Let Me Upgrade Ya

One of my favorite things about custom building + owner building is that you get to control the quality of your construction project. 🏡 Even though there are approximately FIFTY BAJILLION decisions to be made during the process and fatigue is inevitable, the payoff is SO worth it. If you are in the process now are considering it, I hope this list can give you some ideas about things that you may want to plan to do. These are just some of the little details we chose to add the improve the quality and value of our home. Our coastal farmhouse is located in Florida ☀️so we spent a lot of time considering wind impacts due to expectations of hurricanes.🌪 I added a few details about finishes in this post, but I tried to stick mostly to the nitty gritty of the actual construction. I’ll definitely share all our finish and fixtures choices in an upcoming blog.

What We Did:

🗝 Tongue n groove porch ceilings (this option was more costly than using the standard vinyl)

🛠 Installed header boards between studs during framing for TVs, decor etc (we did a bunch of these and in every room)

🚪Craftsman trim style with large headers + 8” Baseboards throughout interior

🖼 exterior framing boards 2x6

🚰 Matt reinforced the waterproofing on all windows during framing phase

🚽 Put essential electrical wires together to easily run the whole house on a generator if needed

💡Put 4 ceiling lights plus a fan in every bedroom (I will do a lighting/electrical post in the future so stay tuned!)

🕯 Retrofit recessed LED lights except in rooms that had super tall ceilings that would require scaffolding to reach, those we used the recessed can lights so that we just had to change out the bulb and not the whole fixture

🚿 Curb-less shower entry on both shower stalls

🔥 Extra large fireplace insert

👩🏼‍🦽Extra wide handicap accessible doorways downstairs (36” width)

🚧 Fairing bracing between the studs in the interior walls.  When a house shakes in the wind, fairings provide extra support.

🏰 Extra Hurricane straps on every “T” joint.  Placed hurricane straps well beyond the required code limit. 

🏗 Heavy Duty Steel Straps securing adjoining studs on the house frame. 

⛓ Heavy duty Steel straps connect the edge trusses to the frame they sit on top off. 

⛏ For the floating stairs, used extra straps and reinforced with stainless steel screws to tighten the connection of the stairs to the truss they connect to for additional support.  Also attached OSB boards to the underside of the stair risers to increase support from the bottom side. 

👂🏼 Put insulation batting throughout the interior walls to cut down on sound travel and add privacy.

🚙 Fully insulated garage to help keep the inside temperature cooler.

🚿Used spray foam insulation throughout the home focusing on the ceilings and attack spaces

🪑 Fully custom, hand-built cabinetry. We chose this option because this cabinet maker came highly recommended and we did not want any half-cabinets, which the several other cabinet makers were going to do. We liked the idea of having the cabinets custom fit to each space.

What We Wish We Would Wave Done:

🛒 Impact resistant windows (they were double the cost but we should have just done it)

🗜 Hurricane rods on the truss gables to connect them to the concrete foundation. Probably would have been less than $500 to install. After surviving a hurricane, these rods should probably be code for southeast coastal homeowners. The long metal straps we used were the next best option, so we expect the gables to remain secure for any future storms that may blow through.

📦 Ordered semi-custom cabinetry. We would have gotten more bang for our buck.

THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS

If I think of more details, I will make a list and do this post again. When we were in the planning stages, I was always looking for lists and blogs from real life people’s experiences to try to help us determine where to spend extra money and where to cut back, so I really hope this helps!

Have a blessed week yall!

Owner Building: How to Source Your Funding

Hi! Thank you being here! Now that we’ve talked a little bit about owner building, you may be wondering how to secure the funds to build. And that is a GREAT question!

Every community, every state, and even family circumstances can vary, so there is no “one” answer for this. Personally, I have raised private funds to use for construction on both of my owner builds. But I know that not everyone will choose to use this method.

Bank Construction Loan

This is definitely the most conventional route to take, although it will take some work to secure a construction loan if you don’t have a contractor. So you have a few options here. If you have a good rapport with a builder, you could potentially ask them (or pay them a consulting fee) to sign off on your owner build. Their license would be ‘on the line’ for the construction therefore some builders may not agree, or they may agree with conditions. The other option is to shop around until you find a bank or credit union that will give you a loan to owner build. It isn’t easy but it isn’t impossible! Banks will likely have a stringent list of requirements and there may be some additional hoops you have to jump through… but just remember how much equity you will have earned and money you will have saved by putting in this hard work. One side note to keep in mind is that banks sometimes will require you to start the build with your own cash before they cut the first check. And even after the build gets going, some banks will require you to front the cash during parts of the build before they will cut the next check and that may require you to have cash available for use. Contractors typically will cover these costs when you hire them, but if you are owner building, you are expected to have the funds to keep construction moving forward. Most banks limit the construction loan timeline to one year and then require the loan to be rolled into a mortgage.

Personal Private Funds

We actually used a HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) for one build and a piecemeal plan with savings accounts, cash from a recent property sale, and we put a few items on credit for the other. My mom is a CPA+financial planner, so we had a professional on board to bounce financial decisions off of (which I definitely recommend). If you use private money, make sure that you have a bank or credit union refinance-into-mortgage plan already in place before you start the build. I have worked very well with a local credit union here in Panama City and I was very shocked when I called around how many banks and credit unions gave me incorrect information or flat out refused to refinance into a mortgage from construction using private funds. The key is to have a plan in place before you begin the process and stay in contact with the bank throughout the construction of your home.

