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Homes and Land in Sunny Sequim, Washington

Homes and Land in Sunny Sequim, Washington

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Email: ChuckMarunde@gmail.com

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125 Olympic Ranch Ln, Sequim, WA 98382

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Building a New Home – Saving Big Money

by Chuck Marunde / Thursday, 30 October 2008 / Published in Building a Home

Port Angeles Home BuilderAre you planning to build a new home?   You’ve probably read some of the articles allegedly written by experts who willingly share the secrets to saving a lot of money.   Saving $30,000 to $120,000 is a pretty attractive concept.   Who wouldn’t want to save money like that?

The first rule is don’t believe everything you read.   Of course, I’m laughing, because you are reading this article.   But if I am telling you the truth, you can benefit from what you read here.   Research, read, analyze, and do your due diligence.   Make fully informed decisions before you decide how and where to build your next home.

The second rule is that you need to dig into facts yourself to discover the truth.   Today I want to dispel a few misrepresentations that are all over the Internet and even in some print media.   Truth is like a flashlight that exposes the contents in the corners of a dark room.   Once you have seen what is in the corners, you can never forget the truth.   But until you know the truth, your beliefs may be clouded.   So let’s shine the light into the four corners of a room right now.   Let’s look at false or only partially true statements that hide in each of these corners.

Corner No. 1:   Be your own contractor and on a $300,000 project save $60,000 to $120,000.   I talked with a home builder who has over 25 years of building single family homes, and his response to this statement was, “That would be a 40% profit.   That is out of the park.   I’ve never even made a $60,000 profit on a $300,000 project.   Gross maybe, but certainly not net.”

There is so much more to working with a good general contractor that is not explained in a bold and exaggerated claim that a home owner can save up to 40%.   In other words, there are several expensive traps for the unwary home owner who decides to be their own general contractor.   What are these traps?

  1. An honest and good general contractor brings value engineering in both design and the selection of materials.   I recently interviewed a retired couple who had an architect design their beautiful home, but the architect did not control costs in line with their budget.   Their contractor made suggestions, both in design and in the materials used, that saved them tens of thousands of dollars.   This alone paid for the general contractor.
  2. He brings quality control over the subcontractors and his own employees.   I learned it takes a “trained eye” to recognize potential problems during the construction of a home.   The average home owner will not have that eye that takes decades of experience.   There are a thousand things that can go wrong and might go unnoticed from the excavation and foundation to the finish work.   A good contractor is constantly supervising and correcting as construction progresses.   Problems avoided is money saved later.
  3. He has buying power the home owner simply does not have.   A medium sized or large home builder will have huge discounts from suppliers, and no home owner gets these volume discounts.   This could also amount to tens of thousands of dollars on an average home.
  4. A few contractors offer fixed or guaranteed contracts and eat any overage.   Most builders do not offer their clients a fixed contract or a guaranteed contract price.   Find one who does.   If his costs exceed the contract, he eats the difference.

Corner No. 2:   You can use the local building department to prevent costly mistakes during construction.   This is simply not true.   Building departments are tasked with enforcing building codes, NOT providing quality control or cost savings tips to home owners.

Corner No. 3:   You can save by using licensed and bonded contractors.   This argument was actually made by one author who was writing about how to save money when building a home.   A good general contractor only uses licensed and bonded subs, and even more important, a general contractor gets better rates from his subs than a home owner will get.   This could also amount to tens of thousands of dollars.

Corner No. 4:   Purchase your own materials by watching for sales and buying dented items.   First, most people don’t want damaged appliances or materials.   Second, buying appliances on sale can be a good thing, but it certainly isn’t going to save a fortune on the construction of the home itself.   In fact, a general contractor who does any volume will be able to purchase materials at much larger discounts as already explained.

If you’re planning to build your own home, seriously consider the possibility that hiring a good, trustworthy general contractor may actually save you more money than if you tried to build your own home.

Possibly Related Posts:

  • Home Defects Haunt Buyers
  • Should I Buy a Brand New Home or a Used Home?
  • Compare Buying an Existing Home to Building a Home
  • Clallam County Septic Regulations
  • Is Theft Insurance Necessary When Building a Home?

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About Chuck Marunde

After practicing real estate law for 20 years in Washington, Chuck opened iRealty Virtual Brokers covering the Sequim and the beautiful Olympic Peninsula. Chuck is the author of numerous magazine and Internet articles with a primary focus on real estate. He is also the author of over a dozen books, mostly about Sequim real estate. Chuck is a photographer, videographer, and Registered FAA Drone Pilot. Chuck has combined his love for real estate and technology to create a growing Internet presence in his market, and enjoys building his websites and blogs, including SequimBlog.com and Sequim4Sale.com and LuxuryWaterViewHomes.com. Chuck has degrees in Economics, Law, and Education.

