frequently asked questions

All of the house plan options for sale through Open Book Build are in digital format.  Customers can print on their own from the digital files.  Some potential printing options include:  FedEx Office, Staples or one of the many office supply stores throughout the U.S.  This cost for printing will be something our customers will want to include in the new home budget.

Yes.  After you submit the House Plan Order Form from this website, we will send an email to you with a digital PayPal invoice which can be paid with any major credit card.

There is a good chance you will want to make at least a few small changes to the plans to meet local codes or to fit special site conditions.  We feel the best way to handle this is with a local architect/designer that knows your local building codes, building practices and regulatory requirements.  Therefore, we do not provide plan change services.

This really depends on your circumstances.  If you think you will have only a few minor changes to the house plans, the PDF version should be fine.  For more extensive changes to the plans, either due to local code requirements or your own custom preferences, the CAD option would be best.  (Note: the CAD option comes as a DWG file and requires CAD specific software to be opened by a designer. )

Some local building departments require house plans to be stamped by an architect or engineer licensed in your state.  If required, you would need to hire a local professional to handle this task for you.  We do not provide stamps or seals on our house plans.

We wanted the Open Book Build house plan to be easily expandable for growing families.  Therefore, we have included a full basement foundation with a future finished basement plan.  Because of this, we do not offer a slab foundation or partial basement option.

Climates vary throughout the U.S. requiring different approaches to the heating and cooling systems of homes.  For this reason, we have not included HVAC layouts or designs to the house plans.  Typically, your local heating contractor will supply this as part of their contract to provide services.

The $165k mentioned on this website includes the labor and material costs we incurred when building this structure from footings to final paint.  Additional soft costs, excavation and grading costs, and other site specific costs were incurred when building this home.  You should anticipate these additional costs when planning to build.  And because local building costs and circumstances differ from one location to another, and because the person managing each building project has differing skill levels and competencies, Open Book Build LLC provides no guarantees that purchaser will achieve similar cost or quality results when building this home.  Please see our Terms of Sale & Disclaimers page for more details.

In addition to the labor and material costs to build the structure of the home, purchaser will incur additional expenses which include, but are not limited to:  insurance, excavation and grading, permits, house plans, driveway, utility connections, tree removal, erosion control, waste removal, engineered site plan, utilities, lot staking, sidewalks, loan fees, stone for backfill of foundation if required,...etc.

The Open Book Build Kit does not include the actual building materials for this home.  The kit includes a collection of general contracting tools, in PDF and Excel digital format, which were used to properly bid, contract, and build this home.   

A plumbing riser diagram is a drawing representing how the fixtures will be connected to the plumbing system throughout the home.  Because local codes and contractor practices vary from one location to another, we do not provide plumbing riser diagrams.  We have found that most professional, local plumbing companies will provide this as part of their contract for services if required by the local building department.