Building a house?

trailhugger said:
I'd make the dining room 2' bigger in at least one, if not both, directions if you ever plan on hosting a family meal.
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X3. Our dining room is 12'8" x 14'6". It was originally 13'8" x 15'6", but we took 1' out of it both directions, and I wish that we had not done that. It still works well, but a little extra room would be nice since we host most holiday family dinners at our house.

Another thing I noticed is your rear porch is going to feel closed in with walls of the house on three sides. I would definitely change that. You will want the rear porch to be open on all three sides, or at least two sides.

I would also make the great room larger. You are going to lose 3'-4' of your great room as basically a hallway to the master bedroom and office.

One thing that helped me tremendously was to get 1/4"=1' printed out plans from our architect, and then cut out pieces of construction paper to scale that represented each peice of furniture. Place the pieces of construction paper furniture on the plans and look at how much room you have around them to walk, access doors etc.
 
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trailhugger said:
I'd make the dining room 2' bigger in at least one, if not both, directions if you ever plan on hosting a family meal.
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I thought you weren't giving away work for free...?

But along those lines, I'd make all the rooms at least 2' bigger in each direction.
 
trailhugger said:
I'd make the dining room 2' bigger in at least one, if not both, directions if you ever plan on hosting a family meal.
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I'll see what I can do. ;) Always up for advice on house plans, a lot of times you just don't see things other people do. :)
 
Blaze said:
I'll see what I can do. ;) Always up for advice on house plans, a lot of times you just don't see things other people do. :)
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For dining room, if you can’t make that room much larger, at least make the doorway into an adjacent room (kitchen in this case) larger enough to extend the table and guests for really large gatherings. Basically extend the table into an adjacent room if making the dining room larger isn’t viable. My parents did this so that the dining room is perfect size for 90% of the time and when necessary, the table extends into the foyer with ease and not much inconvenience for the 1 or 2 times a year that happens.
 
rockcity said:
For dining room, if you can’t make that room much larger, at least make the doorway into an adjacent room (kitchen in this case) larger enough to extend the table and guests for really large gatherings. Basically extend the table into an adjacent room if making the dining room larger isn’t viable. My parents did this so that the dining room is perfect size for 90% of the time and when necessary, the table extends into the foyer with ease and not much inconvenience for the 1 or 2 times a year that happens.
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That's the way my parents' new house is. We have a big family with four siblings and two of us with our own kids. Their old house, yikes. New house we extend it out into the foyer and have tons of space.
 
I have a lot to say on this subject, but I've been too busy hustling a project that I'm paying someone else to hustle. Summary: if you want it done right, now is a terrible time to find a contractor, so you might as well do it yourself, plan on it costing 30% more, and taking 50% longer than you planned.
 
a_kelley said:
I thought was plan on it costing 100% more and 150% longer, oh wait that's government jobs.
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In the last 2 months....this has been true for private as well. With China Tariffs coming, metal mfg's have jacked prices 30%-60%. Electrical devices (specifically LED) have spiked a MIN of 37% and WOOD...of all things, has skyrocketed. (I know @Jody Treadway spoke on this in another thread, and is able to hold HIS pricing, but he buys/sells more Murica than most, and if I'm not mistaken qualifies for LEED, buy america, and buy ameriCAN)

If you've not had a price secured for the last few months you're good. But if your a contractor and you bid early in the year, and have to hold that price until nov/dec that's really crippling. Honestly if you can hold out until the recession begins (you won't be waiting long) you're MUCH better off.
 
CasterTroy said:
In the last 2 months....this has been true for private as well. With China Tariffs coming, metal mfg's have jacked prices 30%-60%. Electrical devices (specifically LED) have spiked a MIN of 37% and WOOD...of all things, has skyrocketed. (I know @Jody Treadway spoke on this in another thread, and is able to hold HIS pricing, but he buys/sells more Murica than most, and if I'm not mistaken qualifies for LEED, buy america, and buy ameriCAN)

If you've not had a price secured for the last few months you're good. But if your a contractor and you bid early in the year, and have to hold that price until nov/dec that's really crippling. Honestly if you can hold out until the recession begins (you won't be waiting long) you're MUCH better off.
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Wood prices have held pretty steady since last October from what our suppliers have said. We actually bid a job in March and repriced last week and saving about 20,000 because they had calculated for a rise in lumber and it’s not happened.

