Pinktoes, Most of the items you mentioned would be necessary to the construction of a spec home as well and would be built into the final cost. However, for arguments sake... if you include ALL those things you mentioned as 'extras' do you think they will come to $115k? Assuming that they will, we would still be breaking even- not paying more. On the other hand, even if you only back out the realtor fees we would be ahead by almost $50k. I do not know what part of the country you are in, if things are really 'hot' perhaps builders of custom homes are able to charge whatever they want and that is why it isn't working out for you to build for equal to or less than you could buy a similar house for. It may also be due to upgrades you have chosen. If that is the case then you are getting more as well as paying more. However it is obvious by the other posts that *some* people are building their homes for less than they could buy them for 'down the street'. I am in Oregon and our real estate and custom home market are doing well. The argument of custom vs spec in regard to volume pricing and sub availability does not hold for our situation. When you are asking a specific builder the price for a specific house those variables are taken out of the equation. In our area there are large and small custom builders to choose from. If you are choosing one builder over another and feel that volume pricing and sub availability will be better with a larger builder then go that route. You may not come out ahead cost wise though, a larger company may also have higher overhead which will be passed on to you. A smaller builder may get the same pricing and preferential treatment from suppliers and subs it just depends on the individual case. I have heard some subs say they prefer smaller builders because they get paid faster. Some suppliers offer volume discounts some are same price for everyone. The important thing is the quality of the job you get and that the price you pay is reasonable to you for what you are getting and the local market. If a builder does not like to work with homeowner's and indicates to you that it is more work and will charge you more, then leave that builder to his spec houses and find a builder who appreciates the fact that the owners provide a guaranteed sale. Homeowner's may cause delays but they are usually motivated by the fact that they are paying interest and want to move into their new home. On the other hand a spec house may be completed more quickly only to sit for months on the market on the builder's dime. I think we all must figure out what makes the most sense in *our* building market and find the best fit with a builder in our area. To do our research and know what our goals are. If it is important for Customdecorator (or any of us) to build for less than she can buy similar new construction for I would say she can probably do it if others in her area can. It won't just happen though, she will have to do her homework and make choices that keep her budget in line with her goal. Often when a consumer builds a custom home they buy the land and plan their dream home and build it. They are not thinking resale and the big picture at that time. They get caught up in the excitement and the 'while we're at it we might as well'... You think *maybe* some custom builders realize that and that prices are adjusted accordingly? :) A spec builder of course must look at the whole thing differently. They do not have the same emotional attachment. They look at lot cost, development cost, carrying cost, local sold comps, overhead & profit and what is left over is house budget. The more they save on the build the more $ they will make in the end. Perhaps the real 'trick' is thinking more like a spec builder and less like a homeowner. If that is not for you then you are not doing anything wrong you are just making different choices.

Napili Kai Beach resort in Maui is wonderful. In a quiet area north of Kaanapaali Beach, not cheap but not expensive either. They have several pools, a large whirlpool, a putting green, beautiful beach, weekly luau andmai tai parties, etc. Lots to do and a fabulous restaurant on site! Just down the beach is Napili Shores Resort, too. Not as many amenities, but less expensive. Do make sure to drive the Road to Hana while in Maui....scenery is to die for! And in November you may be able to go on a whale watch cruise....highly recommend it. The Pacific Whale Foundation in Lahaina has a great line of whale watching and snorkeling trips to choose from and they do a fabulous job!!!

One problem with making this decision is that your needs change as your family grows - both in number and in years. For example my sister in law put an island in her new kitchen instead of a table when her kids were small. The twins were constantly falling off the tall stools,and she really liked the idea of gathering around a table for family dinner so she ripped out the island, and bought a table. That was several years ago. Now she is missing the workspace (and her prep sink, which went away with the island) and, regrettably, there are fewer opportunities for family dinners with older kids rushing off to sports and other evening activities. We are fortunate enough to have room for a peninsula with seating as well as a table. But it does seem somewhat redundant. Especially as we also have a dining room with table (which I'm certain will never get used except holidays.) However, we are a family of 6, so we could never fit entirely around a peninsula or island. I do think kitchen tables are underutilized especially when entertaining - everyone crowds in the kitchen and some perch themselves on a peninsula barstool, but who goes and sits at the kitchen table? I think it's because it is so low compared to the rest of the counters. A friend of mine bought a counter-height kitchen table and tall chairs to try and include the table area more in the overall kitchen scheme. I thought about that but I found a traditional round kitchen table that I really love so I am going with that.

My plant list is for a prairie. Im all about prairies, and me and my prairie people friends don't usually mention the word 'meadow'. I think of meadows as scaled down versions of prairies with plants not exceding 3 ft in height. Meadows to me, are like the Swiss alpine meadows, or the mountain meadows that are in our western rocky mountains. They are quite beautiful, with an array of deep colors. I remember passing by a beautiful mountain meadow in Wyoming, and stopping to admire it, wondering if Julie Andrews would show up dancing with a group of children. If I lived on a plot with acreage I'd definiately do a meadow and a prairie. There was that Olaf guy who was designing European meadows that used a lot of American natives. I grow a number of natives that are shorter and they can't tolerate taller cometition, so at the north and south sides of my oval shaped beds, Im trying to leave them free for the shorter plants. I'm adding plants to one of those sections now. It already has Prairie Dropseed and Prairie Smoke,(Geum triflorum). Ive added our native yarrow, Achillea gracilis, which was incorrectly lumped with the Eurasian Achillea millefolium since Linaeus's time., Little Bluestem, Liatris pynostachya, Whorled Milkweed, Phlox pilosella. I'm impressed with your success at growing Pasqueflowers and hemiparasitics Rosa. I haven't had success with either. I've wanted to grow the Bastard Toadflax for years, even surgically inserting it's seeds into the rootmasses of native grasses, but nothing, I can see why it deserves it's common name. I need to give the Indian Paintbrushes another go. My Verbesina virginica is about 11+ ft. tall right now, but if grown in the UK, where the summers aren't tropically hot, it would probably top out at about head height. The Palafoxia callosa has just started blooming. Another hemiparastic that I've wanted to grow is the Purple False Foxglove, Agalinis. I've broadcasted hundreds of seeds for it, yet no germination whatsoever. Danny, that's great that the Cliff and Stiff Goldenrods like your wet soil. Drummondii is such an elegant goldenrod. I cut my plant back completely to the ground along with my showy goldenrod, because the long drought caused both of them to look very shabby. Im going to divide my gargantuan clump of prairie dropseed. I know youve said it cant be done, but I've heard different from others. I have some vollunteers,(just in case). You must have a very sensative nose, because I can barely detect any smell from it's flowers, yet they send you into convultions.😂 The Callirhoe Bushii is growing in a short plant section. I've been trying to beat it into submission, since it's attempt to murder my New Jersey Tea. I'm very interested in seeing how it behaves in East Anglia.