May 17, 2025 • 25 mins
It’s an all-calls weekend on Home with Dean Sharp! Dean answers your home-related questions live, offering expert advice with his signature clarity and charm. In this episode, he discusses estimated price per square foot in Wrightwood, CA, dives deeper into square footage concerns with a caller, and shares tips on how to properly shut and secure wet paint for future use.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp The
House Whisper on demand on the iHeart Radio app AM
I AM six forty live streaming and HD everywhere on
the iHeart Radio app. Welcome Home. I am Dean Sharp
(00:20):
the House Whisper. I design custom homes, I build them too,
and I am your guide to better understanding that place
where you live. Every weekend Saturday mornings from six to
eight Pacific time, Sunday mornings nine to noon Pacific time.
Today on the show, as per our usual custom, it
(00:41):
is an all calls Saturday morning. We're just taking your
calls this morning, and it's something that I love. I
have grown to love it so much over the years
that we've decided to typically make Saturday mornings nothing but calls,
and it has it turned out to be a wonderful
time that we spend together. Let me give you the number.
(01:03):
The phone lines are open right now. Eight three three two.
Ask Dean eight three three the numeral two Ask Dean
eight three three two. Ask Dean. It's just that simple.
You get to set the agenda for today's show. That's
what's so wonderful about taking calls. Anything you want to
talk about regarding your home.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
You have a.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Big architectural design question. Oh, I'm so ready for it.
You got a leaky toilet, I'm ready for that too.
And how about just anything in between construction design DIY,
anything from property line to property line, from the ground
to the sky about your home. Let's talk about that today.
Whatever's got you scratch in your head? Eight three three
(01:48):
two ask Dean, let me introduce our awesome team. As
per usual, Sam is on the board. Good morning, dam
Good morning Dean. How you doing. I'm good. I'm good.
I'm doing well. How are you. You seem well rested
and ready to go?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
I am.
Speaker 3 (02:06):
I've been really valuing the benefits of getting better sleep recently.
I think I'm getting old. I just turned forty six,
and I feel like I hit a brick wall forty six.
You're ancient, I know. Oh, I'm just kidding. You're young.
You're young.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
You're a young man in the prime of his life
on Saturday mornings. Tell that to my left knee. I know, right,
those things they don't heal up the way they used to.
Another young man in the prime of his life. Producer
Richie not near a microphone. No all right. But Richie
(02:45):
is on the board. He is taking your calls. He
is awesome in every way, imaginable, Golden Mic Award winning Richie.
He is there. He will tell you everything you need
to know. You'll pop you into the queue and then
you and I we can put our heads together and
talk about whatever is going on with your home. So
Richie is taking calls right now. Eight three three two
(03:07):
ask Dean. Calls are always light, first thing in the morning.
So now is your chance. If you've never had a
chance to get in and get on the air, now
is your best chance possible. Give us a call. And
there's my buddy. Eileen Gonzales at the news desk. Good morning, Eileen, Good.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Morning, y'all. Are making me feel old today?
Speaker 1 (03:27):
Why is that Aileen.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Calling this forty six year old young man old?
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Well, you're you're what you're at thirty three?
Speaker 4 (03:40):
I'm mentally probably probably my twenties.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Mentally, there you go, so am I think? I think,
although I would say I'm doing you couldn't pay me
to go back to my twenties. Mentally.
Speaker 4 (03:55):
Well, I'm feeling about eighty right now, but are you physically?
Speaker 2 (04:00):
I'm a little tired today.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
What's the tea of choice this morning?
Speaker 2 (04:03):
Problem? I haven't had any tea yet.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Oh wow, Yeah, Eileen is the mistress of tea on Saturday.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Mistress of tea.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
He guides us through all of the teas that are
available to to, you know, to soothe and or excite
the body on any given morning. So basically I look
to Eileen to tell us what tea is the right
tea for today? And you haven't had any, so we're
gonna have to give you a dance to you know,
poor cup.
Speaker 4 (04:33):
That makes me sound like an eighty year old english woman. No, well,
you know what, the mistress of tea. Everybody in the
UK young and old. They all drink tea, so don't
don't worry about it.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
All right, we're good.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
They all sound older than they really are. Any that's
just the way it goes. Sitting across the table from me,
another young lady, my better half, my design partner, turner
Mike On. Oh, that was in its spotty the it's
(05:06):
for some reason we're cutting in and out on our
headphones today, things for cutting in and out. But I
don't think that was a spotty elephant. I think that
elephant just did I think she did her whole thing
right there. Anyway, my best friend in all the world. Uh,
and the reason I keep getting up in the morning.
Tina is here.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Oh, welcome home.
Speaker 5 (05:26):
How you doing?
Speaker 2 (05:26):
I'm good?
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Yeah, yeah, you've seen a little low e today. No,
are you just quiet? You need your tea?
Speaker 2 (05:33):
I need my coffee.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
You need coffee.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
I don't need coffee. I just love coffee.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
You do, so do I we're Are we coffee holocks? No,
because if we go without it, we don't go through withdrawals. Yeah,
I don't get We just enjoy coffee. Yeah, we're fortunate
that way, a fine coffee. We actually will drink a
coffee in the evening to relax and fall asleep.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
It's true.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Isn't that weird?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
All right?
