Give me your "finance a house build" ideas...

[Apple]

I may have finally found a contractor to build a small house, with attached garage, for me!

*deleted financial details*

[Apple]

For those interested in other stuff:

My job/location change in 2015, including taking a cut in pay, has been 100% worth it.  If things go well, I'll stay here until I retire (either at 57, or, if I'm lucky, as early as next fall with an "early out" offer.)

Obviously, I haven't been all that active on message boards the last few years.  I hope everyone has been doing amazing, and feel free to share any of your own big life events here if you remember me and want to give your own updates! 

My life is absolutely as boring as ever, just how I like it.  I've had a few small trips over the last couple years (maybe added Sweden/Finland since I last posted about vacations, with more local trips.)  I should be going to Laos in about two years if you have great info for that (will be going with a couple, so something completely new with that adventure, but I've known one of them over 20 years and he has family in the area, so they've been there a few times.  We'll probably add Thailand as well.)

I am just so ready to have this house built, y'all know I've been trying to do this FOREVER!!  

[ken a.k.a OMK]

Good to see you Apple. As always you've got everything planned well. 

[busymom]

First of all, wishing you the very best on this project!  We've been through it twice.     The problem is, the "game" keeps changing.  Right now, if my old contractor is giving me correct information, the price of homebuilding supplies still seems to be going up (should've finished the basement a long time ago, but we've kept waiting).  Also, supply chain is still a bit of a problem, so I don't envy you, as much as I loved getting a house the way I wanted it, without ripping apart someone else's house, & redoing it.


JMHO, but don't put all of your cash into the house.  Keep a heathy emergency fund, because there are always "surprises" along the way.  Maybe tile you wanted is no longer available, and the only other style you can stand is a lot more expensive.  You get the idea.  I sincerely hope your project goes smoothly.


Also, not to pick on your kid, but definitely set up a contract with him for a rental agreement, or purchase agreement.  As much as we love family, they are the most likely to NOT pay, and think that family will forgive them, whether you can afford to take the hit or not. 


Glad to hear from you!  Once the house is built, hope you'll stop in regularly once again.   

[Apple]

Apr 26, 2024 14:04:44 GMT -5 ken a.k.a OMK said:

Good to see you Apple. As always you've got everything planned well. 

Thank you!  (I've had some time for planning... so much so that finding a builder is a bit of a shock.)

[Apple]

Apr 26, 2024 14:17:14 GMT -5 busymom said:

First of all, wishing you the very best on this project!  We've been through it twice.     The problem is, the "game" keeps changing.  Right now, if my old contractor is giving me correct information, the price of homebuilding supplies still seems to be going up (should've finished the basement a long time ago, but we've kept waiting).  Also, supply chain is still a bit of a problem, so I don't envy you, as much as I loved getting a house the way I wanted it, without ripping apart someone else's house, & redoing it.


JMHO, but don't put all of your cash into the house.  Keep a heathy emergency fund, because there are always "surprises" along the way.  Maybe tile you wanted is no longer available, and the only other style you can stand is a lot more expensive.  You get the idea.  I sincerely hope your project goes smoothly.


Also, not to pick on your kid, but definitely set up a contract with him for a rental agreement, or purchase agreement.  As much as we love family, they are the most likely to NOT pay, and think that family will forgive them, whether you can afford to take the hit or not. 


Glad to hear from you!  Once the house is built, hope you'll stop in regularly once again.   

Yeah, the constant road blocks have made this so much more expensive than it would have been a few years ago.  The timing seems like it could not be worse.

I will still have cash available to me, the amount I listed is only what I have 100% dedicated to the house-build fund (so still have emergency fund, current house maintenance fund, etc).

And, yes, once I have the new house, there will be a written contract with the kid.  He gets the "mom discount", but he doesn't get to live for free!  (Current non-contracted agreement on his retirement funding has worked well, and he still has to pay me each month to pay his portion of some bills.  He had to pay those bills even when he was unemployed, so he knows I'm a hardass on that.)  I'm willing to not profit off him, but I'm not going to let it cost me more to keep him housed.

ETA: and thank you.  Yes, I do miss this place, so do want to drop in more.  

[bean29]

Hi Apple, 

I would finance the house with a construction loan to conventional mortgage financing.  When we build almost 20 years ago we were able to do that with one loan that was a draw for the construction period, then when the construction aspect was done you could lock the interest rate, and it became a 30 year fixed rate note.  I think interest at that time was about 5.65-5.8%.  

