What's the Best Kind of House to Build ?

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Fiancee and I kicking around building instead of buying existing. Kicking around only, probably too co$tly. Are there any super-innovative new home building technologies or methods that are alternative methods today, to bring costs down from the usual stick built house? Looked at Post-Frame type, not crazy about it. Fully pre-cut log homes kits are cool but pricey (?...), then there's the ICF concrete form types, and probably other types I don't know about. I don't know a lot about home building, so at a disadvantage and could be an easy mark for a slick marketeer. What's the down low on best most cost effective way to build these days?

Live in tornado country, don't need basement but would want to at least have a fraidy hole put into garage or whatever (small underground shelter usually 5'x 8' maybe 8' deep). Fraidy holes can usually be cut into the garage slab, have metal door over top.
 
Bricks said the 3 pigs.

Also depends where you are. But around me. Masonary buildings last 100-150 years and have great resale value.
 
stick built with 2x6 or 2x8 and insulate like crazy.....

OK, back to what you want...
What you and your fiancee value: ?
-natural light
-cool
-hot
-warm
-fresh air
-no dampness
-easy to maintain
-electrical only or not
 
ICF is very efficient but hard to find skilled workers in that type of building in this region for residential applications.

If you go new, you might as well do spray foam insulation, geothermal heat pump, heated floors, and triple pane windows. Pay a little more upfront but it pays off in the long term.


You might also look into PassivHaus or LEED for Homes to see what is cutting edge. It's possible to create homes that maintain a perfect indoor temp year round if you insulate and seal enough. Knocks those electricity bills down quite a bit.
 
A 2 story, hip roof colonial is very economical material-wise versus other styles of stick built frame houses. They are a cube topped with a 4 sided pyramid. Newer matls still should pass codes. Not a huge fan of many composite matls. There are 300yr old wooden houses in my area. How long is will some of the newer technologies last?
 
Best = ?
Resale value?
Heating/cooling efficiency?
Lowest maintenance costs?
Lifestyle accommodation? Planning a large family? Regularlay Host large parties? Need tons of storage?
 
Size is a big factor in costs. Everyone wants a 2400 sf home but is it really needed? You have to heat and cool it as well as maintain it. Go smaller and more efficient.

I grew up in a 800-900 sf house with one bathroom. Two parents and 4 kids. I think around 1600 sf is the sweet spot.
 
My wife and I had a custom ranch home built on 5 acres last year. As silly as this might sound, one of the best things I did was having first floor laundry with the capability of two washers, 2 dryers, a dehumidifier and a clothes line in the laundry/mud room that leads to the garage.
If you decide on having a basement, get a deep one. It makes it much nicer to have a tall ceiling.
 
If it gets really cold, like in Michigan, it's best to go with 2x6 studs instead of 2x4, to allow better wall insulation.

Metal frame instead of wood is another consideration. But the foundation needs to be more exact.

Metal roof?
 
Extreme is the way to go. Build it for Hurricane, Accelerated Wildfire, Tornado, Flood, "Meters of snow" and Earthquake. This is a new day, in a new world; you gotta see what's coming. Giant steel beam framed building and tonnes of concrete, like commercial properties, but miniaturized into a residence. Just keep relatively small, atmospherically-oxygenated kerosene flames away, it's their one weakness
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The cheapest will depend what the market is like in your area. Carpentry has been the same forever, but contractors who can utilize specific modern techniques might be few and far between depending on where you live. Also, masonry is much easier to do in the summer obviously so that might increase the price.

Anyone who works in construction or watches it on tv will probably tell you that if they had their druthers they would build a house from brick or concrete and spray foam it. That would be ideal but much more expensive than a simple wood framed house. Also, spray foam is expensive and can be screwed up causing problems with degassing. Fiberglass insulation and vapor barrier can be done by anyone who can read a tape.

If you are going to go through the trouble of building a house, dig a basement too. It sounds like you have a practical reason for one.
 
All metal buildings are looking better each day.

They are pretty much Lightning and EMP proof.

Definitely need a storm shelter built into the Garage floor for Tornadoes. My cousin built one in his garage and it saved them from a tornado last year.
 
I think all metal will be a heat/cold trap (even with insulation) Plus you won;t be able use your cellphone or OTA services (maybe a good thing for some)
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I’ve been looking into SIPs lately (structural insulated panels). I live in Northern MN (Zone 7) though. Very air tight, high R-values and low thermal bridging.

Higher materials cost, but lower labor and heating costs.
 
Well there's also modular. It's slightly cheaper but has some limitations, you need some available land to stage it and you also need streets big enough to get the sections there. The good thing is that QC tends to be slightly better than stick built and it's quicker too.
 
I'm building a sorta-stick-built home now. The trusses are prefabbed and the outer walls were delivered in sections that were prebuilt. Interior walls are stick-built. The builder said, whatever you do, don't tell the insurance company that it's a "custom home". For their purposes it's a production home, even though we customized a lot of details, so insurance is a lot cheaper.
 
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