Speaker 1 (05:58):
We should dive into the show, shall we. When we
come back, we will go to the phones. There's still
room on the board for you, though. There really is
the number to reach me eight three three two Ask
Dean eight three to three to ask Dean your home
with Dean Sharp. The house whisper Heyfi Sharp, the house
whisper hey. It doesn't matter whether your condo, cottage, or
(06:22):
castle is your home. I'm here to help you take
it to the next level. That's one of the things
we love to do here on the program. It's one
of the unique things about our show. It's not just
home improvement talk. It is encouraging you that architecture, great architecture,
great home building, custom home building. It's for everybody. It's
(06:45):
for anybody or anyone who wants to step up and say,
you know what, I want to customize this place. I
want it to be me. I wanted to fit me.
It's all about tailoring. It's not even about the expense
of the material. It's about tailoring your home so that
it fits you like a finely tailored piece of clothing.
(07:06):
I tell people all the time that, you know, if
you had the choice of buying a really let's say,
what's an expensive fabric like silk, like an incredibly expensive
silk shirt off the rack or blouse off the rack somewhere,
or I just hand you a bolt of just simple
(07:28):
old cotton. But we are going to take that cotton
and we're gonna check every measurement on you, and we're
gonna tailor that cotton to become a shirt that is
so you, that is so designed for you. You know,
nine out of ten people they say, I'll take the
cotton shirt, and because they understand what it feels like
(07:49):
to walk around in something that is just made to
fit right, and that's what a custom home is all about.
And inch by inch, layer by layer, we help you
do that right here on the program every weekend, Saturday
mornings six to eight Sunday mornings nine to noon Pacific time.
(08:10):
By the way, we run a little late in the
last break, so I'm going to push off taking calls
until next segment here, but I wanted to let our
team know and everybody else know. I guys, you guys,
listen up here, Sam, Eileen Ritchie?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Did you know?
Speaker 1 (08:25):
Did you know as of the latest Nielsen ratings that
we are the number one radio show in Los Angeles
on Saturday mornings in the I mean radio period number
one right now?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Nice?
Speaker 1 (08:43):
That's really cool? Anybody? Okay? Sam?
Speaker 5 (08:46):
Got you?
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Eileen? Did you know that?
Speaker 2 (08:49):
I did not know that? That's really cool?
Speaker 1 (08:51):
I didn't either. I didn't either, you know, And I'm
sure we're going to be, you know, off kicked off
the top of the hill soon by somebody. But I'm
just saying, if you're up at six to eight on
a Saturday morning in LA. The odds are if you're
listening to the radio, you're listening to us just just
talk and talk, and you're listening to the rooster. And
(09:14):
I think people just enjoy what we have to offer
here because we're all in a good mood and we're
bringing the love and we're bringing the help to the home.
So anyway, I just wanted to congratulate you guys that
we're all part of something that right now is doing
really well here in southern California, and that was our goal.
Sammy the beagle is certainly happy about it. He's just
(09:36):
staring at me, like, did you feed me this morning?
I really don't care about anything else. So anyway, all right, y'all,
we're going to the phones. When we return. I promise
you the number to reach me eight three three two.
Ask Dean eight three three the numeral too. Ask Dean
your Home with Dean Sharp the house Whisper.
Speaker 5 (09:57):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
Hey, Hi, am six forty Live dreaming everywhere on the iHeartRadio.
App Ean Sharp of the House whisper here with you
this morning? Talking all things your home, and as is
our custom on Saturday mornings, we're just taking calls. The
number to reach me eight three three two. Ask Dean
eight three three the numeral to ask Dean. We are
(10:28):
live right here in southern California on this lovely spring
Saturday morning. Let's go to the phones. I want to
talk to David. Hey, David, welcome home.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
A good morning. Dean. Wondering if you could kind of
give me an idea of what I should expect to
pay per square foot to build a new house. I
own the land, looking at about twenty two hundred square feet,
four bedroom, two and a half bath, ranch style, nothing
super high end, just a nice house.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Okay, uh here in southern California.
Speaker 5 (11:03):
Uh yeah, I've got I've got land up in right
Wood and uh uh yeah, looking to put something up.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
Yeah, right Rightwood's a beautiful, beautiful area right there, just
a little tucked away hidden mountain oasis.
Speaker 5 (11:18):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Any any strange conditions in terms of the land itself.
Is it a pretty flat lot? Is it a sloped lot?
Are you on the hillside?
Speaker 5 (11:30):
No, it's it's it's pretty flat. It'd be a little
bit of grading.
Speaker 6 (11:34):
Uh.
Speaker 5 (11:34):
Water and power already exist accessible with little little to
no not a lot to do to get to the
water and power exists on the property. It's a little
bit of grading.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
I think, are you playing on doing any of this yourself?
Or is this hired out to a general contractor? Or
are you gonna do it kind of owner builder and
run the subs yourself? What's the plan?
