Contracting your own home is a noble undertaking, and one that requires a good bit of pre-construction planning. It is important to anticipate things that can go wrong in the building process. Mistakes can be very costly to overcome, so becoming aware of some of the common problems that plague home builders, from novices to experts, is in order. Following are some of the major things to watch out for. Inadequate planning. Don't jump into the project without a complete and well thought out plan. All your decisions--from design to construction methods to decorating--should be made from the start and there should be nothing left to chance. Since this is likely your first major construction project, it is important to gain as much knowledge as possible about every phase of the process, including the pre-construction tasks such as estimating and time management scheduling. In fact, these planning tasks will set the stage for the overall success of the entire project. Many people ...