• Home
  • About
  • Blog
    • Building
    • Blog
    • Motherhood
    • DIY
  • Shop My Favorites
  • Contact

@allie_athome

DIY • Motherhood • Home Building

Blog, Building

What it Means to be Your Own General Contractor

July 12, 2020 Leave a Comment

I get asked this question a lot!

“So you didn’t hire a general contractor?”

“What does self-contracting even mean?”

“Who is building your house?”

No, we did not hire a general contractor. We (my husband mainly) are acting as our own contractor, which means we are building our house. We hire out all of the sub-contractors (framers, plumbers, electricians, roofers, etc.) We line up the schedule and we make all of the decisions. There have been several pros and cons to this method, but of course, the biggest pro has been the money we saved.

A general contractor quoted us around $200,000 to build our house from top to bottom. We are right on schedule to save around $50,000 from hiring out our own sub-contractors and doing a lot of the work ourselves. I will be the first to say this method is not for everyone. My husband is self-employed, and the shop where he does most of his work is directly across the road from our build. He has the time and availability to meet with the sub-contractors and be there within minutes if a decision needs to be made or if something goes wrong.

Also, you may have noticed that it has taken us quite a while to get this house built. We have gone at our own pace and paid cash for as much as possible. As I write this, we are in month 15 of our build and we still have at least a month to go before we can move in. We will not be moving into a finished house. This is a game-changer for some people. After moving in, we will still need to finish trim, tile, exterior work, and I’m sure several other little projects will come up. We are in a hurry to move in at this point because we have a baby on the way.

I will also warn that not all cities/counties/HOAs will allow you to act as your own general contractor. We live in rural, south Georgia, where building codes are pretty lenient compared to some. We still had to sign an Owner Builder Affidavit which basically said we can not rent out or sell our house for 2 years after building. I think this is to ensure we build a solid, durable dwelling that won’t collapse on a new buyer/renter. LOL.

I did a lot of research on owner-builders before we got started. My favorite blog by FAR is Farmhouse From Scratch. She and her husband self-contracted their house and saved close to $200k. She has a ton of resources builders and she created an awesome Facebook group that I reference to daily – Build your own house-Owner Builders.

So far, I don’t regret the route we chose at all. It’s been hard, yes. It would have been nice to move in after 6-9 months of building. However, I will never regret the amount of money we saved or the sense of pride we get when we say that we built our own house.

If you are thinking about self-contracting your house and you have questions, feel free to reach out! I’m always happy to help.

Until then,

Allie

You might also enjoy

Having a Baby During the Pandemic: Our Birth Story
Thrifting Tips
We Chose Montessori School – and THIS is why.
Previous:
Creating a Custom Floor Plan
Next:
6 Months In – What I Would Do Differently

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

allie_athome

🖤 🖤
Happy New Year from our little family to yours! Th Happy New Year from our little family to yours! This past year was great, but I can’t wait to see what 2022 has in store for us! 
.
.
.
#explorega #northgamountains #cheerstothenewyear #2022 #newyears #newyearresolution #momoftwo #momofboth #siblings #bigbro #babysis
We had a sweet little getaway to the North Georgia We had a sweet little getaway to the North Georgia Mountains for a few days! We explored, hiked to a waterfall, toured a gold mine, and spent some much needed quality time with family! We had a great time, but I gotta admit, I am so happy to be home, curled up on my own couch 😂
.
.
.
.
.
#dahlonega #dukecreekfalls #northga #mountaintrip #afterchristmas #momofboth #momoftwo #familytime #explorega #hikingtrails #scenicroute
Merry Christmas ❤️🎄 Merry Christmas ❤️🎄
Janie was NOT excited about Christmas pictures, bu Janie was NOT excited about Christmas pictures, but Blue sure was! And of course, my sweet Jonah was just chill as can be 🤣🎄🎁
.
.
#christmascards #christmasphotos #familyphotos #bluepitsofinstagram #pitbullsofinstagram #showmeyourpitties #momoftwo #momofboth #thatsecondborntho #mamasboy
Well, it’s official… I took a leap of faith an Well, it’s official… I took a leap of faith and quit my full-time job. It took a lot of thought & a lot of prayer, but God was holding my hand and guiding my way the entire time. Even if He had to pull & tug me some of the way 😩
.
Justin’s business keeps growing and so do our babies. It became very clear that it’s time to spend more time at home. In putting all my trust in God, He opened a door for me to continue my marketing & development work with a few local non-profits that are close to my heart, on my own schedule from home 🖤 Won’t He do it, y’all?!
.
Here’s to ending the year on a high note! I suspect LOTS of new DIY projects in my future 😍😍
.
.
.
#dreamchaser #workfromhome #sahm #stayathomemom #diyer #momblog #momoftwo #momofboth #trustinggod #godsplan #
Decorating a Christmas tree is not one of my stren Decorating a Christmas tree is not one of my strengths 😅😅
.
.
.
.
#christmastree #christmasdecor #cozycorner #christmascorner #christmascozy #diyshelving #floatingshelves #holidaydecor #holidayspirit #momofboth
Finally felt up to taking the babies to the fair 🙌🏼🙌🏼 
.
Oh and sorry, Daddy, but I think Janie just put baby farm animals on her Christmas list 😂
.
.
#fairfun #ferriswheel #pettingzoo #momofboth #momoftwo #familyouting #babygoats #mamastired #tobefair #waycrossfair #oldnavy #catandjack #monkeyfeetusa #jackthomas
While shopping today, a lady said, “She is a who While shopping today, a lady said, “She is a whole mood.” If you know her daddy, you know she gets it honest 🤣🤣
.
.
#samsclub #goodwillfinds #thrifting #carhart #patagonia #targetstyle #momofboth #momoftwo #shoppingtrip #mamasbabygirl #wholemood
Proof that he doesn’t always wear paint-covered Proof that he doesn’t always wear paint-covered jeans and t-shirts 😍😍😍 #yeslawd #hefine
Trick or Treat 🧡🎃🖤 . . . . #momofboth #mo Trick or Treat 🧡🎃🖤
.
.
.
.
#momofboth #momoftwo #halloween #trickortreat #familycostumes #costumeguide #cupcakecostume #kidscostumes #kidshalloweencostume #cuppycake
When I worked on Jekyll, guests would always ask w When I worked on Jekyll, guests would always ask when the best time was to visit the island and I’d always say, “the third weekend in October”

