Buying 4 acres to build a home on. Any Advice/Suggestions/Warnings/Do's & Don'ts?

shurur

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Lutz, FL
Holy shit you’re dumb as **** aren’t you.
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If what I said offends you, then I am sorry to have hurt your feelings.
I don't want you to be unhappy.

But If what I said hit a nerve, you should think about why.

Again, no professional should mind the owner being present and on top of the work getting done. This should include the GC.

Your comment leads me to believe that you are probably the tradesman who can't get jobs because of your attitude, and you probably get lousy reviews as well. You fit the profile of who I am talking about.

Listen to yourself.

Again, the money and the property belong to the owner..not the contractors or the GC.
The owner is THE BOSS, and should monitor the work being done.

You guys ultimately work for the owner of the property.
That is the nature and life blood of your business.

Yours are the kind of small comments I get from contractors who can't read an engineering plan and come up with a list of materials from it. Then they get angry with me, because they are not in full command of their supposed trade.

Common comment:
"I don't know how to read a plan , but I know how to build a fill-in-the blank."

An owner can't afford someone who doesn't know his trade and doesn't stay on the job and complete it in on time. The only real way of confirming this is to be a constant (neutral) presence, deferring to the GC until or unless the trust is lost in him.
 

coposrv

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If what I said offends you, then I am sorry to have hurt your feelings.
I don't want you to be unhappy.

But If what I said hit a nerve, you should think about why.

Again, no professional should mind the owner being present and on top of the work getting done. This should include the GC.

Your comment leads me to believe that you are probably the tradesman who can't get jobs because of your attitude, and you probably get lousy reviews as well. You fit the profile of who I am talking about.

Listen to yourself.

Again, the money and the property belong to the owner..not the contractors or the GC.
The owner is THE BOSS, and should monitor the work being done.

You guys ultimately work for the owner of the property.
That is the nature and life blood of your business.

Yours are the kind of small comments I get from contractors who can't read an engineering plan and come up with a list of materials from it. Then they get angry with me, because they are not in full command of their supposed trade.

Common comment:
"I don't know how to read a plan , but I know how to build a fill-in-the blank."

An owner can't afford someone who doesn't know his trade and doesn't stay on the job and complete it in on time. The only real way of confirming this is to be a constant (neutral) presence, deferring to the GC until or unless the trust is lost in him.

Haha. You are so far from being correct with your assumptions it’s not even funny.


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coposrv

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I usually don’t feed the trolls. So I’m just going to ignore you


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ford fanatic

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Darlington, Md
Our 30 acre lot did not perc 100%, so we had to have a partially raised (sand mound) septic installed. Three concrete settling tanks, then the last one pumps to the drain field. In 2006 it was $20K. Septic (installer) guy said, "don't put anything down the drain that didn't come out of your body...that, and toilet paper." We have followed those rules and have the first 2 tanks pumped every 4-5 years, the pump guy says it looks great.

We also have a whole house water filtration system for sediment and iron.
 

railroad

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warrior, al
I built my house, less the sheet rock, plumbing, siding, and putting the metal roof on.
I sold my previous house, used that money, and wife's income to pay as I built. It took me 2 years.
Some things I know and some I would consider. Do not face your house toward the weather income flow. Be aware of the sunrise and sunset for porches and decks.
Try and visualize each rooms layout for electrical outlet locations. My house is 3400+ sq ft and I had to put in 2 200 amp panels. I do have a whole house generator. Generac is the only one to consider.
Do underground electrical service, run your phone, cable, etc in the same ditch and run redundant pulls of them. That wiring is not expensive and utilities sometimes will give it to you.
I pulled a lot of phone line and my son advised me to pull cat 5 also. I did not and regretted it, but wireless has improved now, so no issue.
You can run the phone and the cat 5 in the same box.
Some houses can survive without gutters. I am on 10 acres and surrounded by natural forest. My gutters stayed full of leaves. Gutter caps have been great.
Metal roof, only way to go. Rain Noise is not an issue.
Do not skimp on windows.
Make sure your grade carries water away from the house on all sides.
Do a good water proofing on the basement. 9 ft or higher basement. Duct work takes up a lot of room.
Cut the pine trees back from the house lot. Storms can break them easily.
I used mostly cut lumber, but think I like engineered material better now.
Have a good contract, when the s*%t hits the fan with the contractor, it is your only protection.
They make some sound proofing for interior walls. I wish I had used it on some rooms.
I built 9 ft ceiling on the 1st floor, 8 ft on the 2nd. I like it. Be sure to glue the sub floor down well and I would have screwed it down, if I had it to do again.
Good luck,
 

