Info

Build Your House Yourself University

Wish you knew more about the biggest investment you will most likely ever make? Build Your House Yourself University (byhyu) will teach you to save money and make smart decisions about the construction of the place you and your family will call HOME. We will help you understand residential construction— simplify and demystify the design build process. You’ll come away with successful strategies for building your own house, with or without a general contractor. Become an educated consumer, even if you prefer to buy, rather than build a new house. Complex construction jargon and best practices will be explained in easy to understand terms. It’s not the typical DIY (do it yourself) show. You will learn how to MANAGE the labor, not DO the labor for your new house. Join me, Michelle Nelson, host and fellow informal residential construction student. I’ll share the research I find on home design and building as I prepare to build my home. Together, our community of future home builders, will learn the tips, tricks and trends of experienced contractors and industry experts. I’ll interview owner-builders and construction professionals. During our mini lessons, I’ll inform you about framing, flooring, windows, insulation, kitchen cabinets and countertops…almost anything having to do with new construction homes. You’ll hear about energy efficiency and green building too. There will be product reviews in which you will be introduced to cutting edge, as well as, tried and true products and services. And in keeping with the university theme, episodes will end with short, fun quizzes. If we do our due diligence BEFORE we start construction, we will actually start construction with the most difficult part of the project behind us. Let’s put in the time, effort, preparation and research BEFORE we break ground and building our homes will be much easier and more enjoyable.
RSS Feed
Build Your House Yourself University
2023
January


2022
December
November
October
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2021
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2020
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2019
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2018
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2017
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2016
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


All Episodes
Archives
Now displaying: February, 2019
Feb 27, 2019

Although communicating with our contractors is an important part of successfully building our homes, there are certain things that we should never say to them.  This week, and next week, we’ll discuss some of those taboo phrases and questions that should never be uttered to our contractors.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Feb 20, 2019

Last week we talked about whether a buying an extended home warranty is a smart idea. Those home warranties are offered by third party companies that will help pay for repairing, and, if necessary, replacing, covered appliances and home components, such a

Feb 13, 2019

If you’re like me, you’ve been seeing commercials for extended home warranties and wondering if they’re a good investment.  These home warranties are supposed to go beyond the coverage that you get with the usual homeowners insurance policy.  They are warranties that are offered by third party companies that will pay for repairs, and, if necessary, replacing, covered appliances and home components, such as plumbing, should problems arise.  So are home warranties a good idea? 

Show notes at BYHYU.com

Feb 6, 2019

The information in this week’s episode comes from an article that was recently posted on Houzz called 32 Home Design Trends That Will Rule in 2019.   Houzz chose those 32 design trends after analyzing data from photos and articles that have been saved on the site, plus interviewing professional designers.  The trends are those they think you can expect to see a lot in 2019.   Many of them are features we’ve seen over the last several years but are still popular in new homes.

Now, To clarify, design features that are on trend can be very different than features that are trendy.    A trend is defined as a general direction in which something is developing or changing.  A design trend is often classic— something that will look good many years or even decades from now, like white or light colored walls. Something that’s trendy, has faddish appeal.  It may look very interesting and current in the next year or two, but it will probably look dated in a decade— think of sponge-painted faux finishes on walls from the early 2000s.

Show notes at BYHYU.com

1