Justin would say I just made that up, so to prove me right, I booked us a stay on the island this weekend.

Good food, perfect weather, and the best company ❤️🌊🌴 I think we’ll make this an annual tradition!
.
.
.
.
#jekyllisland #october #momoftwo #momofboth #staycation #weekendgetaway #myhappyplace #islandtime #daddysgirl #mamasboy #poshpeanut #barrierisland #georgiacoast #goldenhour
When Daddy brings home Starbucks… 😍 That’ll When Daddy brings home Starbucks… 😍 That’ll make the baby feel better!! 💗💗
.
.
.
.
#oneyearold #13months #momofboth #starbucks #pinkdrink #dragondrink #momoftwo #momblog #mamablogger #athome #starbs #drinkoftheday #butfirstcoffee
I’m not even going to pretend that this picture I’m not even going to pretend that this picture was even slightly easy to take 😂 there’s no taming this feral child! Outtakes will be posted in my stories 🙈 in other news… happy fall, y’all! 🎃 
.
.
.
#13monthsold #oneyearold #babygirl #momofboth #momoftwo #momblog #mamablogger #happyfallyall #eleanorrose #goodwillfinds #thrifted #mums #southernbackporch #fallporch #falldecor #pumpkinsandmums
Perfect day for a trip to the zoo 🦁🐒🐨
I’m always in awe of the moms who have all the patience and can handle taking multiple children on an adventure without any meltdowns or pulling their hair out… I am not one of those moms. We had a fun day but I am hot and I am exhausted 🤪I hope you’re all enjoying this beautiful weekend!
.
.
.
#momblog #zooday #momoftwo #momofboth #nationaldaughterday #mamaistired #jaxzoo #daytripswithkids #mamabear #reallifemom #mamablog
I was sooo nervous to order a rug off the internet I was sooo nervous to order a rug off the internet. I was worried about the quality and the colors, and tbh, I’m still getting used to the colors… but it’s growing on me! It will definitely hide dirt WAY better than our old one so that’s a big win over here!! I feel like the dark colors make our living room feel way cozier. What do you think? Yay or nay?
.
.
.
.
#livingroomrecor #livingroomrug #livingroomstyle #bohofarmhouse #bohostyle #farmhousedecor #diydecor #comfyvibes #cozylivingroom #cozyliving #arearug #fallmantle #fauxfireplace #fauxmantle #falldecor
I’m a sucker for some pretty Pyrex bowls! Found I’m a sucker for some pretty Pyrex bowls! Found these beauties as Salvation Army today and could have screamed, I was so excited!! 💗 
.
.
.
.
#vintagepyrex #pyrexbowls #autumnrainbow #322pyrex #thriftstorefinds #salvationarmyfinds #aesthetic #pinkpyrex #thriftedhome #pyrexcollection
We had the best time celebrating our baby girl’s We had the best time celebrating our baby girl’s FIRST birthday! 💗🧡💛
.
.
.
.
#firstbirthdayparty #janiefest #firstbirthday #babygirlbirthday #birthdayparty #groovyfirstbirthday #festivalbirthday #hippiebirthday #70sbirthday #smashcake #janierose #birthdaygirl #tiedye #groovyvibes #flowerpower
Sister’s first trip to Target ❤️ . . . . #ta Sister’s first trip to Target ❤️
.
.
.
.
#targetstyle #1yearold #firstbirthday #mamasmini #momblog #livieandluca #targetdollarspot #targetdeals
These shelves were a Sunday afternoon DIY project These shelves were a Sunday afternoon DIY project that took all of 20 minutes to complete! Justin picked up the lumber from Lowe’s ($50). Gallery frame kits were 75% off at Hobby Lobby, making them $9.99 for 3 frames!! Walgreens had a 50% off photo sale last week so all in all, we had less than $100 in this whole setup 😍😍 
.
.
.
#diyhomedecor #diyshelves #livingroomshelves #clearancedecor #hobbylobbyclearance #diyblog #floatingshelves #clearancefinds #thriftstoredecor #bohofarmhouse
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Design by SkyandStars.co
Back Top

Copyright © 2022