Back on August 7th, 2023, we sold our first home and closed on a piece of land to start our new journey. A DIY House build. We took this route because after watching the market for 2 years prior I noticed it had finally reached its highest. Although we probably could have bought a fixer-upper outright, we took a risk. We walked away with enough money to buy our land and building materials in cash.
Off to a Great Start with our DIY house build
In August we managed to buy our
- House plans
- a material list
- break ground
- stake out our home
- and pour our footings
By September we started our block foundation. Despite our determination and our wonderful start to a huge project little did we know opting for block was going to end up being a HUGE hurdle. Our framing wood & exterior showed up in October. The trusses we managed to push back until February. Everything has been tarped up since arriving on our lot.
Discouraging but No Regrets
A lot of people probably thought we were crazy to start purchasing our materials so early on. However, we did what we did because otherwise, our money would have slowly dwindled away on other things. Especially since the foundation took way longer than anticipated. If I could change anything I would have spent the extra money for poured walls because honestly we probably could have been moved in by now.. but instead here we are just finally finishing up the foundation – 9 months later because my boyfriend did the majority himself. My advice? Do what you think is best, despite what others may be saying in the background because at the end of the day, all you have is yourself.
Big Summer Plans for Our DIY House Build
With the foundation finally wrapping up, we will be in overdrive this summer with big hopes of getting our house up and standing by June 1st! & getting back into the groove of putting our heart and soul into this place to get it done before the holidays! Even though we already hit a disaster from the start, we are very excited and encouraged to move forward with our journey and finally see our hard work take shape.
Good things don’t come easy
It’s true. I knew this was going to be a big project but boy oh boy was I misunderstood.. This is definitely NOT for the faint of heart. This takes a lot of hard work and a lot of determination. But is it worth it? Hell yeah! I know it will be. The day I see our house even standing is going to be very emotional for me. Lots of tears and happiness and we are finally going to make it!
The DIY Struggle is REAL
Even though great things are happening (slowly but surely) a lot is going on behind the scenes. The struggle is REAL so I want to talk about it… I wanted to give up more times than I could count. The holidays were hard being in an apartment sleeping with our mattress on the floor. All of our belongings are in storage and I’ve cried many times feeling my lowest for months. As much as I wanted to sell it’s just not an option… it doesn’t make sense in this kind of market. I know we can do this but it has been far from easy mentally… we want to go home!
Everything Happens for a Reason
Little did I know when we started this project I was also expecting our 3rd child! Everything definitely happens for a reason because had I known I don’t think we could have taken on this big of a project! I am now 9 months pregnant and even though my optimistic self has desperately struggled these last nine months. I’m still very thankful for the challenge and the opportunity. I feel bad putting my kids through this hardship as well but everything we did was for them! I couldn’t stop thinking ahead at all the wonderful things that were in store for them including;
- A big yard to roam around in
- A nice big driveway to ride their bikes
- A Basement to play in
- A dead-end road to play and go for walks
- A lot more independence
They didn’t have that at our old house. We lived on a busy road, our small property was fenced in and our driveway could only fit one car. We had an old dingy basement and only one bathroom. My kids were restricted anytime we went into the front yard or gathered in the car on the driveway. I can’t wait to have peace of mind when my kids get to run freely at our new house and all the options for them in terms of where they can play.
Even for me and my boyfriend, we are more than excited to have gone from one car garage to three! Two beds to Three bedrooms, as well as one bathroom to two (with a potential 3rd in the basement). And an extra 600 sq ft! All snuggled into one acre on a dead-end road and in the perfect location! We were never too fond of our first home location but eventually learned to love it.
Our goal was little to no debt. If you want to know if we reached our goal or if we went over and by how much I will definitely keep you posted. I can’t wait to share our progress and pictures with you along the way. Check back here for more updates! Our Timeline and Price will be laid out right here.
Are you thinking about doing your own DIY build? Did you start? What’s holding you back? I’d love to hear your stories!
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