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April 30, 2025 10 mins

What Materials Are Worth Splurging On, And Where Can I Save Money Without Regrets? 

Making smart material choices can dramatically impact both your construction budget and your long-term satisfaction with your space. Licensed General Contractor Alex Kosley dives into the strategic decisions that maximize value in ADU and residential construction projects throughout Colorado Springs.

The episode reveals a powerful guiding principle: "splurge where you touch daily." This approach prioritizes quality for elements you interact with frequently—like faucets, cabinet hardware, and flooring—while finding sensible savings elsewhere. Alex explains why Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring offers the perfect balance of durability and budget-friendliness, particularly for Colorado's climate challenges. You'll discover why investing in high-quality paint can save thousands over a decade, doubling the time between repainting cycles.

Looking to cut costs without cutting corners? Alex identifies strategic opportunities for savings, from light fixtures to closet systems to backsplash selections. Perhaps most surprisingly, the biggest cost factor might not be materials at all—it's design complexity. The episode reveals how simple rectangular structures with minimal roof planes dramatically reduce construction expenses before material selection even begins.

For Colorado homeowners specifically, Alex shares climate-adapted material recommendations that protect against hail, intense sun exposure, and freeze-thaw cycles. The conversation also touches on StreamHome Construction's unique selection process that empowers clients with real-time budget tracking as they make material choices.

Whether you're planning an ADU, renovation, or curious about construction best practices, this episode delivers practical wisdom that balances immediate budget concerns with long-term value. Ready to apply these insights to your project? Visit our website at www.Yourstreamhome.com or call us at 719-644-6777 for a free consultation.

To learn more about StreamHome Construction visit:
https://www.YourStreamHome.com
StreamHome Construction
719-644-6777

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to the Stream Home Construction Podcast,
where we take your project fromconception to completion.
Hosted by Licensed GeneralContractor Alex Kozley, we cover
everything from accessorydwelling units to commercial
construction in the greaterColorado Springs area.
Whether you're dreaming of anew ADU, planning an office
upgrade or tackling a majorrenovation project, we've got

(00:26):
the expertise to guide youthrough it.
Let's get building.

Speaker 2 (00:37):
Not every part of your building needs a big price
tag.
Here's where it makes sense toinvest and where you can cut
costs smartly withoutsacrificing quality.
Welcome back everyone, tonyHill's co-host producer, back in
the studio with licensedgeneral contractor Alex Cozley.
Alex, how's it going?

Speaker 3 (00:57):
I'm doing great.
How are you doing today?

Speaker 2 (00:59):
Awesome, it's good to see you again.
Alex, tell us what materialsare worth splurging on and where
can I save money withoutregrets.

Speaker 3 (01:10):
Tony, this is a great question, something that we
guide our clients through everyday and we really have found
smart material choices can makeall the difference in your
long-term return and in yourdaily enjoyment of your ADU.
So kind of our first rule welike to use is splurge where you
touch and use daily.
So if it's something you'regoing to interact with, often
don't go cheap.
For example, faucets andcabinet hardware.

(01:32):
You touch them all the time andcheap ones just feel flimsy.
A good faucet upgrades a smallprice for long-term durability
and experience.
Just one example there Inregards to flooring, we almost
always recommend LVP or luxuryvinyl plank Water resistant,
scratch resistant and budgetfriendly.
You see it very commonly in newconstruction today.
Hardwood is beautiful but notideal for our slab built ADUs

(01:56):
and in our climate or our budgettargets.
It typically is a little moreexpensive, but you get that same
look with the LVP material andsome of the added benefits as
well with that.
Regarding countertops, solidsurface is an option that many
of our clients choose as analternative to quartz or granite
.
Still looks nice, looks similarto a solid stone, but it's low

(02:18):
maintenance and it's really easyto repair while still feeling
high end.
So this is a great value add,especially for long-term or
mid-term rentals, wheredurability really matters.
One recommendation we have withpaint is don't skimp on paint.
A high-quality paint job withthe right prep can last 10 years
.
Exterior paint in our climate,even through sun, hail and
freeze thaw cycles that'sserious ROI.

