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From selecting the property and meeting with an architect through resale considerations and construction, So You Want to Build a House walks you through every step of the building process painlessly, on-time, and on-budget.
- Shows homeowners how to stay within one percent of their budget.
- Delivers the perfect balance of information - covers everything homeowners need to know without overwhelming details.
- Ready-to-use worksheets save time and money.
- Tells homeowners whom to meet with, when to meet, and how to track progress and control costs.
- Hundreds of money-saving real estate construction, and financing tips.
- Step-by-step program that works.
Build your dream home without experiencing the common problems and cost overruns associated with custom homes.
You can avoid the average cost overrun of 30 to 50 percent on custom-built homes that's reported by construction industry insiders. So . . . You Want to Build a House arms you with the tools you need to keep your dream home within one percent of budget without sacrificing the special features that made you want a custom home in the first place.
- More than a dozen handy worksheets.
- Indispensable, cost-cutting guidance on financing your project.
- An easy-to-follow guide to property selection.
- An essential nuts-and-bolts plan for sorting out what you need and what you want.
- A clear program for whom to meet with, when to meet them, and what to say.
- The smart way to distribute your budget.
- An ironclad agenda for keeping your homebuilding project on time and on budget.
- A whole chapter full of ways to save money.
- Every-step-of-the-way help with improving resale value.
From the Introduction
If owning your own home is the "American Dream," perhaps then the pinnacle of the American Dream is to build your own house. A house tailored to not only fit your specific needs, but one personalized enough to make a statement to the world (or at least the neighborhood) of who you are. Customizing your special place and building it from the ground is a challenging, rewarding, and extremely fulfilling endeavor to undertake. Many people begin with tremendous plans and expectations only to get so burned by the building process that they determine to never build again. Our goal is to make your experience easier and even enjoyable.
Your home is usually the largest financial investment you will ever make. Therefore, you want to make quality decisions that add value to this investment, not useless and unnecessary costs. You want to stay within a budget and build the house in a timely manner.
Working for more than a decade with people who want to build a house, we recognize the mistakes and pitfalls commonly encountered by a would-be builder. The purpose of So . . . You Want to Build a House is to help you logistically and realistically plan and budget will before you begin, thus giving you a grasp of actual costs for construction and determining a reliable construction schedule to follow. By using this book, you will not only be better informed, but also be better prepared to handle the unexpected costs that arise so that your budget doesn't get out of control. You will also create a construction schedule so you can get an idea of when your project will be completed even when you encounter delays. Most people who want to build a house are shocked to discover the expense of all the things they want and need to include in the project. They get discouraged and confused before they even begin. So . . . You Want to Build a House will also help you avoid the worst feeling, of being near completion of your house and suddenly realize you are seriously over budget. You then hate the entire building experience and the house you have so diligently worked for.
So . . . You Want to Build a House is designed to help you accumulate all of the information you will need to successfully build a house with a budget you decide and design to fit your individual needs. The forms in the workbook section of this book will help you build an outline for the construction of your house. You will be able to navigate through the hard costs of construction, allowing you to choose the special things you want to be included in the house that will customize it to fit your needs, desires and budget. You will learn to seek out information you need to make informed decisions so that your house is not just a conglomeration of personal stuff, but a sound financial investment for your future. The building process is stressful. While no book can totally alleviate that stress, the intention of So . . . You Want to Build a House is to relieve a great deal of that stress by helping you compile information. Being informed, knowing what to ask, and whom to ask, will resolve many of the issues that arise during the construction process. Good preparation will help you focus on the end result, allowing you to not only see the "big picture" but have control over your expenditures and budget. Knowing you are in control makes the undertaking of a large project less stressful, more rewarding, and fun. What seems like a daunting task at first becomes more like a challenge of a jigsaw puzzle when broken into smaller segments. So . . . You Want to Build a House is a helpful guide to make constructing your new home a fun project.
As you discover how to determine the costs of each aspect in the building process, you will be in control and that will make this a rewarding experience. You may find that you enjoy this construction process. So, here's to building a great house!
Contents
Introduction. Chapter 1: The Startling Truth: There Is No Perfect House. Chapter 2: Purchasing the Property. Chapter 3: Consulting a Realtor. Chapter 4: Meeting with an Architect. Chapter 5: Going to the Bank. Chapter 6: Guidelines for Building a Re-Marketable Home. Chapter 7: Hard Costs vs Soft Costs. Chapter 8: Learning to Spread Your Budget over the Cost of the House. Chapter 9: Getting the Estimates. Chapter 10: Creating Your Construction Schedule. Chapter 11: What You Can Do to Save Money. Chapter 12: The Construction Workbook.
About the Authors
JM Gore (Osage Beach, MO) is a licensed real estate broker and owns a real estate agency and construction firm. William Null (Osage Beach, MO) owns and operates his own development and construction company. |
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