Are there any good checklists, books, etc for reference when starting to talk with a contractor on through the build? Google finds a bunch of books for sale and of Amazon but just looking for some personal input.
Thanks
Thanks
N8 or others that have built houses
- Thread starter Mike B.
- Start date
Mike B. said:
Do you already have a plan, or are you having a house designed and built, or are you using a builder's stock plan?
It's actually a co-worker. She has a contractor in mind and has settled on a stock plan but no one that this contractor has done before.
J
JRB
Guest
Specifically asking N8 a question makes you lose 9 gagillion smart points, Mike. 
Are the plans approved in NYS?
Is she planning on changing anything on the plans?
Your question is to vague, you're already asking questions about the building of the house but it seems to me there are potentially many questions before the house goes into construction.
Is she planning on changing anything on the plans?
Your question is to vague, you're already asking questions about the building of the house but it seems to me there are potentially many questions before the house goes into construction.
J
JRB
Guest
He knew he was asking N8, how specific would he need to be???stosh said:
*is it really that strict in NY to build a place??? Of course, it could be here. I just assumed you just say, "I want to build a house".
There is a reason why professionals like here at my office make a living.loco said:He knew he was asking N8, how specific would he need to be???
*is it really that strict in NY to build a place??? Of course, it could be here. I just assumed you just say, "I want to build a house".
NY is really bad because construction is reviewed on a town by town basis and EVERY town/village is different.
J
JRB
Guest
You saying they are a little "backwoodsy" so to speak???stosh said:
Well some of the backwoods towns around here are the hardest to build in because they don't want "city folk" so they have made their zoning laws and Architectural Review boards the hardest to deal with thus making the construction in some respects better.loco said:
I guess what I'm saying is I think there are more stringent building codes in Haiti then where he builds.
I don't know anything about the plans but I've seen the property. She is a cart before the horse type of person so I was hoping to find something she could read through. The contractor was recommended by the people selling the property since he is building their house just up the road.stosh said:
It sounds like she's looking for ways to see if the contractor is legit. Have her ask for names/#'s of recent clients in the area and contact those people about their experience with the guy. You can usually check to make sure the proper liscenses are in place via the state too. I would ask beyond the seller of the property since they may get a referral discount and their place sounds like its still in progress anyway.Mike B. said:
Mike B. said:
She does need to see some of the guy's work. Ask for references too. Also make sure the contractor carries liablility insurance and workmans comp in excess of the cost of the house. I carry $1,000,000 here and build homes up to $500,000.
Also she needs to find out what kind of warrenty he carries as well. I have a 10 year one that I use.
How do you spell relief..???
loco said:
Make sure he uses trusses...
Why isn't she having a house built that the builder is already familiar in constructing?
Why isn't she having a house built that the builder is already familiar in constructing?
ummbikes said:
The use of trusses depends on the application. Not always are they needed nor desired.
I build "one of a kind" house plans all the time. Nothing to worry about.
Same with most towns in NJ. Nazi bastids....stosh said:
robdamanii said:
Yet another reason not to live in NY..?
Like I said folks - cart way before the horse. She owns ~9 acres (yes, I have permission to build some trails) and knows nothing about having a house built. She's smart, just excitable and really has no idea what questions to ask, what to look for, etc.
If it were me doing this, I'd research the hell out of it, have huge spreadsheets going and some massive schedule in primavera.
If it were me doing this, I'd research the hell out of it, have huge spreadsheets going and some massive schedule in primavera.
Tell her to build a tin and tarpaper shack. Cheap and it'll get finished quickly.
stosh said:
Well, I've never even been to NY much less tried to build a house there so I donno about any of that.
You are NY'pert here.
J
JRB
Guest
hahahahahaN8 said:
Very true N8, I have some clients that don't seem to mind paying up the wazzo for trusses when it would be much simpler to hand frame the roof. Just because I can design the system, and our guys can build it, doesn't mean it should be done. But for most of the builders in the NW trusses are the way to go. The walls go up one week, the trusses go up in a few days on a typical home, and the house is dried in that much sooner than if hand framed which is a big deal for us web-footed people.N8 said:
One of a kind typically means "The customer will pay the oops premium." Not always though obviously.
ummbikes said:
Don't get me wrong, I do like the idea of trusses. I like that the truss is designed exactly to the application. I feel that my carpenters often waste a lot of lumber over building the roof. However, without running an engineering load study of each and every roof, I can't say for sure. I do know that there are a few builders who use pre-fab 2x4 trusses that 'look' flimpsy, however I am pretty sure they are designed to be exactly right with some room on the over engineered side. Trusses are a good use of lumber, IMO.
When my parents built their house in TN, the inspector came out and said "yep, yer septic field oughter go right thar, call me again when go to hook up the 'lectric" and that was about it. My dad had a sketch and it was sketched and resketched about a dozen times before all was said and done. No plan is a good plan was his moto.
I was surprised when my parents house was finished in TN, my dad didn't shoot the builder, his neighbor, in the face and bury him in a shallow grave on the golf course.jdschall said:
The extra 10 feet my dad wanted in the kitchen that they left off would have been nice to have.