Anyone have a custom home built?

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Exterous

Super Moderator
Jun 20, 2006
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We're considering it even though I know it can be a PITA. For anyone who did do you know what the cost per sq ft was and what that included (granite counters vs laminate, tile in bathrooms etc). I know it will vary by location but I'm trying to get a least a bit of a base line.

And any other suggestions other than watch them like a hawk?
 
highland145

highland145

Lifer
Oct 12, 2009
43,973
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What, trying to hide from me again?

Didn't you just buy a house?

And I have no idea about your question.
 
I

iroast

Golden Member
May 5, 2005
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https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=107851

"The one factor that I saw that drove up the price of a new house was the amount of change orders that occurred. If the husband, or wife, changes their mind all the time........the dollar signs add up very quickly."​

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/48/topics/76408-looking-to-build-a-custom-home---where-to-start

Adam B. from Houston, Texas
replied over 4 years ago


If you have to ask this, then you should not build your own custom home. I've been building houses for nearly 15 years and can tell you there are so many things that can go wrong that will cost you money that at the end of the day, you would have been better off paying a professional builder.

If you are dead set on building your own home, then maybe you could talk with one of those "be your own builder" companies and hopefully they give you enough guidance to make it worth while.

Good luck either way you decide.
​
https://www.biggerpockets.com/forum...ral-contractors-fees-for-building-a-new-house

Good luck.
 
Humpy

Humpy

Diamond Member
Mar 3, 2011
4,464
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Exterous said:
We're considering it even though I know it can be a PITA. For anyone who did do you know what the cost per sq ft was and what that included (granite counters vs laminate, tile in bathrooms etc). I know it will vary by location but I'm trying to get a least a bit of a base line.

And any other suggestions other than watch them like a hawk?
Click to expand...

Between $150 and $600 a square foot. :)

As a former custom home builder I'm a little disappointed in the initial question asking what type of counter tops or tile would be included. So many people (understandably) focus on the visible finishes but, for example, insist on the cheapest roof without a second thought. This hurts me inside.

Please fully consider your priorities as a first step. It might sound silly but I'd start with answering the question of why you even live in a house. Is it shelter from the elements, security from armed marauders, a place to prepare food, etc. or is it to display status, fulfill dreams, or some mix of all of the above? Then include available funding and long term plans for ownership in your considerations. At this point function can begin to dictate most of the design decisions.

Good design and material choice will bring long term peace of mind so you can enjoy your house instead of spending weekends stressing on who to hire to fix rotting window sills, leaking roof valleys, scraping paint, or how to reduce the heat/AC bills.
 
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[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
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Humpy said:
Between $150 and $600 a square foot. :)

As a former custom home builder I'm a little disappointed in the initial question asking what type of counter tops or tile would be included. So many people (understandably) focus on the visible finishes but, for example, insist on the cheapest roof without a second thought. This hurts me inside.

Please fully consider your priorities as a first step. It might sound silly but I'd start with answering the question of why you even live in a house. Is it shelter from the elements, security from armed marauders, a place to prepare food, etc. or is it to display status, fulfill dreams, or some mix of all of the above? Then include available funding and long term plans for ownership in your considerations. At this point function can begin to dictate most of the design decisions.

Good design and material choice will bring long term peace of mind so you can enjoy your house instead of spending weekends stressing on who to hire to fix rotting window sills, leaking roof valleys, scraping paint, or how to reduce the heat/AC bills.
Click to expand...

This. Pay attention to how to build a house that lasts for generations rather than what color the bathroom cabinetry is.
 
Kaido

Kaido

Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
Feb 14, 2004
49,983
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Exterous said:
We're considering it even though I know it can be a PITA. For anyone who did do you know what the cost per sq ft was and what that included (granite counters vs laminate, tile in bathrooms etc). I know it will vary by location but I'm trying to get a least a bit of a base line.

And any other suggestions other than watch them like a hawk?
Click to expand...

Well, are you interested in building a truly custom home, or one of those semi-custom homes from existing plans in a subdivision type of deal? I worked for a custom home builder back in the day & learned a lot. I have a thread from a few years ago on some interesting materials available:

https://forums.anandtech.com/threads/modern-home-materials-technologies-discussion-thread.2409421/

You can build an extremely low-maintenance, high-efficiency home these days thanks to the availability of improved materials...ICF blocks, steel framing, etc. Check out newer stuff like Tesla's solar tiles too (very durable, in addition to generating electricity). Modern floor tiles are amazing (porcelain/slate/ceramic). PGT makes custom impact-resistant, energy-efficient doors & windows. You can make a super low-maintenance lawn with automatic irrigation, fertigation, concrete curbing, and a robotic mower. Lots of awesome stuff out there to build into your design if you're going full custom!
 
