HOUSE-N-HOME-BUILDING.COM NEWSLETTER #217

Owner Builder

New House Building: Money Saving, Convenience and Healthy House Tips

James Todd
September 2003

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Beginning with the April 2002 edition, newsletters are now archived
online at: http://www.house-n-home-building.com/newsletters/newsletters.html
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CONTENTS:

1. Money Savings Tips
>>Brick facades
>>Online House Plans
2. Healthy House Building Tip: Formaldehyde free insulation
3. BYOB: Finally there is a way you can be your own builder
4. Useful Links
5. Thought for the Day
6. Subscription Information

Please forward this newsletter to anyone whom you think may be interested!

===================================================== 1. Money Saving Home Building Tips
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Brick is one of the most popular building materials. Unfortunately it is expensive and this limits its use. It is quite common to see a new house with a brick front facade and the other three sides with vinyl siding. Why is this done? Because of the expense of using brick on all four sides. In fact the cost of brick is second only to stone.

If you love brick, want to use it on your home, but just can't afford it consider using "thin brick". Thin brick is 1/3 the depth of a conventional brick, and as you would suspect substantially less costly. While conventional brick not only beautifies but also can provide structural support, thin brick on beautifies. However brick is rarely used in a structural manner, and the use of thin brick becomes a covering like other exterior materials such as vinyl siding.

To learn more about this product try contacting the following manufacturers for the names of local suppliers: Brick-It (1-631-643-2282), Real Brick (1-800-447-7440) and Panel Brick Co. (1-847-696-1686).

Stock House Plans are an easy choice. There are a very large number available to choose from, they are of excellent quality, and they're reasonable priced. As discussed in the House-N-Home-Building Guide, the best way to choose a floor plan is to visit homes and physically stand in the rooms. However once you have the basics of a floor plan in mind, then stock house plans represent a logical next step. Sure you can hire and architect, but that we cost several thousand dollars. Choosing a stock house plan that is close to what you have in mind, and then tailoring to your needs will save you hundreds and quite possible thousands over an architect.

One of the best sites on the internet to find a stock house plan is at Cool House Plans COOLhouseplans.com is an Internet stock house plan provider with a current inventory of over 13,000 house plans ranging in size from the 400 square foot cabin to the 23,000 square foot mansion, designed by 93 of the nation’s leading residential designers and architects. We cater to all popular architectural styles from contemporary to colonial, vacation to Victorian along with assigning certain plans to unique classifications such as wheelchair accessible, vacation, duplex and multi-plex plans. We also employ a selection of 300 garage plans and garages with apartments above. All of their plans can be modified to meet your specific needs.

House N Home Building Customer's will receive an additional 5% discount on their order by using the following promotional code when they place an order (Code #27131605)

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How big of a house are you going to build?? Find out what size of mortgage for which you qualify. IndyMac Bank is your best online source for home mortgages. Online applications, quick approvals.

Don’t let your credit history become a headache in your new home building process. Check your credit. Get your free credit report today.

Considering a Hot Tub in your new Home?? Look no further. ThermoSpas Hot Tubs are offering up to $900.00 in cost savings discounts for House-N-Home-Building visitors.

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2. Healthy House Building Tips
===================================================== Formaldehyde in the form of urea formaldehyde glues and adhesives has been used extensively in building materials. Plywood, OSB, particle board, cabinets, furniture, and batt insulation are just a few of the building materials that rely upon urea formaldehyde adhesives. These materials outgass, viz. they slowly release formaldehyde vapor for years. Formaldehyde gas can cause nasal and sinus irritation, respiratory inflammation and both mutagenic and carcinogenic. In short it is a bad actor. There is a growing trend in the building industry to move away from formaldehyde based glues. One example of this is the line of insulation products from Johns Manville that is urea formaldehyde free.

Want other useful healthy house building tips for your new home? Purchase the House N Home Building Guide today. It comes with a 100% money back guarantee.

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3. BYOB: Be your own Builder
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As a reader of this newsletter, you have been to the House N Home Building web site at one time. That's where you subscribed to this newsletter! When you were there, you may remember that we don't normally recommend that people be their own builder or GC. That is still our position. Most people don't have the time, or experience or the ability to secure financing for a home that they will build themselves. However, for the small subset of readers who do have the time and are contemplating this option, we have some good news. The good news is in the form of a company called BuildMax.com.

BuildMax is an owner-builder consulting firm. They assist you in securing financing, something most financial institutions are unwilling to provide to novice, owner-builders, and they provide you with the consulting that you need to get the job done right. So, if you have the time, and really want to manage the building of your own house to take advantage of the significant cost savings by doing so, we highly recommend that you give BuildMax a look.

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4. Related Links
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The following are useful links relating to the housing industry and the topics covered in this newsletter and may be of interest.

Panel Brick Company - Home of Thin Brick
http://www.panelbrick.com/index.html

Apollo Housing - Down Payment Assistance for low to moderate incomes
http://www.apollohousingllc.com/

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5. Thought For The Day – Diligence
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What we hope to do with ease we must learn first do with diligence. –Samuel Johnson

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6. Subscription Information
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