My husband  I are very handy people. You need to have some basic carpentry skills to assemble this playhouse. There are A LOT of components! Instructions are illustrations only...not written instructions. Take advantage of the “helpline” phone number provided in the assembly guide. Prior to assembly, we constructed an 10x10 raised cedar platform to serve as a deck base for the playhouse. We spent 2 weekends assembling the playhouse. Be very careful handling some of the components. The wood is not very thick. The finished playhouse is plenty large enough for both of our grandchildren to play in at the same time. It’s also tall enough for me to stand up in...I’m 5’3”.