Shop House we're having built

[JimNasium]

I may want to convert the Penthouse to a boxing ring for forum members...  and the basement to an open bar...   
The posibilities are endless.

[JimNasium]

Completion!!

All it needs now is a spirit house and a house party. Oh, and furniture. Any donations welcome.

[Somnat]

Looks great Jim. Well done 

How close to your estimated budget were you? 

[gotlost]

Congratulations. Job well done.

[JimNasium]

How close to your estimated budget were you? 

Thanks guys.

Of course it went over budget but I expected that. In all, it came to about 1.5 million Baht. I'm well pleased.

[Alan]

Well done Jim and thanks for sharing this project. 

[Speros]

very good mate ...how did the man cave go...all done?

[JimNasium]

The "Man Cave" is no more. It will make way for another business venture to be announced at a later date. We’ve got to milk this building for all its worth now.

This was my second building project here. The first was our house a few years ago and I learned a lot from that. This project went much smoother following my previous experience and the information gained from this forum also helped a great deal. Choose your builder carefully and agree on a price for labour before starting. If the builder knows what he's doing, this should be no problem. There is nothing wrong with Thai style building. Even my house that was done on the cheap is still in good order. By comparison, the shophouse was built with better materials, deeper foundations, sturdier re-bar constructions and better quality cement and should be good for a very long time if well looked after.

A budget is very important but must be flexible. Ultimately, your budget should be the absolute limit to what you are prepared to spend. My budget for this project was 1 million Baht. But knowing that finishing a building always costs more than planned, I was prepared to go to 2 million Baht if it was necessary. As it turned out, the project was less than my absolute limit.

Supervision is crucial. I could not always be around to check up on things but I'm lucky to have a wife that not only knows what she wants but will also make sure that she gets it. That trait together with a good builder is a winning combination.

But I'm glad it's done now.

[Admin]

Great photos. I really enjoyed following this project, I think these kind of sharing is much appreciated by the community inside and outside of Buriram community and I hope more people will share their building projects as well. Many thanks! Great to have you in the forum. Sawadi

[DeputyDavid]

Beautiful.  I will be planning something similar a bit later down the road, but your experience posted here is of great value to me and I am sure many others.  Thanks for sharing.