(02:41):
But you could save a fewhundred dollars in paint
material and have to repaintevery five years instead of 10,
just not worth it.
So buy a high quality paint.
We only use high quality paintso that we don't give someone a
structure that they're going tohave to make repairs on the
paint within the first few years.
Another area is to save withoutany regrets.

(03:01):
Saving money doesn't meancutting corners, and we're
always looking out for ourclients.
We always want to balancewhat's the best value.
We don't want to blow budgetsout of the water, but we don't
want people to be feeling likethey didn't quite get what they
wanted something quality.
In regards to light fixtures,these are style pieces.
Trends change fast.
There's great looking optionsat affordable prices.

(03:21):
You can spend a bunch of moneyon lighting fixtures, but you
can also spend very little moneyand it won't make a huge
difference in the end result.
One thing we recommend maybeget one nice piece above an
island or something, a nicependant light or chandelier, and
keep everything else relativelybasic throughout the structure.
Interior doors and closetsystems can always be upgraded

(03:42):
later.
We typically recommend forpeople looking to get, you know,
maximize ROI.
You know hollow core doors, youknow kind of basic closet
systems.
It's definitely an area you canspend a lot of money on.
Typically one area that we'reputting in something relatively
budget-friendly up front Withtile and backsplashes again we

(04:02):
like to use them in high impactareas if the client wants one.
Typically we just run afour-inch countertop
backsplashes Again we like touse them in high impact areas.
If the client wants one,typically just run a four inch
countertop backsplash thatmatches the same as the
countertop to keep costs down ina nice coherent look.
But you can use even basic tile.
Laidwell still looks great.
Tile can cost a lot of money toget tile materials.

(04:22):
Some specific types can go, youknow, 10, 20, 30, 40 plus
dollars per square foot just inmaterials.
But we found you can findalternatives around $5 a square
foot that typically have asimilar look and can get the
same effect and save hundreds orthousands of dollars.
I do want to reemphasize.
One of the best ways to savemoney on a project is before you

(04:44):
even get to the materialselections.
It's just how you design yourstructure.
One principle is just simpleshapes Rectangles are the most
cost-effective footprint designfor an ADU or any structure.
We typically want to have onlyone or two roof planes, either
like a shed roof or a gable roof, with only two planes.
As soon as you start addinglittle bump outs, you end up

(05:07):
with multiple roof planes andthat just becomes really pricey
in framing and materials andmostly in labor and expertise
required to execute.
So one of the best ways to keepa project budget friendly is to
just design the footprint of itto be rectangular and not have
bump outs and multiple rooflines from the beginning.
So I think it's worthmentioning in this conversation

(05:29):
that that's kind of one of thebiggest hidden costs that people
don't realize.
You can spend a lot of moneybefore you even start choosing
materials just by choosing adesign.
So that's something we alwayscoach our clients through and
that's why we're building ourmodel ADUs to be all rectangle.
They're all on two and fourfoot dimensions minimized waste.
We want to take all those thingsinto consideration when

(05:49):
designing a structure before weget to the material selections,
and you know keeping that simplemeans we have more money that
we can redirect from your budgettowards things that you'll
actually feel, use andappreciate.
So your insulation, siding,countertops, upgraded shingles.
On that front, we do want totalk about a little bit of some
weather resistance, but kind ofspecific to our Colorado climate

(06:11):
, and what kind of things areworth investing in to help
protect from hailstorms, a lotof sunshine and then our snow
and freeze and thaw cycles.
So investing in things likeclass four shingles, this is
only a few hundred dollars extraon a whole project but can save
you money on insurance.
You'll get typically areduction on your insurance
premium and it's going to lastlonger and be more resistant to

(06:34):
hail, so you're going to haveless insurance claims.
We typically recommend LP SmartSiding with a good coat of
quality paint.
It's a budget-friendly materialwith a good warranty, durable,
looks great.
But also another item fromHardy manufacturer could be
pre-colored fiber cement.

