and complete the excavation, foundation, framing, roof, utility connections, and window installation. After that point, you'll be more equipped to deal with subs and potential scheduling delays. At least the house will be dried in.

Did you or your spouse have construction experience before you built? Kind of. We'd remodelled a kitchen by ourselves and flipped a house (not just paint and floors). I can do about any construction work thanks to research, but choose not to work on electrical (other than installing a fixture) and concrete/masonry work. My father in law had built houses before, and he was on site during a lot of the build.

Did you hire a general contractor to act as a consultant?
Basically had the Father In Law as a GC.

Were there any MAJOR problems/mess-ups? No major issues, just took way too long to drill the well... our area was in a drought and everyone was puttin in wells for irrigation.

How difficult was it to secure financing? We started before all the mortgage mess hit. If we'd waited another month, we'd have had to look for another bank. As others pointed out, you need to use local banks and credit unions to OB now.

Where did you build? South of Charlotte, NC, in Fort Mill, SC.

Approx. what size home did you build? 4,000 HSF with a 1,800 sq ft basement that we're finishing now. Got the loan in April, broke ground end of June (well drilling issues), moved in end of Feb. The basement will be done later this year.

Did you feel you saved a tremendous amount of money -- i.e.enough to make it worth it? I don't think we saved much, we just have finishes of homes that cost 30-40% more than ours.

Advice:
1. Make sure your architect gets everything exactly as you want it for windows, doors, walls, etc.
2. Get an engineer to develop the framing plans. This wasn't required here, it might be in your locale.
3. Take ownership of the project. It took my wife reminding me that the subs don't know the whole plan/vision. If you want something done a certain way and they push back, question them on it. Is it a code violation, or just not how they do things? More than once, I had to tell a contractor that they can do it the way I want or walk now. Because they weren't going to get paid doing it their way, they'd get paid doing it my way.
4. Trust the research you've done online and in books. As was mentioned in prior posts, most GCs don't really know squat about building. They know when they need inspections and which sub does what.
5. Put everything in writing... detailed writing. We fired our cabinet guys because the "panels" in the quote turned out not to be for our appliances, but just the cabinet ends... I wouldn't have paid $3,000 for just those.
6. Don't pay subs for more than materials until the work is completed to your satisfaction. But be ready to pay immediately following your inspection and satisfaction. They shouldn't get paid till it's done right, but they shouldn't have to wait to get paid after that.
7. Keep after subs like they are your children. Call often, ask about their day, what issues their having, etc. If you don't check up, they won't feel the pressure to finish. Balance between annoying and on top of job is big... and err on the annoying side.

Brian

Thanks again for all the helpful responses.

fish7577 - I had briefly hiring a GC to the dry-in point. Very good tip. Obviously - it is everything that happens before dry-in concerns me far more (as an inexperienced person) than what comes after. I wonder if banks will consider this acceptable? I have reason to believe that owner-builder loans are very difficult to come by in this area - as I think owner-building isn't terribly common here -- but the ones that are available (at least so far in my research) require at least a GC consultant. I suppose if you had a GC consultant on record it would satisfy the bank's requirement - and yet your contract with him might just specify an arrangement to work together thru the dry-in stage. Or perhaps you'd be required to include a copy of that contract to the bank - probably so. Anyway - I am rambling. Good tip!

And Brian -- thanks for all your input. I love your last line - to err on the annoying side. I think I have the "skills" required to make that happen! :)

threeshebabes

I am currently in the drywall taping and mudding portion of being an owner builder. So far I wouldn't do it any other way. My reasons for taking on this project were mainly due to being so specific on the details of exactly what I want (although cost savings is a plus). I quickly found that nearly anything you want specific is always an upcharge with a GC. Combine that with the fact that I'm the type of person who always thinks they can do things better themselves and that I'm a bit of a control freak it only made sense. To answer your questions:
1) I had no prior experience
2) Did not hire a GC
3) Financing wasn't a problem, just had to look around
4) Built in Northern Ohio
5) 2000 sq.ft. 1-1/2 story
6) Saving about 10-15 percent(more importantly getting exactly what I want)

Some advice I have:
1)Spend alot of time researching every detail before you begin, I did for nearly two years and it has paid off
2)Be extremely specific with your subs of exactly what you want, If not I can asure you their ideas are different than yours
3)Be prepared to spend alot of time on the phone and doing paperwork
4)Don't pay anyone in full until they have completed the job to your satisfaction