BUYING A HOUSE,
I'm sure you've encountered some agents in the malls giving brochures, pamphlets, etc of a ready-to-occupy houses located in a newly developed subdivisions in nearby provinces. Some model houses are tagged with an attractive price while boasting the community amenities.
The Good.
(1) Units can be occupied right away after you complied with the requirements and agreed with the terms and conditions. You don't have to wait for several months of construction. You do not have to worry about the hassle of dealing with the contractors/workers. (Although, some setup are just showing you a model house then construct your house after you pay the down payment)
(2) Units are payable in monthly basis and/or can be loaned thru Bank or Pag-ibig fund.
(3) You get to see the actual unit before you get it. Others are even offering optional components or variations. You don't need to imagine the actual sizes of the spaces.
The Bad.
(1) Since the unit is pre-built, the quality is hard to assure. Most defects are not noticeable in the first few years of the house. Though some projects constructed by reputable developers are of considerable quality. If you are buying a second hand unit, chances are there are already repairs made that you probably don't know that may become a problem in the future.
(2) Cost is probably high. The Agents/Brokers will have his commissions. The developer should have its profit. The General contractor should have its profit. The Subcontractor should have its profit. The workers should also have its profit. Subcontracting setup is even up to 3rd-4th pass.
Although some developers claim that the construction cost is low because they built the houses in bulk.
(3) You have to live with the design. Otherwise, you'll spend more on renovation works. If you're not that particular on the place you live, then everything might be just fine with you.
For those mid earning employees who want to have their own house as soon as possible, this is the most popular choice. It's not that bad at all. But there could be better with the same value of investment.
BUILDING A HOUSE,
To some of us, building a house is an enjoyable process. At planning stage, they get excited thinking everything they dreamed of to be done specifically according to their preferences. This is of course assuming that they have found a good designer and contractor. But to many of us, we are afraid of this process. Especially if this is the first time we will be doing this.
The Good.
(1) The house is designed the way you want it. From planning, you get the chance to consider your lifestyle. You decide on where to put up the spaces and what are the spaces you need. You decide on what materials to use. Options are almost limitless.
(2) You can see the progress of Construction. You can see and check the materials and structural to make sure of the strength and durability. You have the chance to make last minute revisions, the moment you see something is not according to what you perceive.
(3) You can work out your budget without compromising your preference. With the help of the engineer, you can plan your cash flow. You can then have the option of by-phase construction where in by proper scheduling, wastage can be minimized due to project halt or delay. You can even set priorities so you may choose to finish certain portion and live with it while other portions are still in progress.
(4) The Budget can also be loaned in Bank or Pag-ibig fund.
(5) You will know your house very well. You can also require your contractor an As-built plan so you'll have reference if you need to troubleshoot anything like electrical and plumbing system.
The Bad.
(1) You can not move-in immediately. You will have to wait till the construction is finished or portion of it is already livable. It might take you at least 3 months to a year to construct and move-in.
(2) You need to involve yourself in every concern during the construction period. It consumes your time. Although, you will be advised and assisted by the designer and the contractor, you will have to make so many decisions. If you find this enjoyable, then its a good rather than a bad.
(3) You will need to pay for construction documents, bonds and taxes. You have to pay your designers for the plans and documents they will be preparing as well as for the signs and seals as required by the city building official. You might also need to pay for construction bonds, contractors all risk insurance (CARI), processing of permits, fire safety, etc. (Although, you may opt to let your contractor do these for you)
Other worse things that could happen;
(1) You have a poor concept of design and space. You just found out that it is not what you want after the building is done.
(2) You engaged with bogus or incompetent contractor. After you gave the downpayment, the contractor is nowhere to be found. Or the contractor's skills did not meet the quality you want. Or the contractor did not finish the project because of some reason that maybe your fault or his fault.
(3) You always decide late or changes your mind every now and then during the construction period.
The project is delayed because they are always waiting for your decision.
(4) Your suppliers caused delays on your project. Or you did not pay on time, that causes the delay.
(5) You ran out of budget in a compromising stage of construction. (Although, this will less likely happen if your contractor prepared a cash flow plan and gant chart)
(6) You violated some subdivision rules that causes a lot of wasted materials and labor accomplishments.
As you can see, It will still depend on you, your designer and the contractor you will hire. If you ended up with a good designer and reputable contractor in a reasonable contract price, then you will most probably have an enjoyable construction experience and a good project.
In my next posts, I'll be listing down some tips in finding a good Designer and Contractor.
Monday, September 1, 2014
Thursday, August 28, 2014
The Do-It-Yourself Way
Most of us believe that if you DIY a certain work, you save a lot because you do not need to pay someone for doing the job. But fact is DIY works are often times costs you more than you think! Especially for those who are doing things first time. Here are some points we usually don't realize;
LEVELS OF DIY
We will consider the very simple work like changing a lightbulb to some complex works like making your own furniture, to building your own house, etc. There are things that can be done by almost anyone by just following very few steps, using simple tools and few common materials. Generally, by common sense, we can determine if a work is getting too complicated. This is the time that we tend to think twice if DIY is still an option. Sure then we can insist in pursuing DIY, but you should understand the risks and ready to face the consequences.
LEVEL OF QUALITY
Admit it. Not all of us are born gifted craftsman. I cant remember I've known someone doing an excellent job in their first attempt. Of course, this is not impossible to achieve. But we're talking about majority situation. We may be satisfied with the quality of our DIY projects, but comparing it to the works of someone who has a career for it, we can see the big difference. So what makes the difference?
(1) It's his career. He has done this so many times before that he may already mastered the art of it.
