Watch this guy frame a big house all by himself in the snow!
 

I mentioned to someone that you can purchase a patch of dirt up here for $3,000. There are two adjacent 9,147-square-foot lots about twenty minutes from here, off a paved road.

I have not looked up how much it would cost to connect utilities. I can afford a $3,000 lot. I about have the cash. Unfortunately, I wouldn't be able to do anything with it. I started looking into how much I could actually save by building a small and simple house by myself. I just found this guy's video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mw66ErD4_zk

He was not finished here, but he did all of this (above the foundation) by himself:

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1579506190

Someone else did the foundation and other people will do the roof, siding, electrical, plumbing, drywall, floor coverings, etc. He said that he worked as fast as a team. In one video he said "That team can't work because it's too cold."

Then he went to work.

He hardly gave any details.

Dave Ramsey has a video about building your own house, but it is about having a house built for you. He says you need a budget, a blueprint approved by the builder, and a schedule. Every week you make sure that they are following the budget and blueprint and you pay them. You don't change things because then the project takes too long and you go over budget. He said that if you find a problem, you talk to the general contractor, not the builders.

This guy broke down the cost to build a 2,200-square-foot, two-story house: $341,000. The average home value in my city is about the same as the national average, something like $235,000. Does that mean the average home is 1,500 square feet?

At least $3,000 for plans
At least $4,000 for permits
At least $35,000 for site prep and foundation
Up to $5,000 for surveyer
Roughly $2,000 to dig hole for foundation
$55,000 for framing
$22,000 for windows, doors, and shingles
$57,000 for electrical, heating, and cooling
$38,000 for exterior finishes
$85,000 for interior finishes--insulation, drywall, paint, flooring, cabinets, and appliances
$25,000 for general provisions and miscellaneous
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDUNXvYWA-Y

The Spruce has an article about building your own house (acting as the general contractor): You can save an enormous amount of money. General contractors charge 15 to 25 percent of the total price for building your house. On a $200,000 job, you save a minimum of $30,000 by not hiring a GC, but you might easily get in over your head. Good contractors do earn their fee. They have an established list of subs, know the permitting offices, have suppliers, and know how to coordinate to eliminate or minimize downtime. Good contractors earn their keep.

They have all of the steps to build a house and say which steps can be done by homeowners: https://www.thespruce.com/building-y...-house-1821301

These people built one-bedroom houses for $20,000 in materials, but good luck getting permits or a mortgage, and I do not even have any idea where to get more information: https://www.fastcompany.com/3056129/...cer-than-yours

TED has a program where they charge people to learn how to build their houses and use them as labor to build houses: https://fellowsblog.ted.com/how-to-b...0-861821051131

I do not know why I keep coming up with grand schemes only to realize that I can't do any of it, but while I am at it, I found 2.49 acres for $6,500 two miles from Mom's house, although it is surrounded by $300,000 houses. Watching Homemade Home's videos I have wondered about buying a rundown mobile home, leveling it, and putting in a normal house. People ask him why he doesn't buy a lot and build from scratch, but he says that the utility connections and foundation are worth more than the house itself.

There is a 900-square foot mobile home that brings a new meaning to "Remodeled" for $54,000. Some parts look nice. Most don't. There is a 700-square-foot mobile home for $75,000 that actually looks nice.

I didn't see anything cheaper.

It is frustrating because I like to make and fix things, but my two jobs do not keep me busy, and until I finally get enough clients or get into grad school, I do not know how to best use my time without wearing out my cars.

Ah. Another grad school has a deadline today. Maybe I should throw some time and money at that.

https://ecomodder.com/forum/member-f...toshoppped.jpg
My folks did their own contracting when they built their retirement home in 1980. They subbed out the foundation and roofing. My father did the electrical and plumbing and my mother did the finish carpentry and stone masonry. I built the factory that made the prefab panels and drew up the floorplan.

They had owned the lot for 16-18 years before they built. They invested ~$70-90K, on completion it was valued at $120K and ten years ago was listed by the 2nd owner at $270K.

It's amazing what a motivated self-builder can do. In the 1970s I knew a lawyer that built a house with a stone wall first floor and upper floors made from timbers from a sawmill he'd torn down. Then he discovered his Rhododendrons didn't like the arsenic in the ground water so he moved into the Coast Range and did the whole thing a second time. It tires me just typing about it. :)
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Anyways that guy you showed built to the dominant paradigm. Big and full of corners that collect dust.

The folks place had a slab on grade, the shell of the structure went up in a single days barn-raising, then it was closed to the weather and all the interior work was done. It didn't stand open to the weather which promotes black mold in this climate. I've heard of people that built a house, tore it down and rebuilt and got black mold in the second attempt.

TLDR; Oregon Dome promoted conventional construction for the price of a mobile home. They just didn't have a clue about HVAC.
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If you can find a place that burned down, then you get the driveway and utilities without the demolition costs.

I have seen many homes around here that look abandoned and run-down, but so far nothing burned.

So far... :D

Then again, many driveways are gravel...

There was one place here that had a 2 acre lot and a largeseparate shop/garage

Home burned down, kicking myself i didn’t buy it
(Illegal around here to build a garage without a home

I could absolutely see myself doing that. Maybe I would sleep better away from my crazy family (my brother periodically makes loud noises for no apparent reason), but I really want somewhere to organize all of my tools and work on projects out of the weather.

I did a quick search and did not find anything for Show Low, just shed permit and residential permits. It asks about livable square feet, garage square feet, etc., but does not specify there must be a house to build a garage.

It also specifies fifteen different times that you need an inspection!

https://ecomodder.com/forum/member-f...make-house.png
Here is a scheme/plot that uses the golden ratio to integrate the 1U shipping containers and 4x8 sheet materials as a geodesic dome.

You're welcome.