Building Affordable Houses By including his subcontractors in the design process and watching every penny, a Midwestern builder creates attractive starter homes for $45 per sq. ft.

BY FERNANDO PAGÉS RUIZ

he Cordobas almost gave up Building affordable homes provides work- their dream of owning a new manship challenges, too. It does not mean Guiding principles T home. With three kids, they building cheap, shabby houses. Too many needed four bedrooms, a yard and room to warranty calls eat up the profits; and unat- Real-estate markets and building re- grow. They found low-interest financing tractive homes don’t sell at any price. The quirements vary throughout the coun- but could qualify for only a $95,000 loan. construction of a first-rate home on a re- try, but the basic principles of building Every builder that they talked to told them duced budget requires careful attention to affordable homes apply everywhere. that a new house at that price couldn’t be thoughtful design and quality. These principles include: done. Every builder but me. Five months after the Cordobas called me, they moved Blue-collar approach to design • A careful design that focuses as much into a brand-new, 1600-sq. ft., four-bed- yields big savings on quality and aesthetics as it does on room home in a new subdivision in Lin- When I decided to focus my home-building affordability. coln, Nebraska. They financed it within business on the affordability niche, I scoured • A design team that includes repre- their means, and they even got a few the country in search of ideas. I attended sentatives from all the affected trades. amenitiessuch as a deck and a mi- conferences and seminars, and visited nu- crowave oventhat they hadn’t expected. merous builders of affordable housing. To • Optimum use of value engineering at I did all right, too. The 12% profit my disappointment, most were building every stage of construction (see sidebar ($12,000) I made was a much better return complex affordability schemes (based on tax p. 64). than the 8% I typically realize when I build breaks and government subsidies) instead of expensive homes. But beyond money, I also building truly affordable houses. Fortunate- • Efficient construction methods that earned genuine satisfaction helping the ly, during a trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan, employ as many factory-produced Cordobas to achieve their dream, much I stumbled upon a workable model. goods as possible. more satisfaction than I get from helping At the behest of that city’s board of Real- wealthier people put up McMansions. tors, the local Home Builders Association —F. P. R.

Photo this page: Tom O’Brien FEBRUARY/MARCH 2002 63 VALUE ENGINEERING: A RECIPE FOR QUALITY AND SAVINGS

Building affordable houses that people want to live in requires constant re-examination of every aspect of the construction process, searching for ways to save money or to improve quality. For more information, PLUMBING see “Cost-effective Home Building: A Design and Construction Hand- Cluster plumbing involves locating book,” available from NAHB Research Center (800-638-8556). fixture groups, such as baths and kitchens, back to back or stacked over each other to save on drainage, vent and water lines. These houses WALL FRAMING have a full bath and a laundry room located back to back on the first level, with the main bath directly above. The only water lines that break this grouping supply the kitchen sink and exterior sillcock.

With careful planning, it’s possible to eliminate a lot of superfluous framing material. Placing studs at 24 in. o. c., for example, saves nearly a third of the lumber consumed by a typical 16-in. o. c. layout. As much as possible, the author tries to eliminate double top plates. Single top plates (photo above) provide adequate structural support as long as the studs, floor joists and roof mem- bers are properly aligned to assure that the weight of each component bears directly on the one below.

HEADERS

HEATING AND COOLING

1 A 1 ⁄2-ton, 10 SEER heat pump—sized to the minimum load calculations for heating and air The standard practice of doubling conditioning as recommended by the American up headers with a plywood Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air- sandwich in between wastes energy Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Manual J— as well as material. A single 2x10 provides efficient heating and cooling. provides sufficient bearing capacity Conditioned air is distributed through a single for most door and window air-supply plenum that runs along the center of openings. Adding a stud (on the the home (beneath the floor joists). Every room flat) to the header’s bottom edge in the house is serviced through a sheet-metal creates a nailing surface and an boot that connects directly to the plenum, insulation shelf. keeping ductwork to a minimum.