Speaker 5 (11:58):
No? No, I would have a company contractor come in.
I wish, I wish I had the knowledge you had
that I could do a few things myself, but it
would it would be through a contractor.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
Okay, Well, I mean, okay, So here's the thing, you know,
I can give you a range. I give you a range.
Set these days, things are still hovering on average. On average,
things are still hovering around the low three hundred dollars
per square foot for own building here in southern California.
(12:30):
Some people say, some people claim that you can get
it done between two and four hundred dollars a square foot.
But I don't find anybody building for two hundred in
the two hundred dollars a square foot range. I don't
find anybody realistically building in that range. That isn't number one.
Foregoing the general contractor, and they're still having people do
(12:54):
it other than them, but they're playing the role of
general contractor. So you're eliminating that fee, you know that
that profit level there from the general contractor, you're also
inheriting a lot of a lot of liability and a
lot of headaches along the way. And as far as
whether it goes above three hundred dollars a square foot,
(13:17):
and I would say probably like three twenty five three
point fifty is probably realistic as far as planning. But
really it's not the shell of the home that that
that brings that cost in. It's really the finishes. And
you know, I have to tell everybody this all the time.
It's the finishes. And how significant are the finishes when
(13:41):
it comes to pricing a home. Well, I'll put it
this way. We design a lot of luxury estate homes,
and yes, because of unique structure and or uh, you know,
structural requirements, because we're doing something bazz are with the
shell of the home, the actual the actual you know,
(14:04):
studs or ceilings or rooflines of a home. Then the
base cost of the shell can go up significantly based
on that. But even with those considerations aside, most luxury
homes in terms of shell run roughly the same as
(14:25):
most you know, average middle of the road homes run
in terms of shell. It is the finishes that make
the difference. And that's why I'm underscoring that it's really
the finishes that end up making the difference. I mean,
we can build for well over one thousand dollars per
square foot depending on how luxurious finishes end up being
(14:46):
in a home. Which is why I am so when
it comes to mainstream middle class homeowners, why I am
so big on design and saying to you guys that
design matters most because it does because I've seen again
and again finishes being added on to a home and
(15:06):
added and added and added and added like layers of
makeup on trying to make somebody look thirty years younger,
and it's never going to happen. So the point is,
it is the design of the home. It's the flow
of the home that ultimately ends up soothing and treating
(15:27):
you right, and then the finishes are We're not putting
as much pressure on the finishes. I always say, you
design a home well and put that effort in ahead
of time, and that is ninety percent of the game.
It really is. And at that point, the last ten
percent are the materials that you're going to use, and
(15:47):
you can use paper or you can use platinum, and
you will still get the overall effect if you're designing
that home well. Now, I don't want you to use
cheap materials, as in substandard materials. But the point is
a well design home doesn't have to lean so heavily
on those finished materials because it's all an average. Anywhere.
You're going to be spending more per square foot on
(16:07):
certain rooms. You know, bathrooms and kitchens are the most
expensive rooms in the home. Those are easy to spend
one thousand dollars per square foot in. And then you've
got other rooms like bedrooms and living rooms and dining rooms.
You can label them whatever you want, but they are
essentially empty shells. They're just empty boxes that you're going
(16:31):
to put furniture inside. And those rooms are going to
be built for way less than two hundred dollars a
square foot. So it's the average of the home overall.
And that's why I want you to understand that the
average is about three twenty five three point fifty right now,
I would say, generally speaking, per square foot, But that's
(16:51):
an average, that's not every square foot those are. That's
taking the really low square foot rooms and adding those.
So that's that's the role it finishes play. And when
when most folks are building themselves a home, they actually
find it hard sometimes to put you know, tap the
brakes on the finishes. You think, well, I'm starting out
(17:13):
with this finish, but then you're like, I wonder if
should we upgrade the roof tile, And there's nothing wrong
with that. I just want you to understand the temptation
to do that as you go, and before you know it,
you're you're starting to raise the price.
Speaker 5 (17:26):
Okay, very good, Dean. So about three to three fifty,
and that includes if I own the land.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Yes, yeah, now that's just the build just the build yeah.
Speaker 5 (17:35):
Just the build up. Very good, Very good, Dean. Thank
you for your time.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Have a good day, David, you too, Thanks for the question,
my friend, and good luck on that home. Rightwood's a beautiful,
beautiful little mountain town here. Not a lot of people
realize that right Wood is a lot more accessible than
places like Big Bear and Arrowhead, but without climbing all
the way up the mountain the same way, it's just
(17:58):
like right around the corner the pass of the fifteen
there and it's lovely snow trees and just a we've
done some design consult up there and it's a it's
a beautiful place. All right, more of your calls when
we return. There is room on the board for you.
It's kind of a sleepy callar morning. I'm just letting
you know. This is your official announcement that it is
(18:21):
a sleepy callar morning, which means there's room for you.
Eight three three two ask Dean eight three three the
numeral two. Ask Dean. If you don't normally get through,
or you've tried before, now it's the perfect time eight
three three to ask Dean. We'll have more of your calls.
