How do you get Sawed Logs for your house without having to pay 200gp for 20 logs? Chopping logs only gives you Firewood, so that can't be it, and I didn't find any trees around my new house to chop down in the same way that you can find clay and stone to mine around your house.

I think you have to spend your money on logs which is good because up till now you can't actually use money for something decent in the game anyway.

Activate the larger logs that the mill owner usually puts through the giant saw. I think this is how you get the wood for house construction, firewood isn't the same.

You can use the sawmills, but you have to ask the owner first. Then you can chop your own with the big saw.
Or, if you want a money sink, just go right ahead and buy 20 for 200. It's a lot cheaper doing it yourself though =P

And a lot more fun and fulfilling in the end.

How many Sawed Logs do you get for 1 log in the saw mill?

10 per log sawed

Uhh.. just sawed, like, 20 of those darn logs, but none of them showed up at my house! Did I miss a step?

So I just visited all of the lumber mills in Skyrim (according to the wiki, there are 7), and NONE of the owners will let me cut the lumber myself. This means that the ONLY way to get all of the Sawed Lumber that you need for your house is to pay a metric butt-ton for it. Unless someone has found another way?

If you complete the 'Laid to Rest' quest in Morthal and Thonnir still lives, he will allow you to use his sawmill to make Sawed Logs for free. I have not checked, but if you make other lumber-mill operators your friends as well, then they might let you do the same.