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Sample Pages from:
Build Your Own Home!
by
Michael A. Pompeii, P.E.
COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL FROM "Build Your Own Home!"
TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Figures
ix
About the Author ..
xi
Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION ..
1.1 Background
1.2 Advantages of Doing It Yourself ...
1.3 Your Role As The General Contractor ..
1.4 A Systems Approach To Homebuilding
1.5 Using This System .
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3
4
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Chapter 2: DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES?
2.1 Attitude ..
2.2 Planning and Organizing
2.3 Communication Skills
2.4 Competence
2.5 Decisiveness ..
2.6 Action
2.7 Can You Do It? ..
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14
14
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Chapter 3: CHOOSING YOUR BUILDING LOT ..
17
Chapter 4: HOUSE PLANS ..
4.1 Determine Your Requirements ..
4.2 Initial Cost Estimate ..
4.3 Find The Right House Plan
4.4 Other Required Drawings ..
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Chapter 5: CONSTRUCTION LOANS, MORTGAGES, AND
INSURANCE ...
5.1 Types of Construction Loans .
5.2 How the Draw System Works
5.3 Insurance
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Chapter 6: PLANNING AND SCHEDULING
6.1 Types of Schedules
6.2 Monthly Schedule ..
6.3 Weekly Schedule
6.4 Long Lead Items .
6.5 Essential Tools and Equipment ..
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COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL FROM "Build Your Own Home!"
Chapter 7: PERMITS, BUILDING CODES, AND INSPECTIONS
7.1 Permits
7.2 Building Codes
7.3 Inspections ..
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Chapter 8: SELECTING AND WORKING WITH
SUBCONTRACTORS...
8.1 Selecting Subcontractors
8.2 Combining Subcontractors
8.3 The Most Important Subcontractor
8.4 Contracts and Proposals .
8.5 Working With Subcontractors
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Chapter 9: PHASE 1 CONSTRUCTION: GROUNDWORK
AND FOUNDATION .
9.1 Driveway, Lot Clearing, and Erosion Control ..
9.2 Excavation .
9.3 Footers and Foundation .
9.4 Underground Plumbing .
9.5 Slabwork
9.6 Rough Grade ..
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Chapter 10: PHASE 2 CONSTRUCTION: FRAMING AND
CLOSE-IN .
10.1 Framing
10.2 Roofing .
10.3 Windows and Exterior Doors ...
10.4 Decks, Porches, Patios, and Sidewalks .
10.5 Siding and Trim
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Chapter 11: PHASE 3 CONSTRUCTION: ROUGH-IN SYSTEMS ...
11.1 Rough-in Mechanical System ...
11.2 Rough-in Plumbing ..
11.3 Rough-in Electrical ..
11.4 Insulation ..
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Chapter 12: PHASE 4 CONSTRUCTION: INTERIOR WORK .
12.1 Drywall .
12.2 Interior Trim Carpentry
12.3 Painting - Stage 1 .
12.4 Drywall Point Up ..
12.5 Bathroom Tile
12.6 Painting - Stage 2 ..
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COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL FROM "Build Your Own Home!"
Chapter 13: PHASE 5 CONSTRUCTION: INTERIOR FINISH
WORK .
13.1 Flooring- Hardwood, Vinyl, and Tile
13.2 Kitchen Cabinets and Countertops
13.3 Bathroom Vanities .
13.4 Finish Mechanical .
13.5 Finish Plumbing
13.6 Finish Electrical .
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Chapter 14: PHASE 6 CONSTRUCTION: FINAL COMPLETION ...
14.1 Painting - Stage 3 ...
14.2 Hardware - Doors, Closets, and Bathrooms ..
14.3 Final Cleaning ...
14.4 Carpeting
14.5 Driveway
14.6 Landscaping ...
14.7 Final Punch List
14.8 Close Out Finances and Accounts .
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Chapter 15. SUMMARY
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Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Subcontracting a house: The process of hiring subcontractors, or specialists in
specific trades, to build a house. The person doing the contracting, usually called
the contractor or general contractor, is responsible for the overall construction
planning, scheduling, coordination, hiring subcontractors, supervising the
subcontractors work, and performance of all other construction activities.
1.1 BACKGROUND
Contracting and building your own house can be one of the most satisfying
and money-saving experiences of your life. Or it can be your worst nightmare. We
have all heard stories from others who have subcontracted out and built their own
homes. Some say that it was a very enjoyable and rewarding experience that saved
them a ton of money. But many people say that it was a constant headache and that
they would never do it again. What was the difference between them? How is it
that one person can totally enjoy the experience, while another totally hated it?
This book focuses on what you need to do to become part of the first group.
