That would depend on several things. Do you have another house to sell first? Do you know if you can get a loan? Are your jobs secure? Have you looked into buying one that is already built...maybe in a foreclosure? I don't think that building materials have gone up drastically and there should be an abundance of builders available. These are "trying times"....no one can tell what the future can bring.

Thanks for reply. Sorry i didnt provide addtional info. yes we currently have a house and have not tried selling yet; started to think about renting it out as there are few house rentals here. We were approved for loan a couple months ago but did not move forward at the time. Both our jobs are secure.
Building is not a "must do", its more "would like to" to get what we want and the effeciency we'd like. We've looked at tons of houses and they just dont tickle our fancy.
i know it was a pretty vauge/open ended question.
thanks
E

I would say that you could choose your own "best time." It occurs when you have 30% of the total projected cost (saved but available) + your floorplan is irrevocably finished + the materials list completed (that means ALL your product decisions are made) + a satisfactory GC or enough knowledge to make a reasonable OB.

If you are dependent on the house sale to provide the funds for the new construction, work out all your "if" plans in advance to decide what you will do ... if the house doesn't sell by the time the builder is ready to begin; or if the house does sell but long before the builder is ready to begin; or if the final price is considerably less than expected; or if it takes a year to sell; or if... any other problem that can be forethought.

No matter *when* you build there will be some materials that are more expensive than they were a year before and some materials that are less expensive than they were a year before; getting good crews is far more marketplace-driven. A turn-down in the general building economy often means a turn-up in the availability of the best workers.