4 Comments to “ Building a New Home – Saving Big Money”

  1. Jennifer says :Reply
    October 31, 2008 at 8:52 pm

    I think the best thing to do right now is save, save, save! It will definitely give you more options in the future, especially when it comes time to buying your first home. But sometimes saving up for large life-purchases can seem daunting, if not endless, right? This is exactly why PNC Bank designed the new Virtual Wallet (URL). This online money management tool gives you a high-def view of your finances. You get a full calendar view of money that you’ve scheduled to come in, like paydays, and money you’ve scheduled for bills you pay online. So you have more control of your money. Plus saving money is easy and fun. You can even punch a little “piggy” icon whenever you want to automatically stash a pre-set amount into your high yield savings. So why be overwhelmed about saving for the large purchases in life? Virtual Wallet by PNC helps make it a little easier.
    Written on behalf of PNC Bank, Member FDIC
    http://www.pncvirtualwallet.com

  2. Home Savings Mortgage Home Loan says :Reply
    January 12, 2009 at 9:39 am

    I have been searching on the net for home savings mortgage home loan and end up visiting your site. I really like the posts here, especially this one regarding ing a New Home – Saving Big Money. I already bookmarked your site and sure visit again.

  3. Fdic Foreclosure Properties says :Reply
    May 20, 2009 at 6:04 am

    Hi, I found your blog while searching the net for fdic foreclosure properties and your post on ing a New Home – Saving Big Money looks right on!

  4. RTA Cabinets says :Reply
    January 11, 2010 at 12:18 pm

    These are truly good tips all should apply when building a new home. My In-laws built their own home and it ended up costing them so much money. My wife and I also considered doing the same. I’m glad I came across this article because we’re exercising every option and taking recommendations on general contractors before getting started. It’s not easy finding good help these days.

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Chuck E. Marunde, J.D.

Sequim Buyer's Agent
(Atty Ret.)
Founder and Broker of
Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate dba iRealty Virtual Brokers
125 Olympic Ranch Ln,
Sequim, WA 98382
(360) 775-5424
ChuckMarunde@gmail.com

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From Los Angeles

It's rare, but once in awhile life provides the perfect collaborator for an important endeavor such as buying your new home. For me that person was Chuck Marunde. His two decade background as a Real Estate Attorney, his prolific career as an author of articles and books on Real Estate and his forthright and moral character made choosing Chuck a no-brainer. Chuck is dedicated, thorough, incredible at the negotiating table, knowledgeable about all local laws & regs but, most importantly, Chuck loves what he does. And what he does is find his client the perfect property. Chuck isn't about making the sale, he's about making the sale that is OPTIMUM for his CLIENT and this makes Chuck a rare bird indeed. I love my new home in Sequim and I am indebted to Chuck for making it happen. Kevin E.

From Seattle

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Chuck over the past three years in selling my parent's estate. It was a tough time to sell during the housing recession, but Chuck always kept things on the positive side. With his real estate law background, he offers sound, practical advice. He helps you along with the process using discussions and reason, rather than opinions and speculations. If Chuck doesn’t know the answers, he will get them for you. In several instances, Chuck took the initiative to meet with county officials to get up-to-date facts about zoning and regulations. I was always impressed with his company’s tech savvy communi-cations and internet presence: weekly email updates, blogs, videos, links, Linked-in networking, etc. He is truly pioneering the future of buying & selling real estate. Brian M.

From California

"Andy Romano is a successful motion picture character actor with over 40 years in 'the Biz.' Mr. Romano has a home in beautiful Santa Barbara, California, but he chooses to live most of the time in Sequim, Washington on the Olympic Peninsula in the great Pacific Northwest. Why? In his own words, 'Because it's even more beautiful and surrounded by more beauty in this incredibly peaceful and quiet place. With respect to real estate agents or brokers, well my friend Chuck Marunde, owner of Sequim and Port Angeles Real Estate, is hands down the best there" Andy R.

Intro by Chuck Marunde

From Florida

We do our homework for the task at hand and we look for and expect to enlist partners that do the same. It was our good fortune to select Chuck Marunde of Sequim and Port Angeles Real Estate to represent us as a buyer's broker in our search for a home in the Sequim/Port Angeles area. Chuck's site is all encompassing and super fast compared to many others, he knows the market at every conceivable level and his guidance through the process of selecting and purchasing a home is priceless - above and beyond that of anyone with whom we have ever worked. Add to all this his 20 year background in real estate law and you have discovered a superb asset in the adventure of purchasing a home. Greg and Marilyn

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