I know what you need to do to be successful in subcontracting and building
your own house because I just went through it. And you will be going through the
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same things that I went through. There I was: I had never built or subcontracted a
house before. I knew I could save a lot of money by doing the subcontracting
myself. I had another full time job, and I certainly did not have the time to pound
nails or install any of the major house systems myself. I was concerned and
apprehensive that I was literally betting my familys home and my life savings on
this being successful. What if something bad happens? How long is it going to
take? How do I start? How does a construction loan work, and how do I get one?
How do I find competent and reliable subcontractors? How can I organize and stay
on top of a dozen things at once? I had a thousand questions, and it took a great
deal of time and effort to get the right answers. That's what this book is all aboutshowing you the process that worked for me and sharing all the information and
answers that I learned along the way.
Answers to many questions that you may have are in this book, and they
will hopefully save you a lot of money, many hours of wasted time, and a good
deal of unnecessary aggravation.
This book takes a no-nonsense approach to
contracting and building your own home and is full of real life facts, issues,
situations, and lessons that I learned in the process. You will no doubt encounter
many of the same things as you go through the subcontracting/building process. It
is my intent, through this book, to share these lessons with you, so that you, too,
can enjoy the great personal satisfaction and rewards of contracting and building
your own new home. Building my house was actually fun. It was fun because I
used my Home Building System that I will share with you in this book.
This book also offers another unique perspective and benefit to first time
home builders. My background as a home inspector has highlighted many of the
home building problems that I have seen over and over again in the many houses
that I have inspected over the years. Solutions to many of these common problems
are listed in this book as recommendations and helpful hints to prevent you from
running into these same problems with your new house.
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1.2 ADVANTAGES OF DOING IT YOURSELF
There are many advantages of subcontracting and building your own home.
The most significant advantages are listed here:
1) Save money. This is by far the number one advantage of doing it
yourself. In my estimation, most people are likely to save an average of 15% to
30%. Some professional builders may argue these numbers, but I know for a fact
that I saved at least 27% when I built my house! These percentages add up to some
very significant savings. For example, if a builder wants to charge you $250,000 to
build a house on your lot, you will probably be saving somewhere between $37,500
and $75,000 if you do it yourself! This can be considered instant home equity for
you, and will take a significant chunk out of your monthly mortgage payment.
2) You get to choose house plans and house styles that are just right for
you. Many builders have standard sets of plans that may or may not meet your
needs. If you want to customize the floor plans or style in any way, the builder will
usually accommodate, but the cost of incorporating those changes will probably be
more that you would be willing to pay. On the other hand, if you do some research,
you can easily find a plan that has a layout and style that is exactly right for you,
right from the start.
3) You get to choose building materials. This factor was very important to
me when I decided to build my house because I was a home inspector who
inspected many houses, and I knew what construction materials I wanted and also
those materials that I did not want in my house. I wanted to specify items such as
the type of foundation, the size of floor joists, the type of subflooring, the type of
plumbing, the size and type of furnace and air conditioner, and a whole list of other
items. After visiting many builders and getting estimates to build my house, I
found that most builders will not allow you to specify the type and quality of
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building materials.
This is because they have standard sets of plans that are
difficult to change, subcontractors who are used to using certain materials, and a
certain degree of unwillingness to deviate from the current materials and methods
that they use. Some builders will accommodate your requests for certain materials,
but you will probably end up paying a whole lot more than your original estimate!
4) Self satisfaction. There is nothing better than being totally motivated
toward a major goal, working hard toward that goal, and then achieving that goal.
Most people who have successfully subcontracted and built their own home will
tell you that it was one of the most satisfying and proudest accomplishments in
their life. I know it was for me.
1.3 YOUR ROLE AS THE GENERAL CONTRACTOR
As stated in my definition of a general contractor at the beginning of this
chapter, you will be responsible for the planning, scheduling, coordinating, hiring,
and oversight of all subcontractors and their work. You, as the general contractor,
will be ultimately responsible for any and all construction activities. To better
understand your role, look at Figure 1-1. This chart illustrates that every phase of
house construction has its own specialized subcontractors, who are experts in their
own particular area, and all of these experts will be working for you. For this
project, you are the boss!
How much of the actual construction work should you do yourself? As the
general contractor, you should not attempt to do any major hands-on construction
yourself unless you are an expert in that particular field and have plenty of free
time. Just let the subcontractors do the jobs that they do everyday. They know
what materials work best, the most efficient way to do things, and what is
acceptable to the local building inspectors.
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Believe me, you will have plenty of work to do everyday without even
pounding a nail. You will be busy lining up and coordinating subcontractor after
subcontractor, constantly checking their work, cleaning up, more cleaning up,
getting supplies, doing small odd jobs, calling suppliers, and constantly adapting to
changes. You will be busy!
Figure 1-1. The General Contractors relationship to Subcontractors.
1.4 A SYSTEMS APPROACH TO HOME BUILDING
This book describes and uses a home building and subcontracting system
that I developed and successfully used to build my new home. The system is based
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