Can't buy Dean dropped the house, whipper, welcome home. We're
(18:42):
taking calls this morning. There's room on the board for you.
The number to reach me eight three three two ask
Dean eight three three the numeral two ask Dean eight
three three to ask Dean. Let's go back to the phones.
I want to talk to Douglas. Hey, Douglas, welcome home.
Speaker 6 (19:00):
I have two questions. First question is how there's the
one shut and lock a door with wet paint.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Okay, how does one shut and lock a door with
wet paint? We don't. We don't because it's a mess.
And uh, I know if you go online there are
probably uh you're gonna find some tips and some tricks there.
They work sort of. Okay, I'll tell you the one
that I think works better than most. But the most
(19:33):
important thing to understand when it comes to a door,
and I know this is a problem for some people,
right because it's an exterior door. Paint is something that
it just needs its time to dry effectively. And so
part of the construction process is understanding when are we
going to and how are we going to address painting
(19:55):
exterior doors, you know, interior doors, don't. We don't run
through this kind of trouble because we just tell people, hey, listen,
you're not going to have the door you know on
your your bedroom for today, okay, but exterior doors it's
a point of security for a house. So you just
(20:16):
need to understand this that most paint drives within the
span of a day. Now it most paint cures over
the span of a week or so, but dry to
the touch. That's really all that we're looking for. And
as dry to the touch as possible. So most paints,
water based, water based late text paints will dry to
(20:39):
the touch in one to two hours. Oil based paints
may take six to eight hours. So you have to
time it. You have to time it right. You got
to time it in terms of, you know, access to
the house, and so these are the kinds of things
that you know, we get up early on a nice,
warm day in which you know, we know we're not
going to any rain or excessive moisture in the air,
(21:03):
and we get to that door as quickly as possible
so that we know by the end of the day
it is dry to the touch and well on its
way to curing. Net not going to be fully cured,
but well on its way, and we can get the
door hung back in its place so we can at
least close it for the night. So six to eight
hours for oil based paints, one to two hours for
(21:24):
latex paints. Being dry to the touch curing that's a
whole nother issue. Now, a couple of tricks with an
exterior door. One, make sure that you remove the weather
stripping the weather stripping bulbs around the edge of that
exterior door so that when you do close it and
secure it at night, close it carefully without it touching
(21:47):
the jam, and throw the dead bolt on it so
that it'll hold it there. And the door really shouldn't
be If the door is trimmed properly, it shouldn't actually
be making any contact with the jam. Whatso, however, take
off the door, shoe off the bottom, and so on.
If your door is touching wood to wood when it's closed,
(22:10):
then before you paint it, it needs a little sanding,
a little planing, a little trimming. That's the sign of
a door that shouldn't be in the condition that it's in.
No door should have any contact with the jam on
any side of it, if it's been trimmed properly. So
(22:31):
we paint the door, we let it dry, it's you know,
for a few hours, and then we rehang it. And
rehanging it without the weather stripping should essentially allow it
to sit there without making contact with the jam. If
there's any worry about that, you can rub a little
petroleum jelly on the jam side so that in case
there's a contact that it doesn't stick and pull overnight.
(22:55):
But that's really kind of a last ditch effort. I
for to simply evaluate the door ahead of time and
make sure it's not touching on any side whatsoever.
Speaker 6 (23:06):
Douglas No second question. If I provide a cane lock
on the door, and I mean a cane bolt cane
bolt down into a a stone tile floor, should I
provide new blocking underneath the tile or can the boat
(23:31):
just go into the stone floor? Stone tile floor?
Speaker 5 (23:36):
Oh?
Speaker 1 (23:36):
I see what you're saying. Do you need blocking underneath now?
You know? I mean as far as a cane bolt
is concerned, generally speaking, will just notch down into the tile.
It really has to do with how thick the tile
is and how thick the mortar bed is. But generally speaking,
(23:57):
you could make a drill a hole out into the
tile very carefully. A lot of good can bowlts have
an actual strike plate down there. The strike plate does
more good than even the tile itself to protect the
tile from the edge of the can bowlt. Generally speaking,
we don't recommend putting a can bolt directly up against
tile because even if it gets a little bit of
(24:19):
pressure on it left and right, you know, you always
run the chance of chipping and or cracking that tile.
So reinforcing the edge with a strike plate down there
on the floor is always a good idea if you're
going to throw the can bolt pass the tile down
into the floor sheathing. Yeah, you may want to put
a block underneath it so that it's digging into solid
(24:41):
wood and again putting the pressure off the tile. Tile floors,
stone floors very very strong compressively. They're not very strong laterally,
and so getting that side pressure on them can cause
cracking and chipping that we want to generally avoid. Douglas,
Thanks for your question, my friend, appreciate the call. A
(25:03):
lot of people have thought about that before, like, hmm,
how do I paint my exterior doors and still seal
the house up by the end of the night. The
answer at the end of the day is number one,
the doors trim properly, and number two timing on the
painted early in the day on a nice warm day.
It should be dry to the touch by midday and
(25:25):
well on its way to curing by the time you
put it back at night. But let it cure for
several days before you put too much stress on it.