tistan

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Location
savannah
If what I said offends you, then I am sorry to have hurt your feelings.
I don't want you to be unhappy.

But If what I said hit a nerve, you should think about why.

Again, no professional should mind the owner being present and on top of the work getting done. This should include the GC.

Your comment leads me to believe that you are probably the tradesman who can't get jobs because of your attitude, and you probably get lousy reviews as well. You fit the profile of who I am talking about.

Listen to yourself.

Again, the money and the property belong to the owner..not the contractors or the GC.
The owner is THE BOSS, and should monitor the work being done.

You guys ultimately work for the owner of the property.
That is the nature and life blood of your business.

Yours are the kind of small comments I get from contractors who can't read an engineering plan and come up with a list of materials from it. Then they get angry with me, because they are not in full command of their supposed trade.

Common comment:
"I don't know how to read a plan , but I know how to build a fill-in-the blank."

An owner can't afford someone who doesn't know his trade and doesn't stay on the job and complete it in on time. The only real way of confirming this is to be a constant (neutral) presence, deferring to the GC until or unless the trust is lost in him.

You are 100% wrong. The project is mine and I work for my interests. My contracts specifically state that the homeowner will not interfere with the day to day work. It also states they are not to discuss any changes or work issues with my trades people. I've worked for contractors that let homeowners run them around ragged and create nothing but stress and cause the project to drag out. I don't mind meeting with the homeowner and looking over things, but they are not going to sit there and micromanage.


(d) Control During Construction. Contractor shall have sole control and exclusive possession and unrestricted use of the Site during construction of the Residence until completion of the Residence and payment of all monies due the Contractor. All communication will be made directly to Contractor. The Owner shall not issue any directions or instructions to the subcontractors or suppliers concerning the work. The Owner shall not be permitted to do any of its work on the Property prior to the delivery of possession of the Residence to the Owner unless the Contractor permits such work by the Owner in writing. If the work done by the Owner or its contractors delays or impedes the work of the Contractor, the Contractor shall have the right to withdraw its approval in which event such work by the Owner or its contractor shall immediately be terminated until possession of the Residence is delivered to the Owner or the Contractor otherwise consents in writing to a continuation of such work by the Owner or its contractor.
 

coposrv

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boston
You are 100% wrong. The project is mine and I work for my interests. My contracts specifically state that the homeowner will not interfere with the day to day work. It also states they are not to discuss any changes or work issues with my trades people. I've worked for contractors that let homeowners run them around ragged and create nothing but stress and cause the project to drag out. I don't mind meeting with the homeowner and looking over things, but they are not going to sit there and micromanage.


(d) Control During Construction. Contractor shall have sole control and exclusive possession and unrestricted use of the Site during construction of the Residence until completion of the Residence and payment of all monies due the Contractor. All communication will be made directly to Contractor. The Owner shall not issue any directions or instructions to the subcontractors or suppliers concerning the work. The Owner shall not be permitted to do any of its work on the Property prior to the delivery of possession of the Residence to the Owner unless the Contractor permits such work by the Owner in writing. If the work done by the Owner or its contractors delays or impedes the work of the Contractor, the Contractor shall have the right to withdraw its approval in which event such work by the Owner or its contractor shall immediately be terminated until possession of the Residence is delivered to the Owner or the Contractor otherwise consents in writing to a continuation of such work by the Owner or its contractor.

This is the way it’s done and you’re the type of GC I will only work with. Yes the homeowner is the end user but they or their reps will not control how I do things.


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