Good Things Come In Threes (or Two's)

This weekend I was reading a copy of "This Old House" magazine. (June 2008) I was reading about getting what you pay for in a house. Which got me thinking about who builders are. Every builder I know personally, is actually what I consider to be an artist. You will never see any of there work on a wall at a studio, but you do see there work on the streets of every day life. I can look at a home in a certain area and I can tell with in reason who built it. Homes have there own artistic flair of who that builder is.

When people hire a builder I have to believe they are looking at his or her "artistic flair". Is the style of home they build the style I want and if not can they build what I want and see my vision. Which leads me to my question... When you are building something of such great value why does it seem that the lowest common denominator is cost. I know with the economy the way it is price has become an important issue, but I don't know anyone that should want there builder to break even on a project. If a builder does that to often he or she would not be in business to long and therefore would be able to warrant the home. Hiring a builder may seem as simple as buying a car but there are huge differences between builders. When hiring a builder you should always talk to past clients and possibly see some past work. In my opinion, you should talk to his or her trades. Do they like working for this builder? Does he or she pay on time? What you should be paying for is Peace of Mind.

Which brings me to my "Good Things Come in Threes (or Two's"). A builder friend of mine has a saying which I was reminded of this afternoon in a conversation with another builder. Building a house can be GOOD, FAST, or CHEAP. Unfortunately, you can only pick TWO. We can build your house GOOD and FAST, but it won't be CHEAP. We can build your house FAST and CHEAP, but it won't be GOOD. Finally we can build it GOOD and CHEAP, but it won't be FAST.

You decide.....
Have a great Memorial Day.