All right, y'all, when we return, more of your calls
your home with dean sharp the house whisper on KFI
you're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty
KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp The
House Whisper on demand on the iHeart Radio app AM
I AM six forty live streaming and HD everywhere on
the iHeart Radio app. Welcome Home. I am Dean Sharp
(00:20):
the House Whisper. I design custom homes, I build them too,
and I am your guide to better understanding that place
where you live. Every weekend Saturday mornings from six to
eight Pacific time, Sunday mornings nine to noon Pacific time.
Today on the show, as per our usual custom, it
(00:41):
is an all calls Saturday morning. We're just taking your
calls this morning, and it's something that I love. I
have grown to love it so much over the years
that we've decided to typically make Saturday mornings nothing but calls,
and it has it turned out to be a wonderful
time that we spend together. Let me give you the number.
(01:03):
The phone lines are open right now. Eight three three two.
Ask Dean eight three three the numeral two Ask Dean
eight three three two. Ask Dean. It's just that simple.
You get to set the agenda for today's show. That's
what's so wonderful about taking calls. Anything you want to
talk about regarding your home.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
You have a.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Big architectural design question. Oh, I'm so ready for it.
You got a leaky toilet, I'm ready for that too.
And how about just anything in between construction design DIY,
anything from property line to property line, from the ground
to the sky about your home. Let's talk about that today.
Whatever's got you scratch in your head? Eight three three
(01:48):
two ask Dean, let me introduce our awesome team. As
per usual, Sam is on the board. Good morning, dam
Good morning Dean. How you doing. I'm good. I'm good.
I'm doing well. How are you. You seem well rested
and ready to go?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
I am.
Speaker 3 (02:06):
I've been really valuing the benefits of getting better sleep recently.
I think I'm getting old. I just turned forty six,
and I feel like I hit a brick wall forty six.
You're ancient, I know. Oh, I'm just kidding. You're young.
You're young.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
You're a young man in the prime of his life
on Saturday mornings. Tell that to my left knee. I know, right,
those things they don't heal up the way they used to.
Another young man in the prime of his life. Producer
Richie not near a microphone. No all right. But Richie
(02:45):
is on the board. He is taking your calls. He
is awesome in every way, imaginable, Golden Mic Award winning Richie.
He is there. He will tell you everything you need
to know. You'll pop you into the queue and then
you and I we can put our heads together and
talk about whatever is going on with your home. So
Richie is taking calls right now. Eight three three two
(03:07):
ask Dean. Calls are always light, first thing in the morning.
So now is your chance. If you've never had a
chance to get in and get on the air, now
is your best chance possible. Give us a call. And
there's my buddy. Eileen Gonzales at the news desk. Good morning, Eileen, Good.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Morning, y'all. Are making me feel old today?
Speaker 1 (03:27):
Why is that Aileen.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Calling this forty six year old young man old?
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Well, you're you're what you're at thirty three?
Speaker 4 (03:40):
I'm mentally probably probably my twenties.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Mentally, there you go, so am I think? I think,
although I would say I'm doing you couldn't pay me
to go back to my twenties. Mentally.
Speaker 4 (03:55):
Well, I'm feeling about eighty right now, but are you physically?
Speaker 2 (04:00):
I'm a little tired today.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
What's the tea of choice this morning?
Speaker 2 (04:03):
Problem? I haven't had any tea yet.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Oh wow, Yeah, Eileen is the mistress of tea on Saturday.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Mistress of tea.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
He guides us through all of the teas that are
available to to, you know, to soothe and or excite
the body on any given morning. So basically I look
to Eileen to tell us what tea is the right
tea for today? And you haven't had any, so we're
gonna have to give you a dance to you know,
poor cup.
Speaker 4 (04:33):
That makes me sound like an eighty year old english woman. No, well,
you know what, the mistress of tea. Everybody in the
UK young and old. They all drink tea, so don't
don't worry about it.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
All right, we're good.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
They all sound older than they really are. Any that's
just the way it goes. Sitting across the table from me,
another young lady, my better half, my design partner, turner
Mike On. Oh, that was in its spotty the it's
(05:06):
for some reason we're cutting in and out on our
headphones today, things for cutting in and out. But I
don't think that was a spotty elephant. I think that
elephant just did I think she did her whole thing
right there. Anyway, my best friend in all the world. Uh,
and the reason I keep getting up in the morning.
Tina is here.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Oh, welcome home.
Speaker 5 (05:26):
How you doing?
Speaker 2 (05:26):
I'm good?
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Yeah, yeah, you've seen a little low e today. No,
are you just quiet? You need your tea?
Speaker 2 (05:33):
I need my coffee.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
You need coffee.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
I don't need coffee. I just love coffee.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
You do, so do I we're Are we coffee holocks? No,
because if we go without it, we don't go through withdrawals. Yeah,
I don't get We just enjoy coffee. Yeah, we're fortunate
that way, a fine coffee. We actually will drink a
coffee in the evening to relax and fall asleep.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
It's true.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Isn't that weird?
