Five Common Myths About Home Building

I've been a licensed general contractor for over 20 years and I've listened to more homeowners, do-it-yourselfers and even teenagers tell me how easy it is to build a house. My response is always the same,” Next time you build it and then let me know how easy it really was.” These people drive me nuts. Here are five common myths about home building that people really need to know about.

1. It's Easier Than It Looks: If you're watching a professional home builder in action, working every day, there’s a good chance that they're making it look easier than it actually is. Don't tell me how easy it is, until you've actually built your own home like I have.

2. It's Not Going to Cost That Much: I don't know how many times I hand an estimate to a homeowner and they tell me that there is no way it's going to cost that much. I have everything itemized on the estimate and they could compare all of these prices listed on my estimate at any home improvement center or lumber yard, for themselves.

3. My Friend Built His Home in Three Months: Then have your friend build your home. I don't know how many times I hear somebody telling me that someone built a home faster than I could. If it's only a two bedroom house, you could probably build it in two months.

4. Rain Won't Bother Anything: Well there you go again, the rain gets the wood wet, which causes it to expand as it absorbs water and when it dries out, it starts to shrink. Do this a couple of times and you might need to start replacing plywood and parts of your framing.

5. The Real Estate Agent Gets 6%: Sell the home yourself then and keep the 6%. If it's your house, you get to make all of the decisions. Sometimes selling a home and building one isn't as easy as it looks, but you're really not going to know how difficult these things can be, until you try it on your own.

I love it when someone tells me how easy my job is, when they have no idea what it takes to do it.

 

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