64 FINE HOMEBUILDING Drawing this page: Paul Perreault had assembled a panel of representatives into the final plan. Like a paint-by-number from all the trades to develop a home that picture, this plan included stud-by-stud could be built for less than $60,000 (exclud- framing, detailed mechanical drawings and ing land costs). Instead of hiring a designer critical dimensions noted in bold print to ROOFS to plot a house and then hoping bids would help the trades avoid mistakes. Once all the line up with an ideal budget, they went subcontractors felt confident that their work straight to the cost experts, the tradespeople, could be streamlined and materials pared to to come up with efficient-to-build designs. I a minimum, they eliminated the fudge factor was inspired by their blue-collar approach, from their bids, which resulted in about a 5% which focused on practical construction overall cost reduction. methods instead of clever bookkeeping. Without good design, an affordable Subcontractor round table trims home is just a cheap house the fat The design process was more complicated To get my local team of subcontractors than just downsizing a standard floor plan hooked on the idea of building affordable and getting feedback from subs. Without houses, I sat them down for a round-table careful planning, smaller homes can cost discussion. I explained that with their help, I more per square foot than larger homes. In hoped to design an affordable house that we all, I spent more than six months developing could erect over and over again as a source of and refining the basic plan before I was ready Even skilled framers get bogged down bread-and-butter income in good times and to break ground. installing nailing blocks, lookouts and soffits bad. I asked for help in designing each sys- The structural shell (foundation, roof and on boxed eaves. These overhangs provide tem for quality and efficiency as well as exterior walls) has a greater effect on the cost curb appeal, but a simple 2x6 fascia board economy. Then I gave each subcontractor a of a home than any other factor. My strategy with a gutter on it (photo above) provides an effective termination on less visible preliminary floor plan on which to sketch his to control the cost of the shell began with elevations. Scaling back the cornice work on or her ideas (drawing p. 66). Their mission minimizing the size of the roof and the these houses eliminated 60 sq. ft. of framing was simple: Look for savings. It didn’t take foundation. The basic plan is a split-level and cut down on roofing and painting, long. Almost immediately, the electrician raised ranch with 816 sq. ft. of space on the saving about $250 without noticeably suggested that shortening the kitchen cabi- main floor (drawing facing page). This house affecting the appearance. nets by 6 in. and moving a closet door 1 ft. includes a ready-to-finish basement with would allow us to eliminate two electrical cripple walls framed over a 4-ft. concrete ELECTRICAL outlets, saving $110. foundation to create an 8-ft. ceiling. Because Wherever the National Electrical Code I was glad all the trades were together at the basement drops into the ground only 4 ft., (NEC) applies, cost-cutting flexibility is the same time because their recommenda- I can install full-size windows, even on a lev- limited. However, reasonable savings can be tions often overlapped. The plumber sug- el lot. By finishing this daylight basement, I achieved by carefully planning the layout of gested that we could save $850 by using an can double the home’s living area without in- lights, switches and receptacles. Limiting electric water heater and heat pump to elim- creasing the roof and foundation costs. mandatory receptacles often involves rethinking the location of certain doors, inate gas lines. The electrician said an all- After the roof and foundation, exterior walls closets and cabinets to avoid creating wall electric home added $900 to his budget. But (with their costly insulation, sheathing and lengths of 2 ft. or more, which usually then the heating guy chimed in, noting he siding) make up the third expensive compo- require an outlet by code. It also entails could drop $350 from his bid because the nent in a structural shell. Here, I try to econ- placing outlets off center on walls to take electric furnace and water heater required no omize by limiting the total length of the walls advantage of access to the outlet from two flue. In the end, my plumber’s suggestion in proportion to the area they enclose. A directions. Ideally, each living area should not need more than three or four receptacles. shaved $300 from the budget. square would represent the most cost-effec- Our biggest savings, however, came from tive footprint of all; but a square box is not improving construction procedures. During appealing to the average homebuyer. I’ve FOUNDATION a break for lunch (I paid), I learned that my found that a rectangle—better yet, a combi- It costs less to build aboveground than subs included a fudge factor in their bids to nation of rectangles—represents the best under it. But Midwest (“tornado alley”) allow for mistakes. The electrician assumed compromise between savings and aesthetics. residents demand the security of a his meter panel would not coincide with a My standard plan incorporates two rectan- basement. The wintry climate also requires deep footings. The author builds a daylight clear stud bay, so his bid included time for gles, the house and the garage (drawing fac- basement using 4-ft. tall cripple walls over blocking and framing. The framers, in turn, ing page). This arrangement provides for an 4-ft. deep concrete walls. The cost to build anticipated returning to make repairs after eye-pleasing break in rooflines as well as a this foundation is not significantly higher the electricians, plumbers and sheet-metal change in elevation. This arrangement is than it would be for a 4-ft. deep crawlspace trades were through hacking up the walls. As economical because the garage adds curb ap- foundation. Fortunately, shallow foundation my subcontractors discussed these problems, peal without requiring much insulation, dry- walls such as these don’t retain much dirt, they collaborated on developing time-saving wall or wiring. so their thickness can be reduced to 6 in. instead of the standard 8 in. This strategies that yielded substantial improve- The use of two independent rectangular combination of a shallow basement and thin ments in the construction process. modules also allows me to reconfigure the walls results in less digging, less concrete I kept track of my subs’ suggestions and floor plan lengthwise or widthwise. While and less expense. then hired a draftsman to incorporate them the house can turn 180°, the garage can at-