Speaker 2 (05:58):
All right?
Speaker 1 (05:58):
We should dive into the show, shall we. When we
come back, we will go to the phones. There's still
room on the board for you, though. There really is
the number to reach me eight three three two Ask
Dean eight three to three to ask Dean your home
with Dean Sharp. The house whisper Heyfi Sharp, the house
whisper hey. It doesn't matter whether your condo, cottage, or
(06:22):
castle is your home. I'm here to help you take
it to the next level. That's one of the things
we love to do here on the program. It's one
of the unique things about our show. It's not just
home improvement talk. It is encouraging you that architecture, great architecture,
great home building, custom home building. It's for everybody. It's
(06:45):
for anybody or anyone who wants to step up and say,
you know what, I want to customize this place. I
want it to be me. I wanted to fit me.
It's all about tailoring. It's not even about the expense
of the material. It's about tailoring your home so that
it fits you like a finely tailored piece of clothing.
(07:06):
I tell people all the time that, you know, if
you had the choice of buying a really let's say,
what's an expensive fabric like silk, like an incredibly expensive
silk shirt off the rack or blouse off the rack somewhere,
or I just hand you a bolt of just simple
(07:28):
old cotton. But we are going to take that cotton
and we're gonna check every measurement on you, and we're
gonna tailor that cotton to become a shirt that is
so you, that is so designed for you. You know,
nine out of ten people they say, I'll take the
cotton shirt, and because they understand what it feels like
(07:49):
to walk around in something that is just made to
fit right, and that's what a custom home is all about.
And inch by inch, layer by layer, we help you
do that right here on the program every weekend, Saturday
mornings six to eight Sunday mornings nine to noon Pacific time.
(08:10):
By the way, we run a little late in the
last break, so I'm going to push off taking calls
until next segment here, but I wanted to let our
team know and everybody else know. I guys, you guys,
listen up here, Sam, Eileen Ritchie?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Did you know?
Speaker 1 (08:25):
Did you know as of the latest Nielsen ratings that
we are the number one radio show in Los Angeles
on Saturday mornings in the I mean radio period number
one right now?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Nice?
Speaker 1 (08:43):
That's really cool? Anybody? Okay? Sam?
Speaker 5 (08:46):
Got you?
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Eileen? Did you know that?
Speaker 2 (08:49):
I did not know that? That's really cool?
Speaker 1 (08:51):
I didn't either. I didn't either, you know, And I'm
sure we're going to be, you know, off kicked off
the top of the hill soon by somebody. But I'm
just saying, if you're up at six to eight on
a Saturday morning in LA. The odds are if you're
listening to the radio, you're listening to us just just
talk and talk, and you're listening to the rooster. And
(09:14):
I think people just enjoy what we have to offer
here because we're all in a good mood and we're
bringing the love and we're bringing the help to the home.
So anyway, I just wanted to congratulate you guys that
we're all part of something that right now is doing
really well here in southern California, and that was our goal.
Sammy the beagle is certainly happy about it. He's just
(09:36):
staring at me, like, did you feed me this morning?
I really don't care about anything else. So anyway, all right, y'all,
we're going to the phones. When we return. I promise
you the number to reach me eight three three two.
Ask Dean eight three three the numeral too. Ask Dean
your Home with Dean Sharp the house Whisper.
Speaker 5 (09:57):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
Hey, Hi, am six forty Live dreaming everywhere on the iHeartRadio.
App Ean Sharp of the House whisper here with you
this morning? Talking all things your home, and as is
our custom on Saturday mornings, we're just taking calls. The
number to reach me eight three three two. Ask Dean
eight three three the numeral to ask Dean. We are
(10:28):
live right here in southern California on this lovely spring
Saturday morning. Let's go to the phones. I want to
talk to David. Hey, David, welcome home.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
A good morning. Dean. Wondering if you could kind of
give me an idea of what I should expect to
pay per square foot to build a new house. I
own the land, looking at about twenty two hundred square feet,
four bedroom, two and a half bath, ranch style, nothing
super high end, just a nice house.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Okay, uh here in southern California.
Speaker 5 (11:03):
Uh yeah, I've got I've got land up in right
Wood and uh uh yeah, looking to put something up.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
Yeah, right Rightwood's a beautiful, beautiful area right there, just
a little tucked away hidden mountain oasis.
Speaker 5 (11:18):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Any any strange conditions in terms of the land itself.
Is it a pretty flat lot? Is it a sloped lot?
Are you on the hillside?
Speaker 5 (11:30):
No, it's it's it's pretty flat. It'd be a little
bit of grading.
Speaker 6 (11:34):
Uh.
Speaker 5 (11:34):
Water and power already exist accessible with little little to
no not a lot to do to get to the
water and power exists on the property. It's a little
bit of grading.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
I think, are you playing on doing any of this yourself?
Or is this hired out to a general contractor? Or
are you gonna do it kind of owner builder and
run the subs yourself? What's the plan?
Speaker 5 (11:58):
No? No, I would have a company contractor come in.
