Last week Farmer and I had the amazing opportunity to travel all the way across the United States to meet with, and work with, another owner building family. The trip from Central Washington all the way to Boston Massachusetts was a long one, but I am so glad we took the leap and went.
Our trip had three purposes:
- To meet the couple Farmer and I recently hired to join the Farmhouse From Scratch team
- To work with them on their house
- To interview them, and share all of the awesome things we learned with all of you guys
Farmer and I hope that this is the beginning of many trips that we can take, all over the USA, to help out other owner builders on their homes and to gather even more helpful information for you to read and watch.
Owner building is not easy, and it can really help to know that there are others out there going through the same thing you are. We just want to help out as many as we can!
So today I want to share with you 3 things that I learned (or had reinforced) by traveling to a completely different place, participating in a completely different owner build, with different codes and regulations, done by owner builders in a completely different situation than me.
- EVERYONE has different building practices
Just because you do something one way, and someone else does it another, does NOT mean you did it wrong. We ran into this with our own build, but Queen Bee and Worker Bee (from Massachusetts) mentioned it as well.
You may even have contractors telling you how bad it will turn out or how much money you wasted. Take a few deep breaths and remember that everyone is entitled to their own opinions. But just like the fact that no two houses are the same …. no two contractors are the same either.
Just because someone is loud, does not make them correct.
As long as you did your homework, researched as much as you could, and made the decision you felt right about, rest easy and let it go when someone tells you they would have done it differently.
2. You have to stand up for yourself and be firm with what you want. It’s your house.
Part of your job as the general contractor of your home is to be decisive. If you don’t make the decisions, who will?
Once you have decided on something for your house, whether that’s the type of siding you want or the height of your ceiling, be firm about it. Don’t let other people try to make you change things.
Occasionally you will come across a professional who feels you aren’t qualified to be an owner builder. They may try to convince you to change things that you had previously decided on.
If that happens, I suggest finding a new subcontractor to work with. This is your house. Do things that way you want because you are the one who will be living with it.
3. All it takes to owner build is hard work and a willingness to learn
Queen Bee and Worker Bee were a great reminder that you don’t have to have experience with construction to be able to owner build. Like Farmer and I, this was their first time building a home. They meticulously researched and planned before beginning. They built relationships with sub contractors who have been incredibly helpful during their build. Their home looks beautiful and has passed all inspections this far in their process.
Owner building is a huge job, but the two most important things you need are NOT constructions background and connections in every trade. Sure those things help, but we didn’t have them and neither did Queen Bee and Worker Bee.
The two most important things you need are hard work and a willingness to learn. If you are willing to put in the time and effort it takes to research and learn then you will be able to make the decisions you need to. Follow that up with hard work, whether that’s phone calls and hiring or swinging a hammer, and you will be just fine!
I learned WAY more than just these three things while on our trip, and I can’t wait to share it all with you! Coming up, I will be sharing the in depth interview Farmer and I had with Queen Bee and Worker Bee and their owner build. I will also be sharing a tour of their beautiful 3 level colonial home including room sizes.
I am putting together a video of our whole trip where we got to help them with their several hundred square foot deck and learn more about owner building on the opposite side of the country. After all, building codes are different everywhere you go! Did you know that Farmer and I (WA) were able to build our interior walls with 2×4’s and Queen Bee and Worker Bee (MASS) had to use 2×6’s? There were plenty of other differences as well that were surprises to us.
Would you like to be one of the next owner builders that Farmer and I come help out?
We want to come work on your house and interview you! Be sure to watch the Youtube videos as they come out as they will have all of the information you need to be considered.
Also, you must be a subscriber to both the Farmhouse From Scratch Youtube channel and the Farmhouse From Scratch website.
Let us know what you think! Where should we head to next?
~Farmer’s Wife
Leave a Reply