My husband and I are nearly at the end of a major owner build - before this the biggest thing we had built was a farm shed... Based on BMT's current building cost calculator we will have saved over 50% of the replacement cost of our home by owner building - it has been a hard slog but worth it in the end. Our valuer has indicated that at completion our mortgage will be around 30% of our properties value, which means we will have built in a LOT of equity. It's not for everyone but if you can - I say go for it! My lessons learnt so far: Go the extra mile in ensuring your plans are detailed/you have incorporated EVERYTHING you want in your new house before starting - major budget blowouts are inevitable if you keep changing things mid-stride! Have a plan and a budget and work to it:) Have a bill of materials and specifications that includes everything - even down to the brands, there is a major cost difference in a garden variety Bunning's vanity vs. a bespoke custom floating one - and unless you specify exactly what you require you will not get what you want and your budget will never be accurate (and your cost overruns will be scary!). Decide what level you want to be involved at: do you have plans to be hands on - building everything you can, learning all the trades like framing/plastering/tiling etc. or are you envisioning a owner-managing role where you are engaging trades to complete the work for you; this will dramatically alter the cost and the time the project will take. Will you be able to be present on site when trades are there to manage them? One of the major things a builder does is crisis control and problem solving!! Bespoke architect or kit or somewhere in between?? Another thing that will bear greatly on cost and project staging. For first time owner builders I would recommend a kit home - most of the inclusions are standard, you can modify many of the designs and the deliveries are staged so you don't have an influx of materials all at once. Most of the kit home providers are great with their after sales support and advice when you need it - they wan't to see you succeed as their business relies on successful customers! Ensure your finance is concrete and you are able to draw down funds as you need them - this is a major stumbling block when it comes to owner building as most financial institutions will not loan to owner builders. There is nothing more frustrating than getting halfway through a build only to find out that due to prevailing economic conditions your current lending provider will not loan you any more money and you have actually devalued your property by partially erecting a home (oh, yes sadly- I'm speaking from experience...). Build in contingency funds to any estimate of costs - you will sleep better at night. Be aware that even if you do obtain construction finance that most banks will pay these retrospectively - you have to spend the money before they will draw it down off your loan - that means having enough money to fund a stage in full ( i.e. brickwork, plumbing, electrical) before drawing down loan funds - and you can be guaranteed they will want to send round the valuer to ensure that the work has been carried out! Have written quotations and lists of inclusions/bill of materials when negotiating with tradesman and contractors - many are happy to work with you but a lot will take advantage of your naivety... Don't be left out on a limb after getting to the end of the job only to have your contractor demand large blowout payments - this is readily avoided by having everything in writing and will ensure your contractor keeps you informed of any expected costs overruns. Do not underestimate the impact an owner build will have on your life... You will be eating, living, breathing and dreaming it for as long as it takes (and yes there will be nightmares!). Be honest with yourself about how much time and commitment you are willing to sacrifice to make the cost savings worthwhile - if you are the kind of person who begrudges any intrusion into your personal time, can't go a week without a social occasion and can't handle working long hours and getting your hands dirty...maybe owner building isn't for you... Enjoy the journey! My husband and I have tackled every job we have been capable of - we have put up the framing, put on the roof, done the guttering, installed the insulation and windows and we are plastering the inside and painting as I speak. It has been good to learn new skills and exceptionally rewarding to see it all come together - sure if I had my time over again I would have done a few things differently but we don't regret the decision to take charge of our future and build our own home just the way we want it. Anything is possible if you give it a try!!

Keep the brick, please don't paint or render. Both eat into your budget (rendering in particular is not cheap), and will mean more ongoing upkeep (render still needs to be painted on a regular basis and with a two-storey house, that is a lot more work). Our house is rendered and we would never have it again. Whenever the house moves, the render doesn't, so is prone to cracking or, over time, pieces even falling off. Even subtle movement can cause hairline cracks, which means regular patching and painting. Quite frankly, most people render an older house to make it look modern, but when rendering becomes passe (which I think is already starting to happen), then the house will look dated again (and render is almost impossible to remove once its on). Also, if you're in an area prone to termites, termites can get in between the render and the brickwork and you won't see the telltale signs of "mud" at the access points to let you know they're there. As far as the rest of the house goes, I totally agree with what Timandra Design recommended.

Hi Sam, I've got a few ideas: Don't make changes once your plan is set - they cost. Spend the time before you commit to things educating yourself as each change brings costs and time. Make carrying a tape measure in your handbag a habit and carry the measurements for everything that you're shopping for - saves back and forth and allows you to know that what you're looking at fits (which means that you can be haggle on the price). Don't be afraid to haggle (be nice, but haggle) on materials and appliances and don't be shy about pointing out you're buying multiple items with electrical goods as most of the sales people work on commission so Joe Blogg wants you to by all your appliances from him in one go. Also go shopping with comparable prices and don't be put off by them saying "oh that's an online price" - if they want the sale they'll meet the price. Avoid custom made - go for doors, windows, cabinetry that are standard sizes where you can. Anything custom costs more. The beer economy works especially well particularly with junior tradies or tradies that are small businesses. Don't get painters in, paint it yourself. If you've got concrete floors live with them for a while until you can afford carpeting etc - ideally in areas where you can use their thermal mass to help you heat and cool your home. Tap into friends and family skill sets - the artist (abstract art for your walls), the sewer (custom cushions), the gardener (plant advice and cuttings/seedlings), the shop-a-holic who knows the out of the way shops (bargains), the design guru with impeccable taste (comfort blanket when you're picking wall colours). For your landscaping get family, friends and neighbours to strike cuttings for you where you can - you cant get cheaper then free. You can also have a "working bee" for good friends who are happy to get dirty - they come and give you a hand doing the hard labour - you feed and water them. For your outdoor furniture look for second hand. If you can - do the clean up on site each day yourself - that way your tradies are working not cleaning which will save you money on their bills and can check for what has been done each day and catch any mistakes early. Buy the ends of roll carpet and have them hemmed for bigger rugs that are cheaper than rugs from mainstream shops if you shop at carpet warehouse outlets Invest time into doing your lighting plan and go with LED's - they're a bit more expensive now but will save you in the long run (and save you having to deal with ladders more then once every 10 years or so) - and use a specialist LED lighting company - I can recommend SUPERLIGHT in Sydney. we've used them and the ladies there were so helpful. If you've been tempted to do intergrated technology into your house put the wiring etc in for it just don't install it until you can afford it. Good rectified porcelain tiles can replicate natural stone tiles and you avoid having to seal the tiles every 12-18 months. Good luck!

We have black tiles in our house because we like black. We also have wooden floors. The kitchen is birch with laminate black granite bench tops. Our open plan works perfectly with the different floors because we have stayed with timber and black. Howver I love colour so we have incorporated red dining chairs and mustard and black cushions and rug in our family room. Timber look floor tiles are a great option, realistic and easy to clean. For you, the most important thing is to decide what you really want and go for it.