I wish, I wish I had the knowledge you had
that I could do a few things myself, but it
would it would be through a contractor.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
Okay, Well, I mean, okay, So here's the thing, you know,
I can give you a range. I give you a range.
Set these days, things are still hovering on average. On average,
things are still hovering around the low three hundred dollars
per square foot for own building here in southern California.
(12:30):
Some people say, some people claim that you can get
it done between two and four hundred dollars a square foot.
But I don't find anybody building for two hundred in
the two hundred dollars a square foot range. I don't
find anybody realistically building in that range. That isn't number one.
Foregoing the general contractor, and they're still having people do
(12:54):
it other than them, but they're playing the role of
general contractor. So you're eliminating that fee, you know that
that profit level there from the general contractor, you're also
inheriting a lot of a lot of liability and a
lot of headaches along the way. And as far as
whether it goes above three hundred dollars a square foot,
(13:17):
and I would say probably like three twenty five three
point fifty is probably realistic as far as planning. But
really it's not the shell of the home that that
that brings that cost in. It's really the finishes. And
you know, I have to tell everybody this all the time.
It's the finishes. And how significant are the finishes when
(13:41):
it comes to pricing a home. Well, I'll put it
this way. We design a lot of luxury estate homes,
and yes, because of unique structure and or uh, you know,
structural requirements, because we're doing something bazz are with the
shell of the home, the actual the actual you know,
(14:04):
studs or ceilings or rooflines of a home. Then the
base cost of the shell can go up significantly based
on that. But even with those considerations aside, most luxury
homes in terms of shell run roughly the same as
(14:25):
most you know, average middle of the road homes run
in terms of shell. It is the finishes that make
the difference. And that's why I'm underscoring that it's really
the finishes that end up making the difference. I mean,
we can build for well over one thousand dollars per
square foot depending on how luxurious finishes end up being
(14:46):
in a home. Which is why I am so when
it comes to mainstream middle class homeowners, why I am
so big on design and saying to you guys that
design matters most because it does because I've seen again
and again finishes being added on to a home and
(15:06):
added and added and added and added like layers of
makeup on trying to make somebody look thirty years younger,
and it's never going to happen. So the point is,
it is the design of the home. It's the flow
of the home that ultimately ends up soothing and treating
(15:27):
you right, and then the finishes are We're not putting
as much pressure on the finishes. I always say, you
design a home well and put that effort in ahead
of time, and that is ninety percent of the game.
It really is. And at that point, the last ten
percent are the materials that you're going to use, and
(15:47):
you can use paper or you can use platinum, and
you will still get the overall effect if you're designing
that home well. Now, I don't want you to use
cheap materials, as in substandard materials. But the point is
a well design home doesn't have to lean so heavily
on those finished materials because it's all an average. Anywhere.
You're going to be spending more per square foot on
(16:07):
certain rooms. You know, bathrooms and kitchens are the most
expensive rooms in the home. Those are easy to spend
one thousand dollars per square foot in. And then you've
got other rooms like bedrooms and living rooms and dining rooms.
You can label them whatever you want, but they are
essentially empty shells. They're just empty boxes that you're going
(16:31):
to put furniture inside. And those rooms are going to
be built for way less than two hundred dollars a
square foot. So it's the average of the home overall.
And that's why I want you to understand that the
average is about three twenty five three point fifty right now,
I would say, generally speaking, per square foot, But that's
(16:51):
an average, that's not every square foot those are. That's
taking the really low square foot rooms and adding those.
So that's that's the role it finishes play. And when
when most folks are building themselves a home, they actually
find it hard sometimes to put you know, tap the
brakes on the finishes. You think, well, I'm starting out
(17:13):
with this finish, but then you're like, I wonder if
should we upgrade the roof tile, And there's nothing wrong
with that. I just want you to understand the temptation
to do that as you go, and before you know it,
you're you're starting to raise the price.
Speaker 5 (17:26):
Okay, very good, Dean. So about three to three fifty,
and that includes if I own the land.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Yes, yeah, now that's just the build just the build yeah.
Speaker 5 (17:35):
Just the build up. Very good, Very good, Dean. Thank
you for your time.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Have a good day, David, you too, Thanks for the question,
my friend, and good luck on that home. Rightwood's a beautiful,
beautiful little mountain town here. Not a lot of people
realize that right Wood is a lot more accessible than
places like Big Bear and Arrowhead, but without climbing all
the way up the mountain the same way, it's just
(17:58):
like right around the corner the pass of the fifteen
there and it's lovely snow trees and just a we've
done some design consult up there and it's a it's
a beautiful place. All right, more of your calls when
we return. There is room on the board for you.
It's kind of a sleepy callar morning. I'm just letting
you know. This is your official announcement that it is
(18:21):
a sleepy callar morning, which means there's room for you.
Eight three three two ask Dean eight three three the
numeral two. Ask Dean. If you don't normally get through,
or you've tried before, now it's the perfect time eight
three three to ask Dean. We'll have more of your calls.
Can't buy Dean dropped the house, whipper, welcome home. We're
(18:42):
taking calls this morning. There's room on the board for you.
