My self-building journey began right after college in 1985. I painstakingly constructed a house in a marginal Los Angeles suburb where my children would be born. This venture of self-reliance started my homebuilding career. It made me especially sensitive to the need for affordable housing and the importance of self-building to get a foothold on the housing ladder. Since then, I have built every home I have owned, which is probably true of many builders reading this article. However, I was not a home builder when I started on my first house; it was in building it that I became one.

Self-building defined

One definition of self-building, or auto-construction, is the practice of investing one’s time and/or labor to construct one’s own home. Typically, there are strategies in place for replacing professionals with nontradespeople to create human habitats instead of real estate profits. The motivations for adopting self-building methods can vary, but they often stem from economic necessity. Sometimes it’s more of a personal challenge—along the lines of, “If I can build a house, I can do anything,” as was my motivation when I started.

Another use of the term owner-builder refers to a homeowner who takes on the role of the general contractor during the construction of their house. This involves managing the construction process, hiring subcontractors, obtaining necessary permits, and ensuring compliance with local building codes. While owner-builders in this context may also perform some of the construction work themselves, their primary role is project manager.

Owner-builders often construct for profit. In fact, in California, owner-builders must comply with specific regulations, such as not constructing more than two structures for resale within three years and ensuring compliance with workers’ compensation and payroll tax requirements.

Historical perspective

Historically, self-building involved families, independently or in coordination…