Suggestions for Cutting Construction Costs

I purchased a 900 sf home on the Oregon Coast on a really nice lot. The problem is that property here is flying up like gnocchi in boiling water. 2% a month! My brother-in-law designed a 950 sf modernist addition, which we are pricing out at about $140-$150 sf. We expected the remodel of the existing home to be about $70 sf, and it now appears that it will cost more like $90-$100 sf. This cost combined with the amount we had to pay to buy the property ($150,000) is testing our financial capacity.

I am interested in any ideas folks might have to lower our construction costs. For example, we were originally considering cedar siding, but T-111 (I can't believe I'm writing this) looks attractive right now. I can post some plans if that'd be helpful.

I am a complete rookie at construction stuff, but I am planning to do some of the tear off of the existing structure. We are planning on basic bamboo floors throughout, but we're open to environmentally-friendly alternatives. We're planning IKEA cabinets and a concrete kitchen counter. We do have a lot of big windows planned for the addition, but we really don't want vinyl.

I would really appreciate any suggestions.

If you don't mind lots of work, labor is an area where you can save quite a lot of money.

Here is an example:
My sister lives in south/central Illinois. Last year she built a house for her family. She has no construction skills or experience, but is afraid of nothing.

She acted as her own general contractor and hired all her subs. She hired all the subs with the understanding that she and her husband would do any and all tasks they could to reduce the cost. Things like installing the extra drywall screws, painting, clean up, etc. She is also installing all of her trim. She took her time and shopped for deals on all things, subs and materials to save money.

It has taken her a little over a year, but she now has a very nice house and saved about $35/sq ft.

This option is not for the faint of heart, but it might get you into the prince range you looking for. If you go for this option, I would suggest that you do some research on contracts, etc. so that you can avoid legal issues. Also discuss your plans with your local building code authority.

Hope this helps.

If you don't mind lots of work, labor is an area where you can save quite a lot of money.

JohnC is right on with this. I'm in the midst of a remodel myself, and I am estimating (modest approximation really) a savings of between 40 - 50K. No joke... I'm doing everything I possibly can - including nights of pulling nails out of wood to reuse.

My suggestion would be for you to stay within your comfort level in figuring out which of the jobs/stages you would want to accomplish on your own - keeping in mind that it can, potentially, get really exausting working the full time job to come home to another job. That said, there really area a lot of tasks that, through asking enough questions (you'll be amazed by how willing and helpful some people are), you might find very doable... : )
For instance - the bamboo flooring. The strand board variety is hard as a rock and has virtually no expansion/shrink to speak of as it is engineered (milled to a very managable size too). You can nail like traditional hardwood or you can glue it directly to your substrate (depending on what it is); and it is prefinished. All that helps make it install friendly and user friendly. With a little guidence, you'll be laying flooring in no time. But things like drywall - the workes are so fast that it is really more cost efficient to just let them do the work (not to mention the mess!).

If you are finding that you really are not comfortable doing a lot of the jobs, wait a few more months or a year so that you can throw more cash at it.

Hope to hear your progress!
Good Luck!

Good luck. Check out the following site. It is dedicated to the owner builder. It has tons of info for your situation.

http://ownerbuilderbook.com/forum/

Please tell me you're talking about reusing the wood, not the nails.

Don't do T-111! It makes anything look like a plywood shack even if it's well made!

I agree about the labor. I have done a couple remodels acting as my own GC. It takes a ton of time and incredible headaches because the construction world is full of the biggest dumbasses around, many of whom should not be in business for themselves. I've found that the tactic of being nice only works for about 20% of subs. The rest have to be lead along like naughty children. Do I sound bitter? For proof, go to a Home Depot on a weekday and check out the cavemen walking around. This is where my romantic ideas about renovation and architecture get put to a test daily. This is not snobbery, it's the voice of someone who's encountered incredible flakiness in my short time as a renovator. Put in some effort to find good subs. Check referrences, and trust your gut instincts when you meet them. You'll most likely have some real let-downs but it's the nature of the game and you just work around it. I've also hired a couple friends who have some experience to help me with the finish work and anything I can do which doesn't require a license or permit. Figure out where you can compromise and where you can't. Do all the windows need to be casements? Put sliders where they won't be noticed. Be creative with your use of materials. Do every posible bit of labor you can contribute.

I only reused the wood... I like to save money; but, my sanity is important too.:wacko:

Something I thought of too is that you might want to design with off-the-shelf in mind. I've read about many different architects designing this way to avoid the extra labor costs of customizing (a lot of the help contractors use, rather than skill level, are relegated to who can show up to work on time - sad but true). I've come across these cavemen contractors too, who just start to squirm and complain when something is not standard. For instance: a friend hired me to do the finish work in his new addition. The contractor hired to erect the structure put up such a fuss over the height of the windows not being standard height, that he stompted around like a cranky teenager who wasn't allowed to borrow the car on Friday night... In the end, thanks to the persistence of the architect, all of the drawings were followed.
- like naughty children, indeed! But, there remains the few who will do what you ask, and do what they say. I hope you get the latter.

other suggestions:

Buy windows first at closeout/discountinued prices then design the wall openings to fit.

Stick with standard sheet goods dimensions (8 or 12 ft walls are easier to rock that 9' walls)

Save the final finishings for later if possible (ie, finish the subfloor for move in, buy carpet/tile later)

Hire an architect.

Build a shell initially and add interior rooms later.

Thanks very much for all of your helpful suggestions!