I want to be a professional home contractor
Howdy all,
Early apologies if this stuff’s already been covered before in someone else’s thread.
A little about me, I’m 27 yo, with 1 year exp. working in trades/construction. I put 4.5 years into a BSME, but I dropped out – I lacked real world experience, and while I was able to perform academically, I did not feel like a mature adult who was ready to join the workforce.
Currently, I’m putting dirt under my fingernails working for a home contractor of 40 years. Everyone I asked about him told me he is THE guy I need to apprentice with, and I agree wholeheartedly. I feel very lucky to be under his wing. Unfortunately, he is retiring at the end of this project!
I don’t know what I should do next. Even with the internet at my fingertips, I have somehow come up short every time I try tracking down any sort of information outlining what I need to do and know how to do to become a professional home builder. Specifically a good one, I hope.
I’ve come up with are a few options on my own, but I don’t have any clue as to how I can determine which choice is right for me. I thought I could find another apprenticeship, or get a construction sciences degree from my local community college, maybe dig in the crates and self-teach, or even possibly move to a University and get an Architectural Engineering or Construction Engineering degree?
I’m hoping maybe there’ll be someone here who would tell me which paths are lined with pitfalls and time gates, what led them to succeed, or what they might do differently another time around. Maybe someone knows a good book I could read or an institute I could contact. I mean… I am totally lost! Also though, I’m really excited to push forward. This work is my passion, so I do seriously appreciate all the help I can get, it really means a lot to me.
Thank you much!
-Wonk
Replies
Shoot... it looked shorter before I could see it all at once. Sorry! Again, thank you all for your time if you do choose to read my novel up there, and thank you also for your help. :)
"4.5 years put toward a mechanical engineering degree, but I dropped out."
Be brutally honest with yourself: Drop out or flunk out ?
If truly drop out and considering further education, finish your BSME.
If flunk out, what are prospects of further 'higher education"?
Thank said:
In own case built first house solo at 25-28 YO. However, kept engineering day job as did involve lots of 'science fiction' type stuff
AND was brutally honest with myself that I did not have the 'guts' to go into business for myself due to the paperwork and permits required.
You may get more responses at BT3, lots of folks there with their own business willing to give advise (am not one of the business types myself)
http://forums.delphiforums.com/Breaktime_3/messages/?msg=7697.1
Thank you for the link!
So you had a job working as an engineer? Can I ask, was it difficult to find enough time to do both? Working and then also building a house at the same time sounds like it would be really stressful.
I don't get home until 6pm, so if I were to do that I would need some flood lights and a lot of caffeine... How long did the construction last? Did you draw the plans too?
How long did the construction last? 2-1/2 years
Did you draw the plans too? yes
14 hour days typical, with 5 and 7 YO kids at home besides - ther wer on site during weekends weather permitting.
Need 100% spousal support. .
Time: zero time wasted on pro sports or similar nonsense, no movies, eating out very rare event, Cash on barrelhead for everything or it had to wait.
Would do it again if I were 50 years younger.
Wonk - congrats on deciding to pursue a life in the trades! Where are you located? That might trigger some suggestions when it comes to networking.
Hi WonkZ. In my opinion, it’s time for you to start working on your own, and not just with a mentor. Of course, if you are not sure, you need to look for such a person, but the main thing is not to drag out, time goes on and you don’t get younger, it's time to prove yourself.
Depending on the laws in your state and the nature of your mentor's buisness, you might try to buy the buisness from him. Be aware that if you want to be a builder you may not want to have a contracting buisness since 90+% of your work will be running the business and not building.
You've already got a start by knowing a guy who has been doing it for 40 years. If he thinks you've got it he'll be your best advisor as far as contacts, suppliers, subs, etc in your area. He might even be available now and then for some on-site consulting.