No matter what you expect your house to cost, you will invariably have cost over-runs.  Also, you might expect the furniture you have to work, but find in the end that new furniture would work a lot better in the new space.  Therefore, I recommend you preserve 25,000-50,000 in cash.  

If I remember correctly, you are an electrician?  I get why you are only concerned about the finished shell, especially if you and your son want to finish some pieces later on. But I would start with a finished Master bedroom/bathroom/kitchen and living room. 

I would make your garage 24 x22.  My garage in my 2nd house was 24' deep.  the 3rd house (that we built) has something like 33 x 22 with an extra 10 x12 added on the back.  Basically, it is the square feet of a 4 car garage per the city.  I thought about extending the main garage to 24x22.  I decided we had enough garage in other areas.  I was wrong.  I like being able to walk around the car, and we have shelves with stuff on them on the outer walls. Both DH and I regret not adding that extra 2 feet in length to the garage. 

Your laundry room should be on an exterior wall. Builder has ours right off the front door behind the garage and next to the front porch.  DH did not want dryer to vent on front porch. He has tried a few different venting systems, and none are good. If the run is too long, the lint gets stuck in the vent, and it is very hard to clean out.  DH uses one of those brush/drill attachments, but it is an ongoing issue.  Save yourself some headaches and move the laundry room. You might also think about making at least one staircase turn this way it staircase is not so steep when you are going up and down.  Our first house was on a bit of a slope, and we had about 4 steps up to the first floor with a landing at street level, and then another maybe 6 steps into the basement.  We could have done this if we had relocated our stairs.  I regret it very much.  If you do the stairs like this you might be able to reconfigure a laundry room in a different area.  

I have a bidet, DH had to add electrical to power the bidet.  You might want to add electric power within a few feet of your toilet for future upgrade.  Also have you thought about the wall hung water heater?  They are nearly impossible to retrofit as the plumbing connections are a different size.

[Apple]

Apr 26, 2024 15:20:01 GMT -5 bean29 said:

Hi Apple, 

I would finance the house with a construction loan to conventional mortgage financing.  When we build almost 20 years ago we were able to do that with one loan that was a draw for the construction period, then when the construction aspect was done you could lock the interest rate, and it became a 30 year fixed rate note.  I think interest at that time was about 5.65-5.8%.  

This will be what I do if bid comes in too high, but hoping there may be more ideas I've missed.  (At one point, I would have paid all cash, but the spike in prices means that is not happening unless I want to wait several years.)

No matter what you expect your house to cost, you will invariably have cost over-runs.  Also, you might expect the furniture you have to work, but find in the end that new furniture would work a lot better in the new space.  Therefore, I recommend you preserve 25,000-50,000 in cash.  

Yes, definitely extra cash for furniture and appliances.  Some will come with me, some will need replaced.


If I remember correctly, you are an electrician?  I get why you are only concerned about the finished shell, especially if you and your son want to finish some pieces later on. But I would start with a finished Master bedroom/bathroom/kitchen and living room. 

Yes, I was, but non-residential, and I've not looked at code in way too many years.  At this point, I'm doing turn key (just mentioned the previous finished shell estimate as I have that in hand, from when the guy who drew up my plans added a materials list.)  I may do some of the electrical work (depends on if my sister, a licensed electrician who *has* kept up on code, is interested in the job and would want help), but, I don't even want to do that, just want it to be done.


I would make your garage 24 x22.  My garage in my 2nd house was 24' deep.  the 3rd house (that we built) has something like 33 x 22 with an extra 10 x12 added on the back.  Basically, it is the square feet of a 4 car garage per the city.  I thought about extending the main garage to 24x22.  I decided we had enough garage in other areas.  I was wrong.  I like being able to walk around the car, and we have shelves with stuff on them on the outer walls. Both DH and I regret not adding that extra 2 feet in length to the garage. 

I've considered various sizes... I don't want to dwarf the house by the size of the garage, and I keep coming back to that each time.  The way I have it now it would be a one car garage with lots of space.  


