Lots of people, myself included, have the dream of building a home from scratch. But how do you go about it, what's invloved? Well from a lot of research I can say that there is 3 major things to remember first: Money, Time and Emotions.

Building a home isn't something to jump into, a lot of planning and re-planning will need to take place before anything can begin. Some people rush into the process and find themselves paying for it, literally, later on in the build, but this need not be the case.

The first thing to ask yourself when considering building a home is: Can I commit myself to this project? It's no use being terribly excited for the first month and then getting bored. You'll have spent a load of money on something that is semi built and useless. Building a home requires dedication, patience and a very calm temperament.

There are so many reasons why people go through the self build process, and many benefits:

• You get the exact home that you want. Layout, style, size.
• You can choose the exact materials that you want to build with. Do you want an eco home that utilises solar panels and/or wind power? A home that is made from sustainable materials? When building a home, the choice is totally yours.
• You get a lot for your money. Building a dream home is cheaper than buying one.
• You won't move in and want to rip out the previous owner's kitchen, bathroom or decorating style. Everything will already be as you want it.
• You can design your own garden, taking into account children, animals and personal taste.
  

• You'll need to be great with money as anything less than a strict budget can result in owing thousands more than exprected. You'll need to incorporate extra unseen costs in too as they can and will happen. Setting a higher budget than is needed is far more sensible than doing an exact budget. You won't need to find extra money for problems that may arise during the build.
  
• You are going to have to deal with a lot of construction workers, unless you choose to stay off site for the duration of the build. Problems due to weather and suppliers can arise and it's no use getting mad at the people who are building your home, though it may be very tempting. Having your building team down tools and going off site is not what you want.
• Self builds can take a lot longer than expected. Even with perfect planning, outside factors such as bad weather and delayed supplies can cause things to move slower than expected. It's an unfortunate circumstance that can happen.

Something that I've been thinking about is building a house before a home. This is of course double the work and time, but it could be a very sensible thing to do financially. Building a regular family house and selling it on could prove fruitful.

I imagine that the trick with this is to keep it quite generic and not to put any personal style into the house. This way, you won't be so attached to it when you sell and it will also be appealling to people as a blank canvas that they can put their own style into.

Building a house with the intention of selling it would provide extra funds towards building a home. A few ways this could work:

• Building a similar sized house to sell in a more expensive area than where you will build your home.
• Building a bigger property in the same area as the home build.
• Building a bigger property in a more expensive area.

If you can accomplish the last one, then you are sure to have a good amount of money to put towards the home build. The only problem with this is that you may be so pleased with your profit that you end up in the area of property development and never get the home built!

The first thing to consider is what's more important, the style of the house of the place where it is? If you're looking to build a futuristic home, buying a plot of land in a picturesque villiage probably isn't a great idea. In fact, it would be just plain stupid as there are planning and building rules and regulations that you have to abide by, so you would never be allowed a futuristic build on a plot such as that.

This is why it is so important to know exactly what you want before you buy a plot of land.

Knowing the size of your home is essential. How big is your garden going to be? Are you building a garage? It's best to have the external details of the build finalised before buying a plot of land. A tenth of an acre is generally the smallest plot size you would be looking to build on.

If you know the exact area in which you would like to build, look out for local auctions, as this is where bargains are found and costs cut. Be wary of plots that don't yet have planning permission. Yes they may be cheaper to buy, but what if you can't get the planning permission go ahead? You're stuck with land that can't be built on.

So you've bought your plot of land, what happens next?

If you have an architect on board you could project manage the build yourself if you wanted to, if not it is best to get in a professional with self build experience.

If you are project managing then you better be great at time management because there is a lot of work resting on your shoulders. You have to book the builders and tradesmen, source and order supplies and keep the budget in check. All the time making sure that the build is as scheduled. That's a lot of work for someone who has never project managed before. The plus with doing it yourself is saving money, the downside is pressure and stress.

• The next step is getting self build insurance, this is essential.
• Finalised designs need to be submitted for planning permission.
• Once planning permission is granted, detailed drawings of the property need to be submitted to the building control department who will do on site checks as the build is in process.
• Source and book a reputable building firm.
  
• Amenities for the builders and tradesmen will need to be provided on site. Water, power and toilet facililties.
• Providing a site entrance for delivery supplies is required.
• Digging will begin and concrete foundations poured.
• Walls are built and roofing placed to make the build water tight.
• Plumbing and electrics need to be installed before the plastering of walls can take place.
• After plastering, the floor is laid.
• Kitchen, bathroom and all fittings will be installed.
• Painting and decorating can begin.
• Creating the garden will be the last stage.
  

Building a home is sure to be a stressful project, especially if you are project managing. Your time will be filled almost exclusively by the build. This can put pressure on family and relationships and can be a very emotional time for all involved.

Though imagine the satisfaction of moving into the home that you have built, it must be very rewarding indeed.

As I haven't personally experienced either, I can only speculate about the following statement. I imagine building a home to be much like childbirth; painful, messy and emotional, but with a wonderful result at the end.