this is very common - i have experienced this not only with my previous home but in other homes i have visited. in the house i am having built now i was determined to get the lighting and other wiring right the first time and used a lighting designer plus previous lessons learned to come up with a good plan.

i found that my builder was from the stone age when it came to lighting and light controls. he also did a horrible job of estimating the wiring and light fixture budgets - and that became one of the sour points of our build. Even though I gave him a detailed draft wiring and light plan before we signed the contract - he wound up ignoring it and assumed minimum code. when we finally got around to electrical rough in time, the electrician presented me with a 19,000 dollar upcharge estimate just to do the rough in for my plan! i was in shock. luckily i am handy and have some experience with wiring - so i wound up doing a lot of the tedious/higher cost items (like installing 87 recessed cans). we also found out late in the game that the light fixture allowance the builder established was 50% of the actual light costs - and we did not go wild with our lights (decent stuff - moderately priced).

i feel for people who are building their dream homes and get these types of whammies - and they usually occur after the contract is signed and when you are so far along in the build that only 2 choices are available: pay the piper or don't light up the house as it should be done. in many cases people cannot afford the upcharges and they put in a sub par light system.

my advise to those getting ready to build is : 1) definately generate a detailed lighting and wiring plan as part of your building plans, 2) use a lighting designer who has a lot of experience to either generate your plan or review a plan you make yourself, 3) make sure you get quotes from the electrician on the cost of wiring the house to the plan before you sign the contract, and 4) try to make the key light fixture selections early on before contract signing to make sure that the allowance your builder has established will cover the ligtht costs.

I'm guessing it's rare that lighting in a home that size would be as inadequate as you describe. Even a dimwit like myself can get the lighting figured out 80-90% of the way with only input from a GC. It's that last 10% or so of the equation that makes the noticeable difference in the look and feel of a home. I'm sure my house is well lit, but I think it lacks the subtleties that only a pro can provide that really makes it look good.