Private Money Lenders

This is an option that I really am not well versed on, but it’s something that is utilized in real estate dealings (usually investment purposes). The premise is that you are borrowing from people who are loaning the money because the interest rate that they charge you is more than they could make with their money just sitting in a savings account. In essence, you will be paying them to use their money for a certain amount of time. This money is not backed by a bank and there’s more risk involved for you and for the lender in this scenario. You could request a loan from these private money lenders but the downside is that the interest rate is usually substantially higher than a bank loan (but still probably a lot less than paying a contractor for your build).

As far as financing goes, just always cover your bases when you are owner building! You are taking on the risk of the build, so best practice is to have 20% of your total cost in cash. Most homes go over budget by about 15% because so many things change once the process actually starts and you will also need that money in cash (because a good lender is going to cap your spending at your original agreement). So, to give an example in round numbers, if you have a $100k budget total for construction, you should start off with $20k of that in cash plus you should be prepared to spend another $15k cash in overages throughout the build.

During our recent coastal farmhouse build, category 5 Hurricane Michael came to town and TOTALLY changed our building costs and plans! We were scrambling at the end to do everything possible to get to Final Inspection. We wiped out so much of our savings account paying for cash items/upgrades at the beginning of the build and at the end we had to prioritize tasks and move in with some projects incomplete.

Matt always gives a different and interesting perspective on building, so here is his take: If you can build in phases, that is the way to go. Anything that can wait until after the initial build will help you get to the certificate of occupancy faster and closer to your end budget goal. whether it be the garage, a wing on the house, a patio; try to build the house in phases if at all possible. It is a good idea to think ahead and plan for the final product regardless, that way your plumbing and electrical will still be where you need it, but you don’t have to have a fully completed dream home immediately. Building a house in phases is definitely not for everyone, but owner building can easily “build in” 20-30% of inherent equity simply by not having to pay the general contracting price.

As always, please email me (or DM me on Instagram @summer_onthecoast) if you have any feedback! I always love hearing about your build plans!

Happy Tuesday!

The Good, Bad, and Ugly of Owner Building

Hi! Hello! And how do you do? 😄🤗

On my Insta stories this past Friday I posed a question about owner building and it seemed there are a lot of people interested in doing their own home building project. I would love to share my experience and knowledge for those that are interested, so I hope this blog is helpful!

For those that don’t know, “owner building” means that the owners are acting as their own project manager and there is no residential/general contractor hired to oversee the build. We recently owner built our coastal farmhouse here in Florida and this is my second time owner building. I just love everything about construction and home design! 🤓 I asked my trusty sidekick Matt 👩‍❤️‍👨 to help me develop our list of pros and cons and things to consider when deciding if owner building is for you!

The Good:

-you are in control of all aspects of the build

-you are in control of the timeline, budget, quality of work, finishes, subcontractor, ALL details

-you are in control of hiring of the subcontractor crews

-you save money by not having to pay the fees a contractor charges

-you will catch mistakes that the contractor may miss because it isn’t a detail that bothers him

-you can add custom upgrades throughout the project

-all upgrades and change orders are done at “cost” with no builder overhead added in

-you save money on materials usually because you are price checking and getting the best deal

The Bad:

-This is a huge commitment (time, emotions, money, everything!)

-You are in control (you are solely responsible for the quality of your build). You are relying heavily on your subs to do good work and be honest

-You have to put in the time and energy (and it is an everyday task). You will be pulling your own permits, making sure all materials are on site, managing your sub schedule, meeting with the inspectors, etc.

-You have to make all of the decisions throughout the build

-you are responsible for firing 😕 (if necessary) the subcontractor crews

-You need an insurance policy for your construction and that can be much more difficult to find without a licensed builder, but not impossible

-owner builders typically don’t have long standing relationships with the subs and supply houses and therefore won’t get priority for jobs, may not get the same pricing as a builder who is using them multiple times, and may not get the same quality of work as they would give someone who may hire them again

-also owner builders typically don’t have long standing relationships with the inspectors and permitting offices. Licensed builders tend to have a foot in the door with those guys

The Ugly:

-for most of us, our home is the biggest investment of money we make, so naturally it is going to evoke the most stress

-Something(s) will always go wrong. Nothing ends up perfectly, no matter how much planning you do. There will be issues that arise and you must be able to see the big picture and not get too bogged down in details.

-You’ve got to have the time, commitment, understanding of the process, patience, and conflict resolution skills.

-you are responsible for making sure you know and understand all of the building regulations in your area (ie Florida has a ton of hurricane regulations so we had to make sure everything we did was up to current code)

-From BobVila.com: “When you hire a general contractor, you are paying for his experience, competence, ability to anticipate problems, and, more than anything, for his willingness to assume final responsibility for the whole job. And he’ll get the permits, do the scheduling, and handle disputes between subs and suppliers. Being your own contractor can mean you increase the odds of getting exactly what you want. GC’s make money by executing each job simply and efficiently so they can get on to the next one. Changes along the way and variations from the usual that make a job last longer can be the cause of irritation and uncooperativeness from a GC. Thus, if you are very detail conscious and plan to be looking over everybody’s shoulder anyway, it may make sense for you to be your own GC.”

well said, Bob! 👷🏼‍♂️

Please send me any questions you might have so that I can address them on future blog posts! Email is preferred.

have a blessed week!