Reddit reviews How to Design and Build Your Own House

I've built about 10 homes.

Everyone has already given you the best advice which is to hire a gc to manage the project. Even if you hire a GC it would be a good idea to understand the process.

The book I always recommend is How to Design and Build Your Own Home by DiDonno and Sperling

General advice in random order.

• Most important. Hire an architect to draw up blue-prints. a $1000 change fee to plans may feel expensive, but it's cheaper than $10K during construction.
  
• Google and Youtube are not reliable sources of knowledge, there's too much variation in construction codes and methodology region to region. Go ahead and research, but don't think you know more than the trades.
  
• If you're interviewing trades and something about them doesn't feel kosher, don't hire them. Ask to see samples of their work. Get bids up front. Check the bids for accuracy. Get multiple bids. Ask them about their pricing.. (i.e. tile guy charges $4 sq. ft. for 12x12 porcelain plus $1 extra for a pattern)
  
• Find and review your city/county building codes
  
• Don't upgrade everything. Pick your battles. Before you start think of the most important room in the house for you. That's the only place to splurge. Everywhere else should be about solid but affordable choices.
  
• Create a project plan and budget. The budget comes directily from the blue prints, everything is priced by size (sq. ft., linear feat, etc.). The plan comes from the budget. Manage everything off of it. Plan should include lead times for ordering materials. A good trade will get annoyed if they show up and what they need isn't there. What they provide and what you provide should be written down in the bid.
  
• Trades clean up after themselves. Dirty worksites are dangerous and make it difficult to get work done.
  
• Even if a trades doesn't look it, or act it, they know more than you about their job. Treat them as a partner. Admit when you don't know and ask questions.
  
• When you mis-schedule something, be prepared to have the completion date slip a month as trades go to other jobs.
  
• Constructions sites are magnets for thieves. If you leave things unlocked then they will walk off. Thieves will steal roof shingles, appliances, tile.
  
  
  I don't live in any of the houses I built, so I'm uncomfortable posting pictures. I'll pm you a picture of the house I built for myself.

Ignore this negative nancy.

I think this is a really good idea. If you know what you are doing you are in fact going to save yourself a lot of money building and designing the house yourself.

The fact that you work on cars should help a lot as you have a do it yourself attitude, are good at figuring out how things go together and don't mind getting dirty.

A book I just recently read that I though was pretty good as an introduction to this is: How to Design & Build Your Own House by Lupe DiDonno & Phyllis Sperling

A few suggestions:

• Make friends who are contractors in various fields who can give you advice, free help, references
  
  
• Start looking up general contractors and home builders in the phone book and online and see what they have to say.
  
  
• Talk to realtors for references to general contractors and home builders.
  
  
• Start reading books on the different parts of the house, plumbing, electrical, framing, foundations. The more you know the better off you are. There are even books on construction estimation if you really want to get into it.
  
  
• If your time allows do actual work paid/volunteer/whatever for friends to really learn how to build. If you don't have the time make it.
  
  
• This: http://www.diychatroom.com/forum.php Is a good forum full of lots of people who can give you really solid answers on all kinds of topics.
  
  
• Make sure you fully understand each step you are doing and how they all interact.
  
  
• I am currently remodeling half my house, my first project, doing a lot of the work myself but having some things subbed, at first it was pretty mind numbing talking to the City about permits setbacks egress structural problems blah blah blah, because they have their own little language for all this, but as you learn it you realize it's all pretty simple.
  
  
• Learn to use Sketchup. It's a great way to quickly make whatever you are trying to show someone or talk to someone about into a nice 3d model, which anyone can understand.
  
  I don't know if you need plans from an architect unless you want design input especially with the house you are wanting to make. Here you can make your own plans / the general contractor can. You may need a engineer to work with for some structural stuff or if your house is on a cliff and so on.
  
  Edit: PM If you need any help or have any questions.
  

I found a fantastic book a few years back in a second-hand store titled How to Design and Build Your Own House. If this is what you're interested then I highly recommend that you find a copy. It takes you through every part of the process, from finding a piece of land to laying out floorplans, to physically assembling the structure. It provides standard builder's formulas and explains how to look up local building codes, gives advice on how to take the best advantage of your location, and even contains some of the best descriptions of basic structural analysis I've ever read. It was written in the seventies, so you do have to keep that in mind, but the important stuff hasn't changed.

The book on Amazon.

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