To build or not to build,
That is the question… that Shakespeare could have scripted for the tormented young Prince of Denmark. Of course, Hamlet’s epic struggle with two opposing forces: moral integrity and the need to avenge his father's murder, would have been forever altered with an over simplistic decision of whether or not to hire a contractor!
While the drama, that is perhaps more relevant today that when first written over 400 years ago, dealt with life’s bigger issues. The question of whether to build, as an owner builder, or hire a general contractor, is still a question that is as relevant today as ever. After all, it is your castle.
As I promised in an earlier writing, I will address that issue. I don’t know the answer. (Perhaps we should of asked Shakespeare that question) What I do know is my decision making process and I will share that with you.
Where do I begin?
My first memory in my life was when I was two years old. My parents had purchased a home in Princess Del Cerro (I'm a native San Diegan). As is typical when buying or building a home, I am doing it 41 years later, daily visits while it was being constructed were the normal routine. On one of these visits, I distinctly remember falling, what seemed like forever, certain, with primal instinctive fear that the end of my life was near, into a sawdust pile next to a table saw. I believe my aunt thought it would be funny to drop me about 18 in into a 3ft high pile of sawdust. Scared the Shit (with a capitol S) out of me… and that folks, for all its glory, is my first memory. Forever seared into gray mater by fear, how foreshadowing that it was a home building site.
My parents still live in that house today, 41 years later. I love that house very much.
I grew up in a construction family, My father worked in concrete since immigrating from Denmark in 1959. My uncles, who followed my dad to America, are craftsmen and framers. As a teenager, I helped (we like to think we helped) as did most of my 7 siblings in building the addition to my parent’s house. For all my growing teenage years I reveled in the family talk, half Danish, half English, we call it Danglish, about projects and work sites including most of the neighborhoods in San Diego, the Stadium, Sports Arena, Fashion and Mission Valley and the convention center, Both the new one Downtown and the one in Mission Valley, and the occasional house they built for themselves.
An example of this is when I bought my house in the Summit in Carlsbad in 1988, (built by Michael Foote) Kris, my uncle was at the house warming party. As I started to show him the house, he stopped me and said, Peder, let me show you the house, I built it!
I can’t tell you how proud I am to have the same Kris, my uncle, framing and building Herons’ House.
As we grew older and started our careers, I became a baker. Thankfully one of my siblings followed my father and uncles into the construction business. Bendt, my brother, is guiding and managing the construction of Herons’ House. It is great to build your own house, it is priceless to share that journey with family.
The bakery years, about 25 of them, included building several bakeries in two states. All of that experience is valuable preparation for building Herons' House. During those years we also purchased a summer house on an island in Denmark and completely remodeled the house and added a second story. We owned that house for several years and spent much time there. That house, with its thatched roof and monumental glass, located on Denmark’s most southerly island, Rømø, gave me my first awareness, a deep appreciation and awe, of how special the natural environment was. Rømø is known for its lingberries, its birdlife and its beaches, it remains as one of the greatest places on earth.
Moving forward to the last decade, my involvement with the reconstruction of downtown Encinitas, in both small projects and large have been very helpful as well providing experience and knowledge beneficial to Herons’ House.
So for me the decision was and easy one. How could I hire someone to build our house with a family and background like that?
If you have any remotely similar life experiences, I would say build your own house. On the other hand, if life’s experiences have not brought you into contact with the construction trades, and you do not enjoy getting your hand dirty and working up a good sweat, hire a contractor.
As an owner builder, all the stress, the liability, and the problems land at your doorstep. Of course there are savings, and changes are more easily accommodated but if you have no experience the project can actually end up poorly constructed and more expensive. The single greatest challenge for an owner builder is lining up the subcontractors. You have no clout as you are only building one house. The subs loyalties will always lie with the bigger guys who will give them repeat business. Essentially you are low man on the totem pole.
Hiring a contractor on the other hand, puts the liability and most of the stress on their shoulders. They also are professionals, have their own contacts for subs, and will deliver a quality product. Changes are harder to make, and as homeowner you have less control over the timeline and project. They build the house, take total responsibility and control, and hand you the keys when the project is over.
The other factor is artistic. Do you care? Or do you trust the design expertise of the contractor? In my case this journey is very much part of the fabric of the house. I am an artistic person that likes to do things somewhat our of the box and experiment with textures, metals, colors, and geometric shapes. The ability to mold and shape the design features of the house is far greater as an owner builder.
So the choice is still there and the choice is yours. That’s what makes it so fun! Owner/builder or Contractor. Whatever your decision, surround yourself with quality people and hire the best professionals you can.