But yes in a year or two I think things are going to slow down and people may be hunting work again.

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Loganwayne said:
Wood prices have held pretty steady since last October from what our suppliers have said.
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I hadn't heard in the last 3 weeks if the "scare" for wood actually materialized. But 2 months ago the sky was falling :shaking:

Loganwayne said:
We actually bid a job in March and repriced last week and saving about 20,000 because they had calculated for a rise in lumber and it’s not happened.
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That's a first (for me anyway)

ANY time we had a supplier even HINT at an increase, they had already started changing our multipliers and the next week our net sheets changed. I'm glad to hear (for once) the simple fear of increase didn't materialize
 
CasterTroy said:
I hadn't heard in the last 3 weeks if the "scare" for wood actually materialized. But 2 months ago the sky was falling :shaking:



That's a first (for me anyway)

ANY time we had a supplier even HINT at an increase, they had already started changing our multipliers and the next week our net sheets changed. I'm glad to hear (for once) the simple fear of increase didn't materialize
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If I remember right he said sheet material has went up some but not much and board lumber has dropped.


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Board pricing is pretty low right now compared to last year. Sheet pricing is also quite low. There is such demand for building materials currently that the mills have to keep up out of fear their buyers will buy from another if they don't have it on the ground.
Also, no hurricanes yet this year to disrupt supply for panel products. If/when a major one hits, you will see panel pricing jump 30-40%.
Wood-wise, now is a great time to build a house. Framing SYP, OSB and sheathing products are very economically priced.

Like @CasterTroy said, I buy 99% of my lumber from American mills. I sell SYP out of GA as opposed to SPF out of Canada unless one of my subs requests SPF. SYP is cheaper and is also 'Merica as opposed to SPF being Syrup Head stuff. My plywood comes out of SC with a little coming from GA as well.
 
@Blaze aren't your kids middle school aged?

Think about it this way: It's going to take 18 mos to get into a custom-built house. After that, you've got maybe 5 years before the kids are out of the house. Are you designing the house that you need today, or the house that you're going to need then?
 
shawn said:
@Blaze aren't your kids middle school aged?

Think about it this way: It's going to take 18 mos to get into a custom-built house. After that, you've got maybe 5 years before the kids are out of the house. Are you designing the house that you need today, or the house that you're going to need then?
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This is our current issue.
I bought the land and was all gung-ho to start building...then started thinking (Ready, Fire, Aim anyone...but hell I got land at least)
But we have ~3,600 sq ft currently. 1 kid just moved out and 1 is a So in HS. I dont want to force my kid to get rid of half her stuff nor disrupt the home "she grew up in"...but I dont want to heat, cool, clean and maintain 3,600 sqft when its just the wife and I either. So while we hate out house we sit and wait.
 
shawn said:
@Blaze aren't your kids middle school aged?

Think about it this way: It's going to take 18 mos to get into a custom-built house. After that, you've got maybe 5 years before the kids are out of the house. Are you designing the house that you need today, or the house that you're going to need then?
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My older one is. He's in 7th. Younger one is in 4th.

Trying to design for future grandkids and all. My parents just moved into a new house up here closer to us. When they moved in we told them they bought a house that was too big for what they needed. But with them so close all 5 of the grandkids go over there and have their own rooms, my dad is making a media place up stairs, and they have a room in case my grandfather ever needs to live with them. I don't know, my dad told me when they bought it that he'd rather have more space than you need than less space. Hard to add more space cheaply.
 
I get that maybe building a house for now’s situation may not be best when the kids move out.

However, I like many college students came home during the summer and still considered my parents house “home” until I truly had a place of my own after college.

Now that I have kids, when I visit my parents house, the extra room we had them is now utilized with grand kids and is really a joy to be in and around as a parent. I get to share my childhood home with my kids, and they love that. However, my parents are 4 hours away in Hickory, so when we visit we are always staying the night. If everyone lives in the same town, then situation is different.
 
