Kevin's View
Time was, whenever anyone told me they were intending to project manage a build themselves I'd tell them they had a better chance of navigating a Sinclair C5 to the moon.
A good architect-designed home will be a highly crafted one off prototype, made from tens of thousands of components from hundreds of recalcitrant suppliers, put together by indifferent labour in the wet, in a field. It will not be just like a very large DIY project.
However, I've seen enough headstrong individuals apply their spurious PR/management/IT skills to a building site, battle their way through a build and emerge scarred but smiling to know that it is possible to acquit oneself with some honour and deliver a finished building - although one that is usually compromised as a result in terms of budget, schedule or quality.
The one exception I would make is when a novice project manager has their hand held by the architect or an experienced builder (who is often perfectly capable of the job if employed as a main contractor).
My advice nowadays is don't do it unless you really, really have to. Savour the experience of being a client, use the time to ponder decisions, employ a good manager and you will probably end up with a beautiful building built on time and on budget.
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