Your ME backround is way more informed than most builders have starting out. I'm hoping that includes a dose of building science so you can start right where the industry is heading in energy efficiency, moisture control, etc. Green Bldg Advisor here at FHB is a good resource, as well as Building Science Corporation.
https://www.buildingscience.com/
That is just the building stuff- the business stuff is where you make or break it all. But if you start small so you don't need a major investment you should be able to get enough work to make money while you sort out the rest.
I was working in the trades (family of brick and stone masons) and got my engineering degree. At 24 I started the engineering job, and still did construction on the side. I've been in both for over 30 years, and I find both of them interesting and intellectually challenging. My dad wanted me to stay in the company and full time in the trade, but I wanted to go do my own thing - and luckily he was very supportive of that.
The engineering courses will definitely give you a leg up in construction. In the shift toward more technical building requirements and building science, you can make a great career for yourself. Become a building science / technology SME (subject matter expert) in an area that interests you.
My honest advice: pack your bags and move to Germany for a few years. They are much farther along in integrating construction practice, engineering and developing technology. https://geniebelt.com/blog/german-construction-2018
Hi there, If you display the passion you speak to other good contractors in your locale, you will probably find yourself hired quickly. It is a well known fact that the trades are lacking in young and motivated folks entering the workforce. Every builder I know in my area are dying for good help. I have been a self-employed contractor/builder/carpenter etc. for 20 years. I had a short lived apprenticeship which was very valuable for learning the business side of being a builder, but most of the actual skills I learned on my own through research. I recommend reading actual books about both the business and the techniques/skills needed to be a quality builder and be profitable. There is no reason to hesitate as long as you hustle, you can make it happen. Good luck
The most successful contractors I know, and I know lots, don't know which end of the hammer goes in their hand. They are businessmen who own construction companies. Almost none have a contractors license, they employ someone who does. I did a half million dollar remodel on a home for a very wealthy guy who owns many construction companies in another city. I thought it would be a great job having someone who would appreciate what we were doing. Instead, it was the biggest nightmare of my 50-year career in construction. The guy knew less than nothing about construction, had no clue about the process or the difference between the right way and the wrong way. In the end, he refused to pay me which ended up in a protracted court battle which he won on a technicality because the building department made a clerical error on the permit.
In other words, if you're a businessman looking for a business maybe construction will work, if you're a wanting to work with your hands you probably won't build a business but just create a job for yourself. Construction is a tough business, hard to make decent money, hard to find decent jobs, huge up and down cycles and every guy with a hammer is a "contractor."
Stick with engineering would be my advice
Florida, That sounds like an absolute nightmare.
I am coming from a slightly different place. Having worked as a carpenter and a residential contractor I went back to school for my engineering degree and have worked in commercial construction on large infrastructure projects for the last 18 years.
Commercial builders appreciate Project Managers with Engineering degrees. The up and down cycles still happen but you can defend against them by diversifying your experience in different market sectors. It is very rare to have no building at all. In downturns, smart builders build as they can get more for their money.
My advice is to keep building. Get your engineering degree but be very careful of residential construction
Sawdust_Steve
I'm way too old to be starting over. If it weren't for the job I mentioned I'd be retired now. I've worked in every type of construction in the last 50 years. For many years all I did was commercial but then that died so I switched back to residential. Lost my shirt in the building crash in 06 and started in again. Now we do mostly condo maintenance which can be good work but can disappear in a single Board meeting. My younger brother got an engineering degree 10 years after I started working. He retired 3 years back, I'm still working trying to pay off the last of the bills from the job I mentioned.
Florida my advice was really for the OP (WonkZilla) but hey you are never too old to go back to school! My brother went to Medical school at age 40 (he's still paying off those student debts 20 years later)
But the book “Running a successful construction company” by David Gerstel. Great book for someone looking to get in the business. I started my company when I was 20 and haven’t looked back.
Best advice, don’t EVER get too many irons in the fire. Easiest way to get in trouble (financially, legally, burnout).
Good luck!!
Tom
Neville builders
Definitely finish your degree. Not for the degree, but for the knowledge.
If I had to do it all again, I'd live in a library for 4 years instead of going deep into debt.