Building An Affordable House: A Smart Guide to High-Value, Low-Cost Construction

List Price: $24.95 Discount Price: $9.24

Customer Reviews:

Many options, use selectively [Posted on 2007-01-07]
This book presents a wide range of cost-saving options on the foundation, framing, insulation, and other components of a new house. You have to pick and choose the ones that work for you. For example, if you have a beautiful view and a mild climate, you may not want to cut costs by reducing the number of windows.
Instead, you can (for example) avoid a costly over-built foundation that is designed for more demanding climates.

The author does not advocate building a "cheap" (sub-standard) house. In fact, in some parts of the book he recommends avoiding choices that would reduce up-front costs (for instance, by laying polyester carpet over an inexpensive foam pad, or by installing an electrical panel with room for fewer breakers).

Many of his suggestions simply challenge conventional practices that have no engineering rationale (spacing studs 16" oc instead of 24", using 3-stud corners) or alternative products (such as Insulating Concrete Forms) that are not necessarily cost-effective.

I think this is a very helpful book. If nothing else, it can alert you to the kinds of details that periodically need re-thinking when you follow one construction practice over another. Then if you want to put more money into an extravagant staircase or other detail, you'll have some ideas about how to pay for it without going over budget or cutting dangerous corners.

A must have resource for anyone planning to build [Posted on 2007-05-28]
Both beginners and experienced professionals should feel the contents very easy to understand. It is filled with lots of illustrations and as the saying goes, "a picture is worth a thousand words".

A big bonus is all the illustrations in color that bring alive various arguments made by the author. I may not agree with all the suggestions from the author 100% but I can say that I would have been "flying blind" without this book.

In about 200 pages, this book pretty much summarizes what you need to do control your budget and to catch the low-hanging fruit first.

One of the Best Books on Home Building [Posted on 2007-09-18]
If you are planning on building your own home, reading this book is a must! This book goes beyond the typical how to be your own contractor. You will find very valuable information on how to get the most house for your money. Unlike many other books, it gives information on specific building products and lists the pros and cons. I have read many books on this subject and this was by far the most useful.

The only item I completely disagree with in this book is the portion in which the author recommends using a "Wood Foundation". If you every lived in a home that had termites, the last thing you want is wood touching dirt.

The author writes the book from a builder's perspective. His intent appears to be helping other builders find a niche in building a high quality home at the lowest possible price. If you want information on the most luxurious products and home plans, you will not find it in here. Regardless of the book's focus on value, it contains copious amounts of useful information for all people who are considering building their own house or having a home built for them.

Not very useful for an owner builder [Posted on 2007-10-28]
I bought this book and "The Owner Builder Book" before I started building my own house. "The Owner Builder Book" was a very useful tool while this book mainly served to warn me about building techniques used by some contractors to save money, barely meeting minimum building codes. I'd recommend looking at this book in a library before buying to see some of the house pictures. If they look like things you'd be happy with (uncased doors and windows, carpeted stairs, closets without doors, wire closet shelves, stairs with knee walls instead of balustrade, laminate counters and fewer doors and windows to save money), then buy it. It could save you some money.

Common Sense....... [Posted on 2007-11-23]
I came about this title from a seminar with SMA Consulting Group in Utah. Working in the residental sector, I feel it is imperative to understand and grasp the concepts outlined in this book. From prelim all the way through, having the mindset up front to reduce costs and refine construction should be a must for anyone in any type of market, custom to production. Many of the items dicussed are currently in use with some of the larger builders in the nation and the returns from those practices are proof that this elements can used and applied across the board. Even if you think your business must design and build inefficient homes in order to make the sell, you are missing the point and potential. Any market can do this, it just requires you to be creative within a framework. Reducing material waste and labor costs can be done by using some of these simple and common sense practices. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to increase their margins and reduce their costs. If your designer cannot work within these ideas and concepts, maybe it's time for a new designer!

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