5 things you should know before starting a building project

Guest article

21.01.2021

The couple behind a log home Villa Hiisi know that the idea of building a house often stems from the desire to realise one’s own dreams. Before you start making those dreams a reality, there are a few things worth bearing in mind. Johanna and Henkka have put together a list of the five most important things every builder should know before starting a project for this blog.

We became house builders somewhat by chance. The coronavirus pandemic brought our busy daily lives to a halt, and a visit to a private home viewing on Easter Saturday turned into plans to buy a plot in the neighbouring area. What if we built our own home? That’s when we started looking into different plots and house designs. Our criteria were proximity to the sea, good transport links and a spacious, preferably two-storey home. We soon decided that we wanted a log house. These thoughts led to a crash course in the world of construction. Familiarising ourselves with the following matters has been essential for building our own home:

1. Plot and planning regulations

The plot and the area’s planning regulations largely determine what kind of house can be built in the area. Even if the area’s planning regulations are strict, a good house seller will help the client find a suitable house. This helped us move forward with the project and adapt the Log Home Hiisi model into a home that met both our wishes and the planning regulations.

Rendering of the Hiisi 173 model. This is a black log house with a hipped roof. — The Log Home Hiisi 173 model.

A modern log house with a pitched roof currently under construction. The logs have not yet been treated. — The Log Home Hiisi 173 model was adapted to the plot and planning regulations. The floor area was reduced and the roof was changed from a pent roof to a gable roof.

The house will be built as a mirror image. The walk-in wardrobe was converted into a study.

When reserving a plot, a soil survey is typically carried out to determine the soil composition, bearing capacity, surface contours and, for example, the groundwater level. The soil survey helps to determine what type of foundations the house will require. This also helps to estimate the budget for earthworks and foundations as part of the overall budget. It is worth approaching these costs with a degree of caution, as there may be surprises. In this respect, our budget was exceeded by around 25 per cent of the planned amount.

A collage of images showing groundwork. On the left, an excavator is digging the ground for the foundations, and on the right, the foundations are already complete. — Our plot is located near a watercourse and consists of clay soil. This meant that the foundations for the plot were laid using piling.

2. Budget

One of the most important aspects of building is budgeting. When building your first home, it is very difficult to know how much extra cost might arise from groundworks, additional work or materials. When designing a house, it is easy to think that all standard materials will do. During construction, you notice many things you want to invest in.

So, what are you prepared to cut back on? This is where creativity comes into play: can a particular solution be implemented more cheaply, thereby making it fit within the budget? In this regard, customer-focused industry professionals can help you brainstorm. Our contractor, Rakennuspalvelu Tähtinen, has been a great help in working out the details from the perspective of both the budget and our wishes.

We drew up the budget by creating a total cost estimate and breaking it down into the following cost elements: plot, groundworks, the house, outbuildings and other expenses, such as those related to the building permit application and site supervision. In addition to this, it is a good idea to create a separate budget for the garden. Under each cost element, we track the costs and how they are realised.

Pictured: The house builders from Rakennuspalvelu Tähtinen. — Rakennuspalvelu Tähtinen has helped with the implementation of details and the resolution of problems. For example, during the construction of the changing room, the door opening of the changing room was moved back by about 10 centimetres. This ensured that the light switch in the changing room was not hidden behind the sliding door of the technical room.

3. Time management

Assessing how you and your family use your time is key when purchasing a house kit. The most common options on the market are

building the house entirely yourself,
weatherproofed,
ready for interior finishing, or
ready-to-move-in house kits.

The contents of house packages vary between suppliers, and this affects how much of your own time is required for the build.

It is worth being realistic about how you use your time. During the planning stage, it may feel as though you have the time, skills and stamina, but as the build progresses, your mind may change. Building a house is a long-term, demanding project, regardless of how much you plan to do yourself. Simply the design and planning, making various choices and keeping the building and site tidy take up a great deal of free time for those in work.

We chose a slightly modified ‘move-in ready’ house package. We ordered the timber components for the house from Kuusamo Log Houses and signed a ‘move-in ready’ contract with Rakennuspalvelu Tähtinen. We decided to undertake the kitchen, other fitted furniture, the fireplace and outbuildings ourselves, amongst other things. This has been the right solution for us.

The log house during construction. The roof is already in place, but the windows are still in their packaging in the foreground. — Assembling the log frame went quickly, and after that the house began to take shape. The house reached roof height in the autumn before the worst of the rain set in.

4. Decision-making

They say that when building a house, you have to make 10,000 decisions. That might be an exaggeration, but there are still a great many decisions to be made. Finding the right materials requires numerous detailed decisions, whilst at the same time keeping the bigger picture in mind. This is a great learning experience, as the initial choices can take quite a long time, but your decision-making skills develop as the building project progresses.

We have organised our decision-making so that one of us has focused more on the visual aspects of the house, whilst the other has taken responsibility for the technical aspects of construction and sourcing materials. It’s probably not hard to guess what the division of labour has been. Our collaboration and decision-making have developed as the project has progressed, and we are now able to make even major decisions quickly.

Johanna and Henkka are sitting on a bale of wool in front of their log house, which is under construction. — At the start, we spent more time choosing small details. Now we have a clear vision of what we want and what choices suit the spirit of a log house. This has sped up the decision-making process.

5. Project management

Building a house requires a certain kind of project management. It involves coordinating and administering several aspects simultaneously. For someone building a house for the first time, managing a construction project is a constant process of learning new things. At the same time, it has been extremely rewarding.

It’s wonderful to see how your own plans take shape and become a reality in your home. You get a real sense of having surpassed yourself, knowing you’ve managed to achieve all this.

Building a house is a team effort where you learn about both yourself and others, and with good partners, it is an interesting journey to create something of your own and unique. As the year begins, I’d like to wish everyone reading this blog rewarding moments as you dream, engage in design and planning, or build your own home.

You can follow our building project on Instagram @villa_hiisi. Welcome aboard!

Johanna and Henkka