My parents house that they built when I was two has 4 bedrooms. I'm the oldest and when I got out of college and moved outo permanently, my room was converted into an office. My brother and sisters rooms got turned into guest rooms and when we had our son, my sisters room was turned into a nursery for when he stays with them. 6yrs after all 3 of us were 100% out of the house, all the bedrooms are still regularly used. Fwiw, my parents house is 2300sqft, not 3600 like Rons. Based solely on number of bedrooms, 4 still isn't too many though.
 
My parents house has 4 bedrooms 2600ish sq ft with a basement. Me and my brothers rooms were upstairs.

We have all moved out. The upstairs is never used basement is never used. When my kids go over there they nap on the couch. Never had a nursery there because carrying them up and down the steps to the other bedrooms was too aggravating for my mom (back problems).

So basically the master bedroom and bath, the living room and half bath, the kitchen, the laundry room and the dining room converted into a play room is all that's used daily.

If my mom had sold us the house when we were first married it would have been perfect for us with two kids growing up and her downsize into a smaller home.

Just something to think about on the other side of the extra rooms.
 
Stuntman Autoworks said:
My parents house has 4 bedrooms 2600ish sq ft with a basement. Me and my brothers rooms were upstairs.

We have all moved out. The upstairs is never used basement is never used. When my kids go over there they nap on the couch. Never had a nursery there because carrying them up and down the steps to the other bedrooms was too aggravating for my mom (back problems).

So basically the master bedroom and bath, the living room and half bath, the kitchen, the laundry room and the dining room converted into a play room is all that's used daily.

If my mom had sold us the house when we were first married it would have been perfect for us with two kids growing up and her downsize into a smaller home.

Just something to think about on the other side of the extra rooms.
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I think that if my parents house was 2 stories the extra bedrooms would not be utilized as well as they are. That's why I was dead set on having all the bedrooms on the first floor in our new house. The only room we will "lose" when we get old and don't want to fall down stairs will be a bonus.
 
Blaze said:
Hard to add more space cheaply.
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Our plan was generational. Just moved our youngest into her dorm at App yesterday :( So no need for a 5 bedroom home. So we're downsizing. DRAMATICALLY at first, then not so much. But our plan includes our parents, and eventual grandkids.

I wanted land. We've been in a neighborhood for 8 years so the kids would have a place to play and ride bikes...etc. Ironically that never happened. I mean they utilized the pool and playground, but not that much. So we purchased 7 acres.
I wanted a decent garage. Then we got to thinking, we don't want our parents in some home. But...we also don't want them in OUR home. So why not tack a 2 bedroom 2 bath apartment onto the garage? Something that may even be livable while we build our house. This will allow us to move out of our current home, SELL it, and start building while we live 900 yards back in the woods from our construction.
So that was started first. Now we are designing the house, and that design has changed so much due to planning for future. We too only want to be on one floor. But, with our kids wanting to spread wings and be all over the world, we have to plan for them to come BACK (with babies) so we can't just build a one bedroom home on a single floor. We've settled on a 1-1/2 story with 2 bedrooms upstairs with a jack and jill bath. And a basement. This keeps us on a single floor (aside from cleaning) with the kids having room. Also, if the garage apartment isn't occupied with a parent, then they can also have a whole house to themselves.
Later, when WE get old, we can move to the garage, and one of the kids can move in our house and repeat the cycle. OR...sell the big house (separate deed, separate piece of land, adjacent to the shop property)

That's our thinking anyway.
 
Well, we've decided against building or moving. We went and looked at a house we really liked, but then we started doing the math and started thinking how much moving would suck and all. So we'd end up in a larger house, but paying more and then have to build a shop on top of it.

We have decided to expand onto the house instead. We'll get bigger bedrooms for the boys, a mud room like she wanted, and a little more space overall. In the end it will cost way less than moving and buying a new house.
 
The guy I used to draw up my plans is in raleigh. He was very affordable and had a lot of good ideas that we never would have thought of. The only spaces in the house that I'm not sure I'm going to be 100% happy with were ones that my wife an I had him change :lol: PM me if you would like his information.
 
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