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2002 65 and before the trim carpenter arrives, the BLUEPRINT DEMOCRACY walls and ceilings are sprayed with a bright, Having worked up a preliminary design for an affordable house, off-white latex paint. Once that job is done, the painter has only a half-day’s worth of ex- the author invites his subcontractors to find more savings. terior work before he moves to the next job. The cabinets, doors and millwork are pre- “If you put in an finished. The carpenter just installs them, electric heat pump, “I’d have to raise fills the nail holes and—presto!—the trim is I won’t have to run my bid if you want finished. To streamline the finish process any gas lines.” me to install a heat pump.” even more, the closets get wire shelving, and the windows get drywall returns. Vinyl windows, vinyl siding, aluminum- clad soffits and fascia boards, and factory- finished garage doors eliminate the need for most outside painting. Limited options simplify choices I was still patting myself on the back for hav- ing designed the most cost-effective houses in the county when I noticed that they weren’t selling. That’s when I realized that even buyers of affordable homes want choices. My solution was to offer a limited range of options to accommodate the most popular upgrades. Some of the most common re- quests include adding a skylight, upgrading bedroom lights to ceiling fans, enlarging the “But if you go with a heat family room and adding a fireplace. For up- pump, I won’t have to run a grades such as these, I’ve developed package flue out the roof.” prices and adjusted our construction prac- tices to make these changes as easy to ac- complish as possible. tach in front or on the side. This building- become critical when you eliminate structur- To handle changes without driving subs block flexibility not only gives buyers a al redundancies. That’s why all my walls are crazy, I use the same strategy that worked so choice, it also allows me to use lots that other built in a panel factory, where computer- well in crafting the basic design: Get my builders reject. controlled precision assures consistency. subcontractors’ advice. I can’t please every- Once I’d refined the shell and the floor With panelized walls, I know that the one, however, so when I encounter a buyer plan, I scrutinized every phase of construc- rough-opening dimensions are always cor- whose demands create serious work-flow tion, from excavating through painting, rect; and I don’t have to worry that specified problems, I make an exception to my quest looking for ways to trim costs without de- details such as blocking for cabinets and for affordability: I charge a premium for the tracting from the quality and desirability of towel bars might be forgotten. I also have change and reimburse the affected subcon- the house. Value engineering is what sets the fewer labor problems. One carpenter with tractors generously. My subs don’t complain. affordable homebuilder apart from the two unskilled helpers can assemble a panel- Color choices can drive any contractor builder who’s merely cheap. As we practice ized house in less than half the time it would crazy, so I keep those things firmly under it, value engineering is kind of like a treasure take the same crew to stick-frame the house. control. On the exterior, I allow customers to hunt. Most of it is done in the planning, but choose from a limited variety of vinyl-siding as construction progresses, my team of sub- Open floor plans and prefinished colors, but not much else. The roof shingles contractors, material suppliers and I contin- trim optimize resources are always gray; and the wood-trim surfaces ue refining the search for economy and im- In addition to pinching pennies, I’ve worked are always painted white. Any leftover mate- provement. Every so often, we find a gold hard to design a house that feels spacious rial (a gallon of paint, a bundle of shingles) nugget (sidebar p. 64). and comfortable. Every room has high ceil- goes to the next job without being wasted. ings and large windows. Particularly impor- Panelized framing makes best use tant are the public spaces: The kitchen, din- Penny wisdom or pound foolishness? of labor and materials ing room and living room are combined into Construction costs run up like cash-register Conventional 16-in. o. c. stick-framing is in- one large, vaulted space, instead of three tape at the supermarket. Little purchases add credibly wasteful. My walls are framed 24 in. meager rooms (top photo, facing page). This up. To keep this inflation in check, I watch o. c., without unnecessary plates, cripples, combination of rooms makes the house feel every penny.That’s why I applaud a subcon- trimmer studs and nonbearing headers. To larger than it really is, and it saves money by tractor who suggests a $10 reduction, though reduce waste, I try to eliminate all structural eliminating a bunch of interior walls. it represents less than one-hundredth of a redundancies (top photo, p. 64). But the I also save money by reducing painting percent savings overall. Building economy quality and reliability of a building’s frame costs. After the drywall hanger is finished requires this kind of frugality.