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E

Exterous

Super Moderator
Jun 20, 2006
20,553
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highland145 said:
Didn't you just buy a house?
Click to expand...

Yeah - a little over a year and a half ago. Getting sick of the county, township and subdivision voting to raise our taxes again, again and again. It might be more tolerable if there were clearer benefits. For example we send a shit ton of tax money to the City of Detroit but have to beg and plead for them to fix\plow our roads. It looks like we could save $5k per year in taxes if we move just a couple of miles west. Electrical, gas and water drop by a fair bit too. Schools are the reason that more aren't doing that but; one - we're not having kids and two high and constantly increasing taxes are starting to push people over the school district boarder.

So we're starting to think about it. Maybe a 1-3 year plan of sorts.

Humpy said:
Between $150 and $600 a square foot. :)

As a former custom home builder I'm a little disappointed in the initial question asking what type of counter tops or tile would be included. So many people (understandably) focus on the visible finishes but, for example, insist on the cheapest roof without a second thought. This hurts me inside.

Please fully consider your priorities as a first step. It might sound silly but I'd start with answering the question of why you even live in a house. Is it shelter from the elements, security from armed marauders, a place to prepare food, etc. or is it to display status, fulfill dreams, or some mix of all of the above? Then include available funding and long term plans for ownership in your considerations. At this point function can begin to dictate most of the design decisions.

Good design and material choice will bring long term peace of mind so you can enjoy your house instead of spending weekends stressing on who to hire to fix rotting window sills, leaking roof valleys, scraping paint, or how to reduce the heat/AC bills.
Click to expand...

I guess I didn't realize I would get criticized for two quick examples instead of listing out everything like carpet pile chosen, 16" or 24" OC non-load bearing walls, PPG Manor hall vs low end Valspar, poured or precast foundation, all arc-fault breakers etc

I was hoping more for something along the lines of "I did $200 sq ft because it got me X and we decided the Y we got at $250 wasn't worth it to us" FWIW I spent several years working for an AEC group so am somewhat familiar with the impact of structural\exterior wrapping product choices but much of that was tied to $100+M skyscraper projects so the experience doesn't scale well beyond knowing that I am great at finding things for the punch list.

Kaido said:
Well, are you interested in building a truly custom home, or one of those semi-custom homes from existing plans in a subdivision type of deal? I worked for a custom home builder back in the day & learned a lot. I have a thread from a few years ago on some interesting materials available:

https://forums.anandtech.com/threads/modern-home-materials-technologies-discussion-thread.2409421/

You can build an extremely low-maintenance, high-efficiency home these days thanks to the availability of improved materials...ICF blocks, steel framing, etc. Check out newer stuff like Tesla's solar tiles too (very durable, in addition to generating electricity). Modern floor tiles are amazing (porcelain/slate/ceramic). PGT makes custom impact-resistant, energy-efficient doors & windows. You can make a super low-maintenance lawn with automatic irrigation, fertigation, concrete curbing, and a robotic mower. Lots of awesome stuff out there to build into your design if you're going full custom!
Click to expand...

So the answer is a confusing "Yes". There aren't many land sales available in the area we're looking at. There is plenty of land but many lots are quite large so I have to look up rules for splitting. Its also where a couple of townships come together so some can hook up to different townships for water while others need to be well\septic so I need to figure out where those lines so I understand those considerations when it comes to the notable swings in land price.

I'd like a truly custom home but suspect price will push us into semi-custom but definitely not in a sub division.

Thanks for the list and I'll read through that thread.
 
E

Exterous

Super Moderator
Jun 20, 2006
20,553
3,713
126
iroast said:
https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=107851

"The one factor that I saw that drove up the price of a new house was the amount of change orders that occurred. If the husband, or wife, changes their mind all the time........the dollar signs add up very quickly."​

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/48/topics/76408-looking-to-build-a-custom-home---where-to-start

Adam B. from Houston, Texas
replied over 4 years ago


If you have to ask this, then you should not build your own custom home. I've been building houses for nearly 15 years and can tell you there are so many things that can go wrong that will cost you money that at the end of the day, you would have been better off paying a professional builder.

