"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
...
We are thinking about using this downturn in the housing market to build a
new home, and acting as our own General Contractor. Has anyone in the
group done this and do they have any words of advice?

Reggie,

Be careful. I'm a General Contractor in CA (30 years in the trades, 18 with
an active GC license), and it's not as easy as letting your fingers do the
walking to find the sub-trades you need. Most GCs have relationships with
the various trades, and those relationships can make a job move along much
more smoothly. A group of subcontractors that have worked together before is
much like the workings of a swiss watch. Haphazardly gathering subtrades
based on price and/or references can wind up working like a busted up cuckoo
clock.

Another problem, is settling disputes that always arise. These are also best
handled by an expert. There's always one tradesman that says, "it's not my
job." So whose job is it to install the roof to wall flashing? The roofer,
the siding contractor, the mechanical contractor, maybe the framer? A good
GC will sort it out quickly, so you don't have to. What about the condensate
line from the air-handler? A union plumber will not install that line, a
non-union shop will. Sure, a small item, but the small items add up.

That brings us to cost. Can you save a few bucks... yup, you probably can.
Will a (sub)contractor work for free? Nope... they might as well stay home
and watch Oprah. A good GC will (hopefully) already be getting the best
price possible from his/her subs. There is not usually much room to
negotiate the price much further. Many people think that a price from a
person providing labor is different than that of a supplier. It's really
not. If you estimate that the job is going to take xx hours, and you pay
your guys xx dollars, there's not a lot of room to work. The GC will take
your plans, get estimates/proposals from all the sub-trades, and provide you
with an accurate estimate for the work. In general, there are no surprises,
unless you switch from Millgard windows to Pella g. Depending on your
arrangement with the GC, he will either mark up the job (generally 15%), for
your final cost, or simply add on a flat "GC Fee" to the total for your
cost. Either way, he is charging a service for his "expertise." It's up to
you to decide if it's worth it. Do you constantly want to be calling 10
people to get your job done, or only one. Someone here said you can save
40%... that's ridiculous.

One last thing... your budget is your biggest enemy, or your greatest
friend. A neighbor of mine chose to remodel his home, acting as his own GC.
I wasn't an option since I only do small subdivisions, and custom homes (no
remodels). He came up with his own budget, and proceeded to gather subs. I
begged him to get a GC involved, but he didn't want to spend the extra
money. Bottom line, he was 50% over budget, and it took 14 months instead of
8 because of all the unforseen "stuff" he had missed. It still would have
cost him that extra 50%, but he would have known up front if he had a GC
involved, and could have planned accordingly.

Just my friendly advice.

--Mike