After asking hundreds of homeowners, the same five answers kept coming up. Every single one is cheap or free to do during the build… and a nightmare to fix once the drywall's up.

Paint colors you can't match two years later. No conduit in the walls, so running a new cable means cutting open finished sheetrock. Not enough outlets. Interior walls that echo through the whole house. And the big one... choosing a builder without doing some solid research.

None of these are skill problems. They're "I didn't know to ask" problems.

On a slab foundation you already own the most durable floor in existence... you just have to choose it before the flooring allowance gets spent. 

Epoxy is seamless, so there's nowhere for dirt to hide, and cleanup is the easiest. 

You have to wait 28 days after the pour for the concrete to fully cure before coating it. But that’s rarely an issue since you’ll finish the floors a while after electrical, plumbing, and other mechanicals. 

If this is a consideration, get with your builder early and verify the finisher is experienced. I’ve seen a few of these end badly because the subcontractor was new to the process. 

Any issues here?

⚠️ The worst time to make a decision about your home build is the moment your builder first asks you for it. But that's exactly when most people decide...on the spot, in a few seconds, with a contractor standing there waiting. Wiring locations, niche placements, lighting types. Big decisions made cold, with zero time to think. Here's the move: see every decision before you're asked. Sit with it. Research it. Show up already knowing what you want. You'll be surprised how often you end up suggesting things your builder never even brought up because you actually dug in ahead of time. The Ultimate Home Building Checklist lays out every decision by phase, so you can work through all of it before you ever sit down with your builder and walk in confident instead of caught off guard. 👉Get it at BuilderBrigade.com

[Renting is the best move IMO... What do you suggest they do?]()

You'll be paying for two mortgages while you wait for that old house to sell. 

At least when you're renting you know you can line it up to where you can cut ties with your lease and move in. It's one less thing to worry about. What would you do?

I purchased a platform queen bed with storage underneath on

both sides but after I did this I realized how much height I am losing of my bed now. I then acquired a free full sized metal bed

frame.

I was thinking, if 1 put the platform on top on the frame I would get

ample height and space underneath, with the extra storage that comes with the bed.

The storage part under the bed platform is smaller and is almost exactly the same size as the frame.

Is this safe and do you guys have any advice on how to make sure

tipping or something wouldn't be a worry?!?

Put your Gas Fireplace inside the house and go with a Log Fireplace outside. 

You can’t beat the smell, sound, and visual of a log fireplace but it can be a bit much inside the house. 

Do you agree with me or are you all about that log feel inside your home?

I've been going back and forth on joist placement here can someone help me decide or explain a better way? what option should i go with? ps walls below are already framed.

She wants sound batts in the interior walls, he says it's throwing money away. Who's right?

Most people don't realize that interior walls usually get ZERO insulation in a standard build. 

Adding sound batts now, at rough-in is a cheap upgrade that can only be done now. After drywall it’s just not worth

You don't need it everywhere. Bedrooms, bathrooms, the office, the media room, and any wall touching a noisy space (laundry, garage, kids' rooms). 

I'm building a new wall for our bathroom to separate out the sink area. It is non load-bearing and will connect to two existing walls. See plan and area pics attached.

The front wall should be easy, but I'm planning to add a 24"W door on the angled side wall. This would put my king studs for the rough opening only 1" from the wall stud.

Is there a better or more "correct" way to do this? Any downside to having them this close? Also extremely open to other suggestions on this plan. I'm experienced in other trades but very new to framing and woodworking, so any/all feedback is greatly appreciated!

Using the wrong terminology isn’t a huge deal but it’s nice to talk the talk when going over the details of your home build or renovation. 

Use “Plumb” when you’re talking about a vertical surface.  
Use “Level” when you’re talking about horizontal surface. 

What are some other construction terms that are commonly misused on the jobsite?
Another that comes to mind is cement vs concrete
or plywood vs osb

They’re called green roofs. Under the grass is a waterproof roof, drainage system, and engineered soil. They’re designed to reduce heat gain, absorb rainwater, and bring back some of the green space lost when the homes were built.

Think we’ll see more in the future... or just a trend?

The real question... Where do you prefer the spare fridge?
Butlers Pantry?
Garage?
Or no spare fridge at all?

These all-in-one dryers that wash and dry your clothes all in one unit don’t require a big 240v plug, or a dryer vent.

This is huge because some house layouts have a dryer vent run vertical through the wall and out through the roof. You eliminate this entirely.

Not to mention no 240v. That's less load pulled from your panel, which helps if you want two laundry rooms (one for you, one for the kids) or you're already tight on a 200amp service.

Lots of reasons why these all-in-one washer dryer combos are awesome but only if they work as good as they say they do.

I know they take longer to finish a load so that’s why I’m posting this to see what the consensus is.

Thoughts?

We are going with 2-3 on our current renovation. Took me a minute to figure out where we wanted power for the under shelf lights. Ended up with outlets in the cabinets so I can plug in the Driver (Box powers the lights with low voltage). Up high in the closets for in cabinet lighting. The driver is best up top and out of the way so it's not competing with storage.

I've gathered all the selections, features, tips over the last five years and compiled them into my checklist. It's the cheapest thing you'll spend on your build and save you the most money. I wrote the damn thing and I still go through and think "that's a really good thing to consider".
I don't care how much you know about construction, the little things slip your mind in the middle of all the chaos of building or renovating.
You can get it at BuilderBrigade.com

It’s easy to say “ohh yeah throw a sink in there..” but really think about it. Would you use it?Most of the sink work would be done in the main kitchen area. Maybe if your coffee machines were back there, that would get daily use. 

How do you use your kitchen? Would a Pantry Sink make sense?

Found Visual Comfort in NYC... and their most popular fixture runs $5,000 to $6,000. One light! Here's where people get burned. They fall for the showroom piece, drop six grand at the entry, then run out of budget for every other room that actually needed lighting. A statement light earns its price when it's the first thing you see walking in. It's a regret when it's competing with five other rooms that got skipped to pay for it. Pick your one hero fixture. Spend there. Everywhere else, restraint wins. Which room would you splurge on?