Most states allow the owner to do all work to their house as long as it meets local code. Here in Tx if you are in a unincorporated area(outside any city limits) there are no permits or Inspections unless it's commercial or a school. Some hear that and think oh well there will be lots of crap built but it's not the case.
As to your house that's a pretty big place even with the downsize to a 1k basement. People that move here from places with basements.... They always say oh I just need a small house around 1800sqft. But when the realize they aren't getting 3600 sqft of living space they then realize that housing costs are much higher here when you consider the actual sq footage.
It's always cheaper to build one big building over two smaller ones. And making a house say 5' wider in one direction has a small impact on construction cost. Houses with lots of inside corners viewed from outside wastes lots of $. Turn that I side corner to an outside and all you add is a little foundation and roofing and adding very little to the heat load but adding lots of cheap sq footage. It's hard to beat square for efficiency of construction, usable space and building efficiency.
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