DIY Network

Colorado Ski-Country Home: Final Thoughts From "Be Your Own Contractor: Vacation Homes" episode DBCV-108

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In this episode of DIY's Be Your Own Contractor: Vacation Homes we meet homeowner Glen Morgan who acted as his own contractor on the construction of his vacation getaway at the base of the Rocky Mountains in central Colorado.

In this segment, Glen gives some final thoughts on his vacation-home project and offers advice to those considering a similar undertaking.

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Things Happen

The site for the Glen and Dawn Morgan's vacation home is about 100 miles, and about a 2-hour drive, from the couple's main residence in Denver. Because Glen could only be onsite about one day a week, he decided to hire his drywall and painting subcontractor, Art Anderson, as a project manager. Art checked daily on the work progress of the various subcontractors, was available to troubleshoot when problems came up and maintained steady contact with Glen throughout the construction. In addition, Glen's strategy was to assign as many contracts to the smallest number of contractors as possible, so far as it made practical and economic sense.

	Figure A
	Figure B

Getting the interior finish work and trim-carpentry done was one of several challenges that Glen faced on this project. The original subcontractor he engaged for this part of the project had to drop out soon after he started work when his wife was involved in a car accident and had to be hospitalized.

At that point Art Anderson, who was a personal friend of the finish carpenter, was able to step in and complete the work (figures A and B)

"In any employer/employee situation," says Glen, "you've got to be prepared for the contingencies that people may get sick or have family emergencies -- or they may go to work for other people. Thankfully I had somebody competent to get the job done and make sure that his friend, the carpenter, didn't have to be concerned about his obligation to me."

Take My Advice

In summary, Glen emphasizes the importance of doing your homework when it comes to finding and selecting subcontractors, having a realistic set of expectations with respect to the amount of time you'll personally need to put into a project like this and using the latest and best resources that you have at your disposal.

"The key to successfully completing the project," he says, "was finding the right subcontractors. That's probably first and foremost -- essentially getting the right folks working on the job, having a good rapport with those people and having the money to keep them paid."

"The biggest challenge," he continues, "was working a full-time job, putting in anywhere from 40 to 55 hours a week at that job, and also finding the additional 30 -- sometimes 35 to 40 -- hours to invest in this job. It was very challenging, particularly trying to handle things remotely. A saving grace was the internet -- emails, sending digital photos back and forth. They made [the effort] practical, and frankly I don't think it would have been if I hadn't had access to that technology."

RESOURCES :

Investing in a Vacation Home for Pleasure and Profit
Author: James H. Boykin
Order this book from Amazon.com
Publisher: South-Western Educational Pub (2005)
ISBN: 0324314116

How a Second Home Can Be Your Best Investment: New, Tax-Free Methods for Using a Vacation Home for Recreation, Retirement and Investment
Authors: Tom Kelly, John Tuccillo
Order this book from Amazon.com
Publisher: McGraw-Hill (2004)
ISBN: 0071429700