That’s actually encouraging to hear. I was half-convinced banks just rubber-stamped whatever as long as you ticked the usual boxes. When I built my pl...

Honestly, I was stressing about this exact thing when we started our build last year. I’d walk in and see a stud that looked like it belonged on a rol...

Good point—relationships help, but you can't bank on goodwill alone. When I built my place, I insisted on clear, itemized contracts upfront. Trust mat...

We faced almost the exact same choice this past summer. Honestly, I get the appeal of solid brick—it's classic and sturdy—but after weighing the hassl...

Honestly, drainage and fabric are great for stone walls, but if you're struggling with lumber walls going wonky, it's probably more about your bracing...

Totally agree about the deeper walls—built mine that way last summer and haven't looked back. Mesh screens drove me nuts, always fumbling around when ...

I've actually had some decent luck with foreclosure auctions, but you really need to know what you're doing. Last year, I snagged a pretty nice lot th...

Totally agree about Mint—tried it myself and gave up after a week. I ended up using Google Sheets too, but instead of multiple tabs, I color-coded row...

Gotta say, as someone who just went through the whole custom home build thing, cordless nailers have been a lifesaver. Sure, battery life can be sketc...

I get the privacy concern, but honestly, I think most of us gave up that battle once we started carrying smartphones everywhere. My thermostat knowing...

Smaller sawmills can be decent, but honestly, the whole salvage store thing hasn't really panned out for me. Maybe it's just my area, but by the time ...

Went through this exact headache when we built our place last year. I thought bamboo flooring was a safe bet too, until I started digging deeper and f...