The number to reach me eight three three two ask
Dean eight three three the numeral two ask Dean eight
three three to ask Dean. Let's go back to the phones.
I want to talk to Douglas. Hey, Douglas, welcome home.
Speaker 6 (19:00):
I have two questions. First question is how there's the
one shut and lock a door with wet paint.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Okay, how does one shut and lock a door with
wet paint? We don't. We don't because it's a mess.
And uh, I know if you go online there are
probably uh you're gonna find some tips and some tricks there.
They work sort of. Okay, I'll tell you the one
that I think works better than most. But the most
(19:33):
important thing to understand when it comes to a door,
and I know this is a problem for some people,
right because it's an exterior door. Paint is something that
it just needs its time to dry effectively. And so
part of the construction process is understanding when are we
going to and how are we going to address painting
(19:55):
exterior doors, you know, interior doors, don't. We don't run
through this kind of trouble because we just tell people, hey, listen,
you're not going to have the door you know on
your your bedroom for today, okay, but exterior doors it's
a point of security for a house. So you just
(20:16):
need to understand this that most paint drives within the
span of a day. Now it most paint cures over
the span of a week or so, but dry to
the touch. That's really all that we're looking for. And
as dry to the touch as possible. So most paints,
water based, water based late text paints will dry to
(20:39):
the touch in one to two hours. Oil based paints
may take six to eight hours. So you have to
time it. You have to time it right. You got
to time it in terms of, you know, access to
the house, and so these are the kinds of things
that you know, we get up early on a nice,
warm day in which you know, we know we're not
going to any rain or excessive moisture in the air,
(21:03):
and we get to that door as quickly as possible
so that we know by the end of the day
it is dry to the touch and well on its
way to curing. Net not going to be fully cured,
but well on its way, and we can get the
door hung back in its place so we can at
least close it for the night. So six to eight
hours for oil based paints, one to two hours for
(21:24):
latex paints. Being dry to the touch curing that's a
whole nother issue. Now, a couple of tricks with an
exterior door. One, make sure that you remove the weather
stripping the weather stripping bulbs around the edge of that
exterior door so that when you do close it and
secure it at night, close it carefully without it touching
(21:47):
the jam, and throw the dead bolt on it so
that it'll hold it there. And the door really shouldn't
be If the door is trimmed properly, it shouldn't actually
be making any contact with the jam. Whatso, however, take
off the door, shoe off the bottom, and so on.
If your door is touching wood to wood when it's closed,
(22:10):
then before you paint it, it needs a little sanding,
a little planing, a little trimming. That's the sign of
a door that shouldn't be in the condition that it's in.
No door should have any contact with the jam on
any side of it, if it's been trimmed properly. So
(22:31):
we paint the door, we let it dry, it's you know,
for a few hours, and then we rehang it. And
rehanging it without the weather stripping should essentially allow it
to sit there without making contact with the jam. If
there's any worry about that, you can rub a little
petroleum jelly on the jam side so that in case
there's a contact that it doesn't stick and pull overnight.
(22:55):
But that's really kind of a last ditch effort. I
for to simply evaluate the door ahead of time and
make sure it's not touching on any side whatsoever.
Speaker 6 (23:06):
Douglas No second question. If I provide a cane lock
on the door, and I mean a cane bolt cane
bolt down into a a stone tile floor, should I
provide new blocking underneath the tile or can the boat
(23:31):
just go into the stone floor? Stone tile floor?
Speaker 5 (23:36):
Oh?
Speaker 1 (23:36):
I see what you're saying. Do you need blocking underneath now?
You know? I mean as far as a cane bolt
is concerned, generally speaking, will just notch down into the tile.
It really has to do with how thick the tile
is and how thick the mortar bed is. But generally speaking,
(23:57):
you could make a drill a hole out into the
tile very carefully. A lot of good can bowlts have
an actual strike plate down there. The strike plate does
more good than even the tile itself to protect the
tile from the edge of the can bowlt. Generally speaking,
we don't recommend putting a can bolt directly up against
tile because even if it gets a little bit of
(24:19):
pressure on it left and right, you know, you always
run the chance of chipping and or cracking that tile.
So reinforcing the edge with a strike plate down there
on the floor is always a good idea if you're
going to throw the can bolt pass the tile down
into the floor sheathing. Yeah, you may want to put
a block underneath it so that it's digging into solid
(24:41):
wood and again putting the pressure off the tile. Tile floors,
stone floors very very strong compressively. They're not very strong laterally,
and so getting that side pressure on them can cause
cracking and chipping that we want to generally avoid. Douglas,
Thanks for your question, my friend, appreciate the call. A
(25:03):
lot of people have thought about that before, like, hmm,
how do I paint my exterior doors and still seal
the house up by the end of the night. The
answer at the end of the day is number one,
the doors trim properly, and number two timing on the
painted early in the day on a nice warm day.
It should be dry to the touch by midday and
(25:25):
well on its way to curing by the time you
put it back at night. But let it cure for
several days before you put too much stress on it.
All right, y'all, when we return, more of your calls
your home with dean sharp the house whisper on KFI
you're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty
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