If you're thinking about buying a Best Barns building kit, this is the video for you. I will discuss the costs, considerations, and challenges involved with building one of these kit garages with no prior construction experience.

Correction at 07:52: The insulation under the concrete doesn't necessarily prevent freezing directly under the foundation. A more correct way to think about it is that the insulation creates a cushion between the concrete and the unevenly expanding/contracting soil below.

Link to the garage kit and instructions:
https://www.shedsdirect.com/best-barn...

Link to the foundation design guide:
https://www.homeinnovation.com/-/medi...

Link to an alternative foundation design guide (I did not find this one until after I built the garage):
https://www.huduser.gov/publications/...

List of Chapters/Sections
(Note that I sometimes went out of order or skipped some steps in the instructions)

00:00 Intro
00:50 Some considerations before attempting this project
01:09 Thank you to those who helped
01:25 The garage kit I chose
02:08 Costs
04:22 Pallet considerations
05:15 Foundation design
08:53 Step 1 - Assembling the rear wall frames
10:01 A possible solution to warped studs
10:34 Applying flex seal to the bottom of the stud walls
10:55 Step 3 - Assembling the door header
12:25 Step 5 - Setting the wall frames
13:01 Step 7 - Installing the 2x4 tie-plates
13:18 Step 8 - Installing the siding panels
13:48 Stair kit step 1 - Assembling the stairs
15:06 Stair kit step 2 - Assembling the stair landing
15:53 Stair kit steps 3 and 4
16:18 Anchoring the stairs and stair walls to the foundation
16:49 Overview of completed stairs
17:03 Stair kit step 9 - Assembling the stair walls
17:25 Stair kit step 10 - Installing joist headers to the stair walls
17:33 Stair kit step 5 - Installing joist headers to the garage walls
18:13 Stair kit step 6 - Installing joist hangers
18:23 Stair kit step 7 - Installing the floor joists
19:07 Fixing outward leaning of walls
20:18 Stair kit step 8 - Installing the loft flooring
20:44 Skipped or reordered steps from the stair kit
20:50 Applying flex seal to the bottom of the siding panels
21:12 Step 13 - Assembling the rear gable wall frame
22:30 Step 14 - Adding siding to the rear gable walls
23:05 Step 15 - Installing trim pieces on the rear wall
23:35 Step 16 - Installing the rear gable wall
24:22 Step 17 - Assembling and installing the front gable wall
24:34 Step 18 - Installing the 2x6 truss plates
25:12 Step 19 - Installing the side soffit blocks
25:45 Step 20 - Assembling the roof trusses
26:41 Step 21 - Installing the roof trusses
27:30 Step 23 - Installing the front gable soffit
28:15 Step 24 - Installing the roof sheathing
29:23 Step 25 - Installing the gable trim
29:48 Step 22 - Installing the side soffit panels
29:58 Roofing
31:41 Painting metal roofing trim pieces
32:09 Finishing up the roofing
32:26 Installing the greenhouse window in the loft