(06:55):
This is definitely like apremium kind of upgrade, but the
warranty on these is 15 yearsagainst any fading.
So you know you might spendsome more up front and that's
one thing we always want to.
You know, talk our clientsthrough as well.
You may pay more up front, butyou're going to pay less over 10
, 20 years when making certainchoices.
So stucco or this pre-coloredcement board siding is one way

(07:18):
to spend some more up front, butyou're going to reduce your
long-term costs by making thosekinds of decisions.
So sort of a rabbit trail.
But while we're just kind oftalking about spending money and
finishing your ADU structure, Ijust want to talk about
furniture for a furnishedmidterm rental or a short-term
rental.
Remember durability matters.
We don't recommend buying a$200 bunk bed.

(07:40):
If you're going to have ashort-term rental and there's
going to be four kids climbingall over it every day, you're
going to need to replace thatthing every few weeks, or repair
it at least.
So definitely recommend gettingsome furniture that's solid
wood.
It's going to last a lot longer.
And also, just think aboutcolors and things like that.
Don't buy a white couch foryour short-term rental or
mid-term rental.
Another thing I want to mentionwhen talking about materials and

(08:02):
budgets.
One of the things that ourclients at Stream Home
Construction love most is ourselection process, and we give
each client a table with everyselection that needs to be made
on the project and we also givethem an allowance.
So we say, yep, your projectprice is X if you spend these
allowances.
Now the client can in real timemake those changes and choose a
new material and update thetracker and they will tell them

(08:23):
like what the effect on thebottom line of their project is
right there.
So that way it's just reallyclear.
You know, when you're making abunch of decisions at once,
what's the aggregate effect ofall these decisions.
If I upgrade this and upgradethat, how much is that going to
cost?
And then they can choose tomaybe downgrade a couple other
materials to keep their projecton budget.
So we do like that and ourclients love that tool so that

(08:46):
they can really know what eachof their decision, how it
affects their bottom line.
Yeah, so this tool, you know,customizable and really empowers
our clients to ensure theyspend money where it matters
most to them.
So really, to sum it up, Ihaven't kind of covered a broad
range of topics here.
But we really recommend asplurge on flooring, faucets,
paint, insulation, roofing,anything that's really subject

(09:09):
to the climate and anything thatyou're going to be touching
regularly.
And then we recommend saving onflashier aesthetic choices,
anything that's easy to upgradelater as well and that could be
an accent wall, could belighting fixtures, that kind of
thing.
Designing smart is really oneof the best ways to keep project
budgets in check.
That's simple shapes and cleanroof lines and then so

(09:33):
essentially, yeah, we just wantto make sure our clients know
the full range of options andwhat each of those choices is
going to have an effect on, andwe love walking people through
each of those choices in thelong-term kind of cost-benefit
ratios.
You spend a little bit moreupfront to save some money.
In the long run you want tospend less upfront and plan to
replace some things down theroad in a few years those kinds

(09:54):
of conversations we love havingwith our clients to make sure
they're really getting the bestvalue from their ADU.

Speaker 2 (10:01):
Okay, well, thanks for joining us today, alex.
We look forward to hearing morefrom you in the next episode.
Have a great day.

Speaker 3 (10:09):
You too.
Thanks, tony, see you next time.

Speaker 1 (10:15):
That's a wrap for this episode of the stream home
construction podcast.
Ready to bring your vision tolife?
Snag a free onsite consultationby visiting our website at
wwwyourstreamhomecom, or call ortext us at 719-644-6777.

(10:36):
Until next time, let's keepbuilding your residential and
commercial dream in the greaterColorado Springs area.
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