Many people are interested in building their own home but really are not aware of all the options that are available to them to do so. Prior to building our home we spent months doing research to find out what our options were. I would like to briefly touch on some of these options in this article to make you aware of what is out there to help you build your own home.

Primarily an Owner Builder or a Home Building Service offers building services to you to help you complete the construction of your new home by offering services that you may find difficult to organize or find on your own.

Many of these services provide a variety of the items in different packages that they charge you for. The charges can range from a flat fee per square foot to fees for plans and financing your project through a third party bank and a variety of service some of which I have listed below. They naturally make a profit on every item (or service) offered to you.

These Home Building services can include:

• Canned (Pre-Drawn) House Plans that they provide as part of the overall package.
  
  
• Custom House Plans or revisions to the plans that they provide. Sometimes the program will charge you extra or limit the number of revisions that you are allowed.
  
  
• Assistance in financing your home building project. They usually offer these services through a third party bank that they act as mortgage brokers. The advantage they have over the individual seeking their own home building financing is the scale of the loans that they process can give you more leverage with the bank if you have credit challenges. They have a financial interest in making sure your loan goes thru because they usually collect a nice commission for sending you to that particular bank. You will certainly pay, but this may be they way you get a loan.
  
  
• A list of Qualified Home Building contractors from your area. Many of these services offer a list of contractors that you can employ to complete the different phases of construction of your new home. They may provide a list but offer no guarantee as to the effectiveness or qualifications of those contractors. In other words, when it comes to contractors, its between you and them. If theres a problem you are on your own legally.
  
  
• Literature and planning tools that can help you build your home. This could include a DIY manual for the first time homebuilder, financing literature etc
  
  
• Guidance for the First time Home Builder. This can include meeting with a qualified builder or building advisor to help you plan your project and lay out the process from start to finish.
  
  
• Support during the home building project. Most all of the owner builder services offer some type of support during the home construction process. This can vary from phone support to email or both.

I would encourage you to read my follow up article Selecting the RIGHT Owner Builder Service if you are considering using a owner builder service.

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