(2) Chances are, he has better tools or more so, he handles his tools more efficiently.
(3) Because of his experience, he probably has better techniques and developed shortcut processes. He knows how to handle troubles during the process. And thus minimizing wastage in materials and efforts.
(4) Assurance. You will feel assured because the work is done by an expert.
Well, if quality is not an issue for you since your project serves its purpose well as you expected, then it might be a success.
A DIYer's Nightmares!
(1) You did it all wrong. You wasted money and effort.
(2) You need to repeat because somewhere along the process you got mistakes.
(3) You got lost in following the step by step guide
(4) You already have the materials you need but you don't have the tools needed and/or the space you need to do your works.
(5) You did it! but everyone is mocking you because it didn't look great.
Tips on going DIY.
(1) Make a lot of research. Gathering as many information as you can may give you a huge chance of success in your project.
(2) Plan your work. After you have gathered enough research, next is to make a plan or review a suggested step by step procedure. This will minimize possible errors.
(3) Make sure you have all you need. Remember, once you started your project, there's no turning back, otherwise, you will be wasting everything. If you found out that something is missing in the middle of the game and you can't find it due to some availability issue, then it might be an early game over!
(4) Make a simple practicality test. Sometimes, we are forced to buy something in bulk because it's a standard market retail but we only need just a small portion of it. So it's so frustrating. You don't even know if you can still use the rest in the future or maybe resell it. Check your manhour rate and compare it to the one you can hire to do the job. If you're a pro or a manager, most probably, your rate per hour is much higher.
(5) Look for reference project. Someone might have already done your project before. You can ask him for advise or even ask for his help.
(6) Make time. DIY projects consumes more of your time. Be sure you have enough time to spare for the project.
(7) Patience. All DIY projects needs a lot of patience.
Benefits of DIY
(1) Self fulfilling. Even if you ended up spending more, and a lot of reworks, the feeling after you finish the project compensates.
(2) You gain experience. If you need to do it again, you are now much confident and probably you can do better, faster and cheaper.
(3) You know your project very well. Once there is trouble, you can fix it by yourself and won't need to wait till the serviceman arrives.
(4) You can brag. You can show the world that you did something not ordinary just by yourself.
For me DIY is not that bad at all. In fact, I'm a DIYer myself and have finished several DIY projects myself. What's important is to know your capacity, understand the risks and be determined to do the project.
If by going DIY, you are compromising your safety, better just hire the right man for the right job!
LEVELS OF DIY
We will consider the very simple work like changing a lightbulb to some complex works like making your own furniture, to building your own house, etc. There are things that can be done by almost anyone by just following very few steps, using simple tools and few common materials. Generally, by common sense, we can determine if a work is getting too complicated. This is the time that we tend to think twice if DIY is still an option. Sure then we can insist in pursuing DIY, but you should understand the risks and ready to face the consequences.
LEVEL OF QUALITY
Admit it. Not all of us are born gifted craftsman. I cant remember I've known someone doing an excellent job in their first attempt. Of course, this is not impossible to achieve. But we're talking about majority situation. We may be satisfied with the quality of our DIY projects, but comparing it to the works of someone who has a career for it, we can see the big difference. So what makes the difference?
(1) It's his career. He has done this so many times before that he may already mastered the art of it.
(2) Chances are, he has better tools or more so, he handles his tools more efficiently.
(3) Because of his experience, he probably has better techniques and developed shortcut processes. He knows how to handle troubles during the process. And thus minimizing wastage in materials and efforts.
(4) Assurance. You will feel assured because the work is done by an expert.
Well, if quality is not an issue for you since your project serves its purpose well as you expected, then it might be a success.
A DIYer's Nightmares!
(1) You did it all wrong. You wasted money and effort.
(2) You need to repeat because somewhere along the process you got mistakes.
(3) You got lost in following the step by step guide
(4) You already have the materials you need but you don't have the tools needed and/or the space you need to do your works.
(5) You did it! but everyone is mocking you because it didn't look great.
Tips on going DIY.
(1) Make a lot of research. Gathering as many information as you can may give you a huge chance of success in your project.
(2) Plan your work. After you have gathered enough research, next is to make a plan or review a suggested step by step procedure. This will minimize possible errors.
(3) Make sure you have all you need. Remember, once you started your project, there's no turning back, otherwise, you will be wasting everything. If you found out that something is missing in the middle of the game and you can't find it due to some availability issue, then it might be an early game over!
(4) Make a simple practicality test. Sometimes, we are forced to buy something in bulk because it's a standard market retail but we only need just a small portion of it. So it's so frustrating. You don't even know if you can still use the rest in the future or maybe resell it. Check your manhour rate and compare it to the one you can hire to do the job. If you're a pro or a manager, most probably, your rate per hour is much higher.
(5) Look for reference project. Someone might have already done your project before. You can ask him for advise or even ask for his help.
(6) Make time. DIY projects consumes more of your time. Be sure you have enough time to spare for the project.
(7) Patience. All DIY projects needs a lot of patience.
Benefits of DIY
(1) Self fulfilling. Even if you ended up spending more, and a lot of reworks, the feeling after you finish the project compensates.
(2) You gain experience. If you need to do it again, you are now much confident and probably you can do better, faster and cheaper.
(3) You know your project very well. Once there is trouble, you can fix it by yourself and won't need to wait till the serviceman arrives.
(4) You can brag. You can show the world that you did something not ordinary just by yourself.
For me DIY is not that bad at all. In fact, I'm a DIYer myself and have finished several DIY projects myself. What's important is to know your capacity, understand the risks and be determined to do the project.
If by going DIY, you are compromising your safety, better just hire the right man for the right job!
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