The Impending Affordability Crunch for Log Homes

The very idea of living in a log cabin conjures up all sorts of feelings and sentimental romance. The log cabin home is as ingrained in our culture as Apple Pie and baseball but is the viability of this mainstay of rural living on the verge of disappearing. Some may think that it is not, that the log home will always be an affordable and viable home choice for those looking to return to their roots; but I think that the log building industry is in for some rough road in the coming years.

One only has to look at the dramatic increase in the cost of building materials and the scarcity of skilled labour in the wake of recent events both natural and man-made to get a sense of the coming crunch in the log building industry as a whole. The cost of plywood, for example, has risen nearly twenty percent in the last year adding dramatically to the cost of a new home. General contractors and homeowners alike are getting caught in the squeeze as prices for materials skyrocket during the course of construction making it necessary for charge backs and change orders. This volatility in the building materials market directly influences the log home building industry as they must compete with the lumber producers for the same raw logs from which they build their log cabins with.

The typical log home producer must buy its logs on a project by project basis so as not to tie up scarce resources in carrying an inventory of logs. Given this, the producer must go to the market to purchase logs at market price and thus must compete with the large mills for the same high grade logs. Practically speaking, his means that the log builder must in fact pay a premium for its logs because their quantity of wood fiber purchased does not afford them the same economies of scale as the large mills. So in the end the log builder can pay as much as double for the same logs as the large mill. The log builder of course cannot absorb all this cost so it must pass this cost along to the consumer who ultimately will bear the brunt of this volatility.

If the premium for logs wasn't enough for the log builder to contemplate; add in the scarcity of skilled labour and it is clear to see why the price of log cabin construction is on the increase. There was a time when building a log cabin was simple because you were doing it your self probably and if you made a mistake then – oh well you could live with it. But today in our overly litigious society where every consumer expects nothing but the finest quality at all price points the pressure on the builder to do quality work is immense. A typical log builder will require four to five years of hands-on experience under the direction of a journeyman log smith to be able to work independently. During this training time the apprentice will be exposed to all sorts of different scenarios and situations and must develop his problem solving skills in order to achieve competency. The problem face by most log home companies is that the craft of log home building is not as glamorous as a University Degree or a Tradesman Qualification so they have a hard time attracting quality employees due to the stiff competition from the other trades and professions. The only way the log home producer can compete is to increase the wage scale in the hopes of retaining quality personnel

What does all this mean for the log home building industry? It means that their cost of raw materials is steadily increasing as they are getting squeezed out by the large mills and producers for the raw materials they need to build their homes. This coupled with the scarcity of skilled labour means that the log home producer must raise his prices to be able to stay profitable. This increase in prices then puts the affordability and feasibility of a log cabin out of reach of the average person and thus thins the market for the producer. Under these kinds of conditions the producer may at first lower his prices to close more sales but this is not a long term solution because the producer's profit margin is slowly eroded as the cost of materials and labour steadily rises but the price point does not. In the end if the consumer does not accept the higher prices but instead chooses a different style of construction the log home building industry will experience a sharp decline until the costs of inputs normalizes and the viability of the business is certain.

About The Author
Darwin Forcier
Log Home Builder for 15 years and owner of Coast Mountain Log Homes
www.coastmountainloghomes.com

Custom Log Home Design Ideas

Custom log home design ideas can be used to help create the dream log home you've always wanted. Perhaps you have some custom log home design ideas on paper as you've been collecting design ideas. That's a great way to plan and organize your ideas, by making a scrapbook of the things you may want in your log home design. Here are some tips for custom designing your log home:

1. Explore and Select Your Log Home Style - select the log home style that you really want and like, a style that excites you. Will you prefer the manufactured or handcrafted log home style? Manufactured log homes are made with logs that are milled into a desired shape, producing uniform logs without taper. The logs used generally range in length from 10 to 18 feet.

A custom log home design using manufactured logs can vary considerably in shape and appearance because the logs have different shapes and there are different corner styles. You can obtain kits ranging from just the logs and fasteners to more complete systems that include the roofing materials, doors, windows and even more.

A handcrafted custom log home design means handcrafters will strip the bark off of whole logs. Using special skills and tools, the handcrafter will fit each log into place. Handcrafted custom log home design and construction is labor intensive, and the construction process takes longer and usually costs more since so much work is done manually. This method attempts to preserve the natural shape of the tree, and each log is carefully trimmed and shaped for a specific location in the log shell. The logs may be assembled at the company's yard, the pieces are numbered, taken apart and shipped to the homesite to be reassembled.

2. Visualize Home Traffic Flow - a good way to create a custom log home design is to take floorplans you like and pretend you're coming home, entering and moving around in the home. Come in the front door - where will you place your coat? What do you see in front of you as you enter? Which way to the kitchen and pantry if you are carrying groceries? Visualize sitting in the living room or family room. Will you be entertaining guests? Is having a fireplace high on your list of priorities? Try to note where the bathroom or bathrooms are located. As you finish your shower, where are the towels hanging?

Another helpful exercise when visualizing custom log home design is to examine the things that you like about where you live now. What things would you like to keep and what are things you'd like to change and have in your new home? For example, perhaps you'll want a much larger kitchen. Pay special attention to the kitchen work triangle - the distance between the sink, refrigerator and range or cooktop. Each one of these areas becomes a focal point in the kitchen and forms the three points of a triangle with different distances between them. Done correctly, proper custom log home design in the kitchen gives you the most efficient food preparation area layout. Walk through each room of the floorplan and see how the room feels and functions and how its location seems in relation to other roms.

3. Plan Your Home Orientation and Layout - when creating a custom log home design, pay attention to your site and how the orientation of individual rooms will be done. Locate the bedrooms towards the cooler, nighttime north. Place your kitchen facing the east to catch the early morning sun. The living room and recreational room can have a kind of transitional orientation, facing the warm noon south sun. And the dining area can be oriented towards the late afternoon western sun. Natural light, window placement, orientation and views are powerful positive factors in human health and the comfort of your new home.

A great way to learn custom log home design ideas is to view log home plans that have been successfully built already. Use the speed of the internet to view plans, plans that you enjoy. Every plan that you review can give you custom log home design ideas that you had not thought of. Instead of trying to create brand new plans from scratch, you can save considerable time and money if you can find great plans that have already been built successfully somewhere. This means the plans will work. Just be sure the plans service can make the changes to the plans so they become exactly what you want. That way, you really can create the custom log home design that will provide you many years of enjoyment.

About The Author
David Buster is VP of InfoSearch Publishing and webmaster of this popular log home website.
Learn more about log home design, fireplace design, cabin rentals and finding a log home plan just right for you at http://www.yourdreamloghome.com.