Self-managed house build project in Thailand - A success story!

I will probably be doing myself out of some project management work with this blog post, but I really do feel it is worth sharing for the benefit of others.  You hear many horror stories about self managed builds in Thailand with rapidly escalating project costs, sub standard workmanship to name but two of the common threads.  It is for this reason that many prefer to use a company that offers fixed price contracts and long guarantees on quality of design and workmanship...  Obviously, if this is you, head over to our contact page and get in touch! 

However, the fact is that self managing the build of your own home can be a tremendously rewarding experience.  Living in your new home and having an intimate understanding of every aspect of its construction and having passed all of the new challenges experienced on the journey can give an emense feeling of satisfaction.

One couple who understand this is a family who we designed a house for last year.   David and Shanana took on the project management role themselves.  I'm always happy to hear how clients that we design homes for get on with their build projects and was delighted to see the absolutely stunning results that have been achieved with this project.  The attention to detail and personal touches that they have added have taken a beautiful design to another level.

"Nakara Villa" is situated in a beautiful rural location just a few km outside Udon Thani.  If you like the look of this property, you can experience it for yourself first hand as they are open as a fully catered luxury villa, offering a truly unique holiday experience.  I have added a few pictures here but you can see dozens more pictures and find out more about this exceptional property at the following link: http://nakaravillaudon.lodgify.com You can even book your next stay in Udon Thani online with them while you are there!

So, if you are considering self managed build you should not necessarily be put off by stories of headaches and failures.   One thing to remember is that those who suffer problems during a build project naturally have a lot to shout about and tend to be the most vocal on forums.  Those who completed their project with relatively few issues are now just happily getting on with their lives in their new homes and not looking for somewhere to vent frustrations.  Yes, there may be new challenges and even some headaches along the way but that is part of what makes it such a wonderful experience.

If you are still not convinced and do not feel comfortable with taking on the whole project, then of course we do offer consultancy services for self-builds to guide you through some of the more tricky aspects of a construction project.  Still sounds like too much hard work?  Then contact us to enquire about our full design and construction services.

Udon Thani - Thai Style Home and Guest House

We completed the design and engineering of this Thai style property in April of 2013.  The design brief was for a home consisting of three buildings connected by a balcony on the second floor.   The main building had a living/dining room on the ground floor, with the master bedroom on the second floor.  The second building housed indoor and outdoor (covered) kitchens on the ground floor with a study and dining terrace on the second floor.  The third building was used as a carport and laundry, with a second en-suite bedroom on the second floor.   These three buildings formed the main residence.  

We also designed a forth, separate, building to be used as a guest house.  This building had an entirely open ground floor to be used as a games/dining area.  On the second floor there were two en-suite bedrooms and a spa room.

The will also be a pool adjacent to the guest house added later, not currently shown in our model.


With this project, we provided our design services, then the client self managed the build.  We also treat the design and engineering phase as separate from construction.   So, if using our design services, you are not obliged to use our construction services.   We were very happy to be able to offer advice and support to our client during construction as and when questions or issues arose.  This construction project is nearing completion now and I hope to be able to add some pictures once complete, with their permission.   Although we have not built it, personally, I always love to hear how our design clients have got on with their construction projects and it is always a pleasure to see in reality, what was once just a 3D computer model.