Prometheus:
I understand what you are saying. I think that probably if we had met somewhere else, eye to eye, face to face, this thread would probably have never gotten this far.
I know there are plenty of bad contractors out there, but having worked so hard at my craft and my business, it is hard for me to see the snickers and elbow rib pokes that appear from many, including those here from time to time that feel like you can give a construction worker a cold beer and he will panel your living room.
I pay my guys too much and I take less. That is how I keep the good ones. It pains me to see how little I get for the bucks I spend, but reputation wise it works out in the end. Still irks me though.
As far as Mr. Homeowner building his own garage, I also agree that it should be within the skill set of many. The part that will not be recognized or appreciated is waiting for inspectors (the contactor wannabes that couldn't be), meeting obscure city codes, and all the time that is wasted getting all the different trades and personalities on the same page.
I am one of the few certified HUD construction consultants in TX. I have been working in construction for about 34 years. All but 10 for myself. I have worked in light commercial extensively and also in residential.
Sadly, the skills that serve me the most in my daily work is a perceived evil temperment, being able to swear fluently in two languages (Si, yo puedo hablar espanol) and knowing which inspector to call when, and if I need to "find" an "extra" gift certificate in my truck when they are on site.
I think the building is the easy part. The local governments are the hard part as they usually know little or nothing about what you are doing. For instance, we have several small burgs that have been incorporated for years before the city could swallow them up. In order to do ANYTHING in these areas you must get a permit first. This is how they make additional money.
The problem is that the senior inspector in three of these areas is also the fire department chief. In two more, the don't have actual inspectors, but if the police in these small areas see you starting a job without paying your permit fees, there is a $2500 fine! And they don't even inspect the work! They make you get a license in their little burg, and that is that. They call your references, and if you are in good stead with all of them including your professional associations, you can be licensed. However, they rely on you to follow codes.
If the received a complaint from anyone connected with the process, then they call an independent inspector out and he will make you go specifially by the COBAL book or equivlant. No adjustment for region. Imagine putting a homeowner through that... I have seen contractor just walk away from jobs in these areas out of disgust. And if the burg has gotten in trouble for anything lately, they will be unmerciful.
Gladly this will not be the case for our friend that started the thread. I think we were duped! In a subsequent post he has revealed that not only is he not a run of the mill homeowner asking how to do something of this nature, but that his wife is