Your laundry room should be on an exterior wall. Builder has ours right off the front door behind the garage and next to the front porch.  DH did not want dryer to vent on front porch. He has tried a few different venting systems, and none are good. If the run is too long, the lint gets stuck in the vent, and it is very hard to clean out.  DH uses one of those brush/drill attachments, but it is an ongoing issue.  Save yourself some headaches and move the laundry room. You might also think about making at least one staircase turn this way it staircase is not so steep when you are going up and down.  Our first house was on a bit of a slope, and we had about 4 steps up to the first floor with a landing at street level, and then another maybe 6 steps into the basement.  We could have done this if we had relocated our stairs.  I regret it very much.  If you do the stairs like this you might be able to reconfigure a laundry room in a different area.  

Moving the washer and dryer to the other side is easy enough (basement), but not much of a choice if/when it is moved upstairs.  I currently deal with the long dryer vent issue myself!  It would be nice if it would vent behind the house, or on the other side, instead of in front, but with all the layouts I've done, this is the one that works best for egress for a bedroom, and open space for the rest of the area (plus allowing natural light in the basement for the open area).  I'd be ok with it venting toward the front of the garage though.

The stairs in the house will have a turn, but the exterior stairs were the ones where I will only do a straight shot (fortunately, plenty of room so they won't be too steep).  I've moved too many things in and out of a basement to have any turn on that staircase.

I have a bidet, DH had to add electrical to power the bidet.  You might want to add electric power within a few feet of your toilet for future upgrade.  Also have you thought about the wall hung water heater?  They are nearly impossible to retrofit as the plumbing connections are a different size.

Agree about the bidet.  I've had a bidet seat about 6 years(?) now, and it will be a "must" in each bathroom.  Have not considered a wall hung water heater, but I'll add that to my list of things I want an opinion on from the builder (he lives in the same area-- not quite as high elevation as I am, but he knows all the pros and cons of various things like ideal heating methods, etc.)  Outlets everywhere, as they never seem to be close enough in my current house.

Thank you for continuing with suggestions!  I've got my blueprints, but the guy who drew them is willing to make changes after I get my builder and discuss more things with him.  As much as I love the idea of a bigger house, I've got one, and I don't want another one.  So having exactly what I want with the layout I have, and "dealing" with the less desirable, but doable results in areas I don't prioritize as much, has meant a lot of adjusting.

[CCL]

Have you considered putting the laundry on the main level? Those stairs can get tiring after a while, especially as we get older.

[Apple]

Apr 26, 2024 21:05:52 GMT -5 CCL said:

Have you considered putting the laundry on the main level? Those stairs can get tiring after a while, especially as we get older.

They'll start in the basement for best space utilization, but upstairs closet is sized to fit them, and I will have it wired/plumbed/vented for a W/D so that when I am tired of going downstairs to do laundry, I can easily move the set upstairs.

While working, I'll mostly be using the downstairs bedroom since it will be dark, cool, and quiet (rotating shift work), so laundry downstairs isn't an issue yet (current house has laundry and bedroom downstairs, I'm used to it).

[jerseygirl]

We had a laundry ‘closet’ put on first floor with electric, venting, floor drain
But I bought a front load washer and matching dryer. Difficult to fit in but delivery guys managed
The closet was built for the smaller combined washer/dryer which I didn’t want ( small loads)
So if you build a first floor laundry closet make sure it’s big
We really love the first floor laundry and now rarely use the basement laundry
If I was building a new house I’d put in a first floor laundry ROOM
We have 2 stories but can use first floor only. We have a BR with en suite , another BR, hall bathroom, laundry kitchen family room, LR and DR
Upstairs a primary BR en suite, another BR an office loft space. So we can use only first floor and no stairs if we want
Only one step into front door

[Apple]

Apr 27, 2024 10:12:36 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

We had a laundry ‘closet’ put on first floor with electric, venting, floor drain
But I bought a front load washer and matching dryer. Difficult to fit in but delivery guys managed
The closet was built for the smaller combined washer/dryer which I didn’t want ( small loads)
So if you build a first floor laundry closet make sure it’s big
We really love the first floor laundry and now rarely use the basement laundry
If I was building a new house I’d put in a first floor laundry ROOM
We have 2 stories but can use first floor only. We have a BR with en suite , another BR, hall bathroom, laundry kitchen family room, LR and DR
Upstairs a primary BR en suite, another BR an office loft space. So we can use only first floor and no stairs if we want
Only one step into front door

House is too small for a first floor laundry room, but I measured several W/Ds to make sure the closet is big enough.

I've designed the house for future one-floor living if/when I need it.