Another thing. You'd think that people would buy a premium for new builds specifically designed to be easier to maintain right ?
Wrong. Exactly the people who buy new builds (in the UK, I suspect the US is very different) are the people who dream of never having to add or change things in their house. So they don't really care that the design makes it easy for them to run some extra cables or pipes at a later date.
I would pay a premium for inbuilt trunking and ports for every room, and for differing types of cable. In fact it is third on my list for when I get round to building my own home. I rewire every house I buy (well, not rewire all the mains, just the ones that are crap - which in a Barratt/Wimpey/Insertnamehere home is still a few) for power, network and audio. It infuriates me that the builders can't justify the tiny extra outlay to run cheap trunking. Gaaah!
I try and avoid noggins too - they are just a pain, however drilling a hole at the top of a wall, one at the bottom and then judicious use of a plumb bob can work.
Otherwise, as I'm sure I posted before, a jigsaw has served me in good stead in the past. Leaves a fair old notch to be plastered, but damn good fun.
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