If you are considering building a new home, you may want to think about acting as your own general contractor rather than hiring a construction company. Although building your own home may seem intimidating, there are programs available that can make building much easier. In addition, as these ten reasons show, there are many others why building a home of your own makes sense.
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Money Savings
In most cases, building your own home saves money. If you have skills in home-building such as experience in carpentry, plumbing or electricity, you can act as your own general contractor, which can save you as much as 25 percent on the cost of the home. This is because you take on some of the overhead costs yourself, which are still less than they would be through a general contractor
You Can Choose Subcontractors
When you hire a general contractor, the subcontractors for items such as plumbing, electrical work or HVAC are those that contractor has used before. Although, in most cases, the general contractor will hire qualified companies to do the job, there are some who may cut corners and choose subcontractors who are not as thorough as other. This could lead to delays in completion or work not being done to your satisfaction.
Choose Your Own Materials
When you act as the general contractor, you are able to choose the quality of materials you want used in your home, from the lumber used in framing down to the carriage bolts used to connect floorboards. You will know the materials will be of the quality you want in your home and that they will be installed to your specifications.
Time Savings
In most cases, when you act as your own general contractor you can complete your home much faster. One of the reasons is because many general contractors take on several jobs at one time so that they must divide their time among those jobs. By focusing only on your home, you may be able to have your house completed in six months or less, unlike the nine months to a year most contractors estimate for completion
Customized Home Plan
When you work with a specific contractor, they may limit the customization you can do to your home plan based on their own limitations. When you act as your own general contractor, you can use internet searches or other methods to find plans that can be customized for your needs rather than accept a standard plan available through the contractor
Choose Your Land
Some contractors are limited in the areas they may build, whether it is due to licensing restrictions or the other jobs they have in process. By building your home yourself, you can choose land wherever you want with the amenities you desire with no limits.
Lender Options
Often, specific general contractors work with specific lenders. Because a lender may not be familiar with a general contractor, you may have difficulty getting funding for your construction. In addition, a general contractor may steer you toward a bank that they know will allow them to cut corners on inspections in order to draw on the construction funding, which is something you don’t want to have happen. By building your home on your own, you are able to be more flexible in your choice of lenders.
Cost Control
Because you are paying subcontractors and suppliers yourself, you are better able to monitor and control the costs of construction. In addition, you are able to control payment to those subcontractors until the work is done to your satisfaction and not the satisfaction of a contractor.
Sweat Equity
If you have experience in construction, you may be able to do some of the work yourself rather than hire someone else to do it. Not only does this save money, but it allows you a feeling of accomplishment that portions of your home were built by your own hand.
Resources Available
There are many resources available, whether it is online tips and guidelines or companies that can help guide you through the home-building process. A simple online search will provide you with videos, articles and how-to instructions that will make building your home go smoothly.
If you are considering building a new home, there are many reasons to consider doing so yourself rather than hiring a general contractor.
