Tip #1: Do it yourself.

Do as much of the work on your home as you can by yourself. If you know about home construction or have the will to learn, you can save thousands of dollars by doing things yourself. Manual labor costs a bundle, but when you supply it, your building costs can be cut in half. Time and money is spent on a lot of things that the average person can do without instruction like painting and cleaning up after construction. Some things, you'll want to hire a professional for, but some only take an experienced helper to walk you through the process, like installing your roof. The more work you do, the more you'll love your home when it is finished and the more money you will save.

Tip #2: Hire experience.

If you don't have a lot of experience or know-how when it comes to home construction and design, you'll probably want to hire a general contractor. Don't go with the cheapest one. That may seem counter-intuitive to saving money, but it will save you money in the long run. If you do your homework, you can hire a contractor that has a tract record for getting projects done on time and with in budget, two things that save you money. An inexperienced contractor whose only thing going for him is that he was cheaper than the other guy is more likely to make costly mistakes that can put you behind schedule and over budget. Mistakes cost a lot more over the course of a project than hiring someone who has a record of doing things right.

Tip #3: Use recycled building products.

Rather than buying all of your construction material new, buy as much as you can from a recycled building materials reuse association or store. There are over a thousand of them throughout the country. They offer building supplies from old building sites, leftovers from construction and recycled materials for demolitions. You can get good materials at a discounted price and save yourself a bundle in the process.

Tip #4: Shop on sale.

If you know you are going to be decorating a home, budget for it, then shop on sale. Every store has sales or sale items. Most stores have an annual or bi-annual sale they do when they receive new inventory where they give customer deeply discounted prices to move out their old inventory. That is a perfect time to pick up all your home decorating items at a significantly discounted price. If you know your project is in the works, it is time to shop, so use your time and money wisely and shop when things are on sale. Another way to shop on sale is to visit yard sales and flee markets. Shopping yard sales and flee markets takes a little more time, patience and effort, but the treasures you can pick up for decorating your new home are a rare bargain.