Oh, you guys are just BABY addicts! Look forward to *keeping paper lunchbags (and Sharpies) on hand at all times for collecting. In the car, in your purse, at friends' houses. *give away any clothing to the Goodwill that doesn't have pockets. *carrying around a digital camera "just in case" someone comes by while you're harvesting. Quick, take a picture. They'll assume you're writing a book. *having several even better excuses in your head at all times in case someone asks you what you're doing hunched over in the weeds. "Doing research for the Forestry Service" has always seemed like a good one. *actually buying a Forestry green vest to wear (AND an orange one - they were on sale at Target) during serious seed expeditions. *always carrying at least one pair of pruners in your purse in case you have to "deadhead" something really fast. *cruising the half-price table at nurseries for trashed plants THAT HAVE SEED PODS! *looking down alleys for cool things hanging over the fence. *admiring vacant lots and abandoned buildings, and noting their addresses for future expeditions. We're just helping nature along a little, aren't we? Oh, mercy.

Yoo hoo golddust ~ Welcome to the other side LOL. I'm Nora from mid New York State. I've been married for 20 years and we have a 26 yo DS. DH and I got together when Eli was a little over 4 years old and we married when he was six. There is definitely truth in nurture vs. nature because they are like two peas in a pod ;o) We live on 7 idyllic acres in a small hamlet in southern Dutchess County with our pug, Tootie, and kitties Bitsy and Bundles. DS and his GF live in a cottage on our property, which is a blessing. We love to renovate anything that isn't nailed down and it seems that we're in a constant state of flux (no pun intended considering your metier). We also love to garden, which we do with fervor, though not always with as much success as we'd like. The earth tells us what it needs and most of the time we pay attention. But when we don't we learn early on that we should have listened to Mother Nature. Welcome!!

I loved Fairy Tales growing up, but was raised by a single mom who had to do domestic type work (babysitting and ironing) to earn money until I didn't need a babysitter. So I never seriously considered the Prince Charming part of the stories more than fantasy...I knew women had to make their own way. That was more real to me than the fantasy that someone was going to save us or take care of us. I weep for the women here and around the world, fighting for equality and freedom from violence against them and join them in standing against those who will take our freedoms, our lives, our bodies, our choices, our education and our dreams. Every day should be Women's Day!

I believe that GC's will add value in excess of their cost for most people, however, that does not mean they are either required or sufficient to create value. This idea that hiring a builder is suddenly going to get you access to higher quality subs is based on a couple of assumptions that are really just not correct. First, there is this idea that only a builder will have access to quality subs, but the truth of the matter is that quality subs work directly for homeowners on a fairly regular basis. Go to the supply house and ask some employees which plumbers they would hire. Odds are you are going to get referrals and if you name drop the supply house you are likely to get a response from the sub. You will have to be more flexible, but a willingness to work around their schedule has value to any sub. That is not the most problematic assumption, though. Just because a builder will know of the best subs doesn't mean he is going to use them. Your builder is going to have the best relationships with subs who are beneficial to HIS BUSINESS whether or not they are beneficial to your project. A GC is not a fiduciary and there is no requirement that they act in your best interest. They are a case study in the principle-agent problem and goal misalignment. One of the big values of a GC is a single point of contact for errors and mistakes. GC's have a duty to oversee construction and correct mistakes that they let happen, but they have a vested interest in not correcting those mistakes, even if a sub is responsible. The relationship between a sub and a GC has value to the GC and it is in his best interest to protect that relationship even over your home. Of course, someone who is not knowledgeable may not catch the mistake in the first place, but is far more likely to go to subs to correct once the mistake is found. If you have been on these forums for any amount of time you have seen GC's make clients eat mistakes that were not the client's fault many times over. You should also consider comparable value here, the OP is unlikely to be in the market for a high end custom builder given the information that was provided about price. Let's not pretend that all GC's at all price points provide the same value. --- The assertion that a homeowner might fall off a roof and delay or derail the project ignores the hundreds of ways that a GC might delay or derail the project. The construction industry is woefully undercapitalized and we constantly hear about a contractor refusing to do work they have already been paid to do. Or any one of a dozen different problems that make your house not a priority for them. -------- Again, this is not to say that GC's don't have value, they do. Take the money you save from being an owner-builder and divide it by the time you spent doing it and see if you even managed to get minimum wage. At that point you will learn how valuable contractors are, but still if you have the time and want to do it...