If you are dead set on building your own home, then maybe you could talk with one of those "be your own builder" companies and hopefully they give you enough guidance to make it worth while.

Good luck either way you decide.
​
https://www.biggerpockets.com/forum...ral-contractors-fees-for-building-a-new-house

Good luck.
Click to expand...

Good to know about change orders. And I definitely don't plan to build it myself although I'll leave the basement off the project as, if we do this, it'll be the third one I've finished (And have yet to fail an inspection)
 
zinfamous

zinfamous

No Lifer
Jul 12, 2006
111,552
30,773
146
Did you get tired of updating your home improvement thread, so you're just buying a new house now?

Anyway, my friend is a builder, primarily eastern NC, and I think he usually estimates about $200/sqft. I couldn't say anything about materials he uses in those estimates, though.
 
highland145

highland145

Lifer
Oct 12, 2009
43,973
6,334
136
zinfamous said:
Did you get tired of updating your home improvement thread, so you're just buying a new house now?

Anyway, my friend is a builder, primarily eastern NC, and I think he usually estimates about $200/sqft. I couldn't say anything about materials he uses in those estimates, though.
Click to expand...
:eek::eek:
 
E

Exterous

Super Moderator
Jun 20, 2006
20,553
3,713
126
zinfamous said:
Did you get tired of updating your home improvement thread, so you're just buying a new house now?

Anyway, my friend is a builder, primarily eastern NC, and I think he usually estimates about $200/sqft. I couldn't say anything about materials he uses in those estimates, though.
Click to expand...

Heh - I should see where I left off on that. I've been making baby steps on the home theater room though. Trying to figure out how to frame around an I-beam, not lose several inches in width and still keep it acoustically decoupled from the ceiling\existing walls was a pain but thats done so hopefully I'll move a bit faster on it now
 
Humpy

Humpy

Diamond Member
Mar 3, 2011
4,464
596
126
Exterous said:
I guess I didn't realize I would get criticized for two quick examples...
Click to expand...

I truly (this time) did not mean to criticize or make any judgements.

Just wanted to emphasize a core problem that I often experienced with home construction.
 
Fritzo

Fritzo

Lifer
Jan 3, 2001
41,920
2,161
126
All I can say is- if there's anything you're on the fence about adding to the house- ADD IT. You'll spend a lot more to add it later and it won't blend in as well.
 
E

Exterous

Super Moderator
Jun 20, 2006
20,553
3,713
126
Humpy said:
I truly (this time) did not mean to criticize or make any judgements.

Just wanted to emphasize a core problem that I often experienced with home construction.
Click to expand...

Fair enough and sorry for misreading the intent. I would be interested in any other insights you might have. Don't suppose you do work in Michigan?
 
Humpy

Humpy

Diamond Member
Mar 3, 2011
4,464
596
126
Exterous said:
Fair enough and sorry for misreading the intent. I would be interested in any other insights you might have. Don't suppose you do work in Michigan?
Click to expand...

I'm in the southwest. After 20+ years I got out of my families construction business fully in 2013, my heart wasn't in it anymore, and took a cushy government job that will see me through to retirement in another 20 years. I'll help where I can, things move fast and I'm already a bit out of touch though.
 
boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
Exterous said:
Yeah - a little over a year and a half ago. Getting sick of the county, township and subdivision voting to raise our taxes again, again and again. It might be more tolerable if there were clearer benefits. For example we send a shit ton of tax money to the City of Detroit but have to beg and plead for them to fix\plow our roads. It looks like we could save $5k per year in taxes if we move just a couple of miles west. Electrical, gas and water drop by a fair bit too. Schools are the reason that more aren't doing that but; one - we're not having kids and two high and constantly increasing taxes are starting to push people over the school district boarder.
Click to expand...
BIL and his bride are looking to move out of Wayne County too. Same reasons you're giving. Myself, I moved just last week from Oakland County to Collier County in Florida. Stopped and saw highland145 along the way.

As far as the custom home, the definition can get a little blurry. Some would classify a home built by a developer in a community with several floor plans available where one could pick out cabinetry, flooring, counter tops and the like as a custom home. To me, a custom home is one where you hire an architect to design what you want with the finishes you want and you have it built on a piece of property. We went from the latter to the former.
 
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