[Porsche-O-Phile]

I personally HATE design-build. It’s (IMHO) the absolute worst procurement method there is - unless you’re the contractor, then it’s a way to make lotsa money.

That said, I do mostly bigger projects, government and critical infrastructure stuff - not small residential jobs... My advice for that would be to spend a lot of time shopping around and engage a number of residential GCs - get references and take your time. There are an awful lot that talk a good game and are great salespeople / schmoozers but when push comes to shove will show their true colors - sub everything out, go cheap and not be shy about hitting you for mods. References are absolutely essential.

On the upside, I’ve seen a few residential GCs that actually were pretty fair designers and had a pretty good eye for detail and could think practically about what would be simple / easy / inexpensive to build yet still look good and actually hold up long-term too. That last one is the key... a lot of people can make something look good but not last, particularly in this day and age of throwaway everything (including building products). When we pick stuff it’s pretty tightly performance-speced with a very clear emphasis on long-term durability (because nobody in government puts any money into maintenance). So it tends to be over-designed. Residential is the other extreme - it’s 3-5 year construction if you’re lucky in a lot of cases.

Take your time, talk to people and get good, solid references. Talk with the prospective contractor and if you don’t get a good vibe, walk. Don’t succumb to pressure or slick fast-talkers. Or simply engage an architect to represent you (shameless plug). In all seriousness there are architects that love small residential jobs and do a lot of them, and will know some of the better contractors to reach out to once you’ve got a design concept worked out. They really can help you a lot.

Good luck!