Page 1 of 2

Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 11:59 am
by bobagubi
Is anyone willing to share insight into their experiences when building a house here in Cambodia?

Of course, the more recent the better, with regards to labour and materials.

All insight is welcomed (even the uber cheeky).

Re: Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 12:25 pm
by pczz
Depends on what sort of house you are building and where. The experience of building a wooden house ina village is entirely differetn to the likely experience of building a 5 storey town house in Phnom Penh.
As a rule it takes lots longer than you expect, mistakes are frequent and dont expect floors to be level or door to fit.

Re: Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 12:38 pm
by phuketrichard
pczz wrote: Fri Jan 03, 2020 12:25 pm Depends on what sort of house you are building and where. The experience of building a wooden house ina village is entirely differetn to the likely experience of building a 5 storey town house in Phnom Penh.
As a rule it takes lots longer than you expect, mistakes are frequent and dont expect floors to be level or door to fit.
LOL: :thumb:
gf's sister and husband are building a house in Kep, their now on their third contractor with the previous 2 leaving with advanced money.
Was told 8 months, 14 months later still incomplete.

Re: Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 12:56 pm
by Anthony's Weiner
My advice would be that you purchase the materials, that way you get the quality you choose and pay for. A proper set of plans and a material list are a must. go over the plans carefully and commit to them, changes are expensive once construction has started. Do not pay for labour in advance, does anyone pay you before you come to work? Go into this project knowing your sphincter will be a little looser when the build is complete.

Re: Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 12:58 pm
by CEOCambodiaNews
bobagubi wrote: Fri Jan 03, 2020 11:59 am Is anyone willing to share insight into their experiences when building a house here in Cambodia?

Of course, the more recent the better, with regards to labour and materials.

All insight is welcomed (even the uber cheeky).
This is a great thread by one of the forum members on getting a house built in Kep:
general-chatter/building-kep-t16408.html

Re: Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 2:02 pm
by jovial fucher
There is a Thai site that has lots of info and a forum. Same geography, so it's applicable.

https://www.coolthaihouse.com/forum/

As a person who pounded nails for a living decades ago, I would say you buy the materials and pay for performance, not before, and remember, you're going to marry a contractor. There's going to be a divorce. :whip:

Re: Building a House

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2020 9:03 pm
by pczz
Anthony's Weiner wrote: Fri Jan 03, 2020 12:56 pm My advice would be that you purchase the materials, that way you get the quality you choose and pay for. A proper set of plans and a material list are a must. go over the plans carefully and commit to them, changes are expensive once construction has started. Do not pay for labour in advance, does anyone pay you before you come to work? Go into this project knowing your sphincter will be a little looser when the build is complete.
Would add that you should have a contract with the contractor and use a local. If you are building in a village get the contract done and witnessed by the village chief. This puts the contractor's reputation at risk if he screws up, and the village chiefs reputation as well if the doesnt warn you. You have to go and see the chief or possibly the commune anyway because you need building permits. Make sure it is not agricultural land you cannot build on!, check on any rights of way to access your property belog to the commune. If possible look at the local town plan (yes they do have them in some places like kampot) to make sure there is no road development going to plough through your plot.
Final thing, you cannot build between any pylons on your property and the road. You sometimes see pylons 5 or 10 metres from the road, that means its slated for widening. You are also supposed to leave 1 metre free along the roadside for pedestrians.

Re: Building a House

Posted: Tue Jan 07, 2020 10:42 am
by bobagubi
Thanks all y'all. :hattip:

Also, considering the modern day slavery that goes on with regards to brick makers... shy of making my own adobe bricks, anyone have insight to 'slavery free' bricks in Cambodia?

Re: Building a House

Posted: Tue Jan 07, 2020 12:53 pm
by Bitte_Kein_Lexus
Use wood instead to decimate the remaining forests? You have to learn to let go of a few things or it'll be a tedious build. Conditions have improved a lot in recent years anyways, so I wouldn't worry too much.

Re: Building a House

Posted: Tue Jan 07, 2020 9:52 pm
by whiteribbon
bobagubi wrote: Fri Jan 03, 2020 11:59 am Is anyone willing to share insight into their experiences when building a house here in Cambodia?

Of course, the more recent the better, with regards to labour and materials.

All insight is welcomed (even the uber cheeky).
I build here. You can see what happened, the good and the bad : general-chatter/building-kep-t16408.html