66 FINE HOMEBUILDING Drawing this page: Matt Collins EFFICIENCY MAKES ROOM FOR COMFORT

Leaving out the walls between kitchen, dining area and living area saves on framing and makes small spaces feel much larger (top photo). Using panelized walls enables a small, semiexperienced crew to assemble a quality house quickly (photo left). Savings on pro- duction costs make it possible to include lux- uries such as skylights and vaulted ceilings.

3 But frugality does not override quality. If floors, I now use ⁄4-in. subflooring (instead Much of my approach to affordable hous- 5 I’m not careful, my hard-won construction of the ⁄8-in. variety), and I make sure my ing goes against the advice of real-estate ex- savings can easily be eaten away in warranty crews inspect and spot-screw subfloors be- perts. I’ve found, however, that economy- calls. I keep track of warranty calls in a dedi- fore carpeting. I use FlexWrap (Dupont minded buyers would rather have a fourth cated job-cost file. Every six months, I re- Tyvek; 800-448-9835) window flashing to bedroom and storage space than granite view this file to see where callback dollars avoid window leaks. I sheathe exterior walls countertops and a whirlpool tub. Two small 1 were spent. When I see recurring problems, with ⁄2-in. oriented strand board (instead of bathrooms and a simple kitchen might seem I make changes, even if they initially mean less expensive sheathing) so that the siding inadequate for today’s market, but arranged spending more money. For example, I now won’t appear wavy. I’ve twice upgraded win- tastefully, this house works fine. 5 install ⁄8-in. drywall over 24-in. o. c. trusses dows. Changes such as these have added because people complained of wavy ceilings. $1,200 to my building costs but have saved Fernando Pagés Ruiz builds homes in Lincoln, NE. Because customers complained about squeaky thousands in warranty claims. Photos by the author, except where noted.

Top photo: Tom O’Brien FEBRUARY/MARCH 2002 67