Well that went by fast! It’s already February and there are so many things that have happened. But first, a recap on our housing situation and some lessons learned. You can also just scroll through the pictures to see a recap of what our house started out as and what it has become.

The original house site- late Fall 2012

Since the last update, we sold our house, paid off our debt, got a new house, and then decided to build our dream house on the same lot as the new house. Why? That way we can rent out the original house (passive income, yes!) without having to buy a 3rd house or rent.

This 2nd home is a LOT smaller than our old property- which is exactly what we wanted. It’s also more central to inner Portland and other modern conveniences, which is a double plus for us urbanites.

But all that aside, i’ll get on to the 5 things I learned in process of building this dream home of ours…

Original structure demolished and replaced with a hole for the basement

1. It’s about relationships

Selling and buying a 2nd home went so smoothly. Could we have done it on our own? Sure, and as DIY’ers, we had an inclination to do so. But in retrospect, we probably would have been hyperventilating and pulling our hairs out. I’m glad we didnt.

It was indispensable having a seasoned real estate agent who could offer experience and correctly fill out the piles of paperwork needed. It was also nice to have someone to complain to, get advice from, and depend on to get what we needed accomplished while we lived life (see lesson #4). And with awesome cookies and treats on the side, how much more could you want?

Concrete poured for basement and foundation

2. When persistence fails, get creative.

When we first drafted our dream home, we were told no on a lot of structural components- like the bedroom loft we wanted and the basement. Since it is technically an “ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit)” and not a standard “Residential” Home (which has higher permit fees), there were a lot more hoops to jump through to get it built.

However if you peek in today, you’ll see access to a basement and a lofted bedroom. How did we do it? We worked with an architect (lesson #1!) who didn’t mind driving to downtown every other day to talk with the city. With Ben, they found some creative loopholes to get to our goals.

So technically the office, bedroom, and basement are NOT considered part of the ADU/house square footage, but as “storage.” What we found out is that it only matters how the house was designed and constructed to be built- but it’s end use is ultimately out of their control. So while it was planned to be built with a wall here, you never know when that wall will get knocked down.. *cough cough*.

Once that was all figured out and approved by the city, it felt like we had defeated one of the top Bosses in a video game… So rewarding.

Now the frames go up!

3. Pick your battle- time or money.

Over the years i’ve found both to be of equivalent value, but not always available in the same amounts. Usually we found ourselves with more time than money, and it’s made us able to be quite frugal. However having a business has shown us that time IS money, and that spending a little extra now means saving both in the long run.

This was a tricky battle when building a home. While Ben could do a lot of work himself, it meant going over our timeline. That also meant I had to temporarily close Kitty Baby Love due to lack of space and resources (hopefully we’ll reopen for orders in mid-March), and the simple living situation in our temporary home started becoming stressful when we could see no end to the construction.

We finally decided to get some hired help who could bang out work for a decent price. Ben was very hesitant about working with a team at first, but it ultimately freed up his time to get the dirty work out of the way (drywalling) so he could start working on things that were fun to him (building furniture). Ultimately I feel like we traded a few weeks of work for a few days. Worth the money? You betcha.

Almost completed frames for the house- taken after a rainy winter morning

 4. Always keep your priorities in check.

It can be so easy to get wrapped up in the world of housing. Multi-billion dollar industries are based in the housing market- but like any other activity, it can be a distraction from true living. What matters most is our family unit. It was important for us to eat together every meal- even if just for 15 minutes- to keep connected with each other. It was also important to take day long breaks to go to the park and have a full ‘normal’ day together every now and then too.
Because if our family isn’t whole, what’s the point in building a house for us all to live in? Always keep your priorities in check- otherwise you could lose out on what really matters.

Finishing the exteriors of the house, including a new driveway- plants soon to come!

5. Expect Delays.

I consider this like a life meditation. I planned for delays but then delays happened that went past those delays. Right now we are anticipating a finished house within the next month, but as life goes- we will expect delays. We’ll still work as hard as we can to keep on schedule, but the point is not to get so fixated on the date that life falls to pieces when it doesn’t happen by then.

Getting the interiors worked on- yes, we have skylights and 17′ ceilings!

In a nutshell

It’s been a journey getting the house finished with a lot of ups and downs. I feel like we lived a year of our lives in the past few months doing all of this. I also feel like this was a huge rite of passage for our family. We started in 2009 without any work, scraping together $30 to get art supplies to make some crayons. Now we’re building our dream house. It’s truly amazing what can happen in just 3 years with a little motivation. Needless to say, I’m excited for 2013!

The exteriors of the house will be worked on throughout Spring as we get ready for planting. Unfortunately Portland’s rainy winter weather keeps us from painting the outside, so it’ll have to remain baby puke yellow for a few more months (weep).

The good news is that the interiors are being worked on steadily. We already have flooring in, walls painted, and just finished a late night shopping spree at Sears Outlet and Home Depot the last of our appliances. Pictures will come soon!