Timber framing produces a more enjoyable construction process than stick framing because it involves cutting out fewer pieces using hand tools rather than repeatedly using a noisy circular saw on identical pieces.

Timber are attached to each other in timber frames using mortise and tenon joints with pegs, engineered so that the uplift force from wind trying to blow the structure away, the lateral push of wind trying to shear and bend it, and all other stresses are calculated with precisely the right amount of wood left at each joint, and steel is added if necessary.

Modern timber frames typically use SIP (Structural Insulated Panel) panels to cover the exterior, making the entire timber frame visible and creating an aesthetic advantage.

Most of the construction industry knows how to build stick frame buildings but does not know how to build timber frame buildings, which is why subdivisions with hundreds of homes are commonly built using stick framing despite potential structural disadvantages.

Timber frames contain considerably less total wood than stick frame buildings despite having fewer individual pieces.

A timber frame building can be constructed as a series of 'bents'—cross-sectional frames spaced at regular intervals—such that four bents spaced 10 feet apart create a 40-foot building, making the entire structure derivable from a simple repeated frame.

Timber frames with external SIP panel insulation eliminate thermal bridging because the insulation is on the outside of the frame, whereas stick frames have extensive void spaces between studs (typically 16 or 23 inches) that conduct heat from inside to outside.

In timber frames with external insulation, the wood structural frame becomes part of the thermal mass of the house because the insulation is outside of it, allowing the interior wood to maintain temperature stability—remaining at 72 degrees if brought to that temperature.

Timber frame construction follows a process in which cutting of timbers takes approximately 10 days, but assembly of all timbers into the frame occurs on site in a single day, with the entire frame erected in about four hours by tipping up multiple bents sequentially.

Milling out individual pieces for stick framing would take an extraordinarily long time compared to timber frame production, which is done in modern production facilities very quickly, creating a fundamentally different production ambiance and workflow.

When a timber frame is covered with SIP panels and fire-rated drywall, and the SIP panels are attached with hundreds of screws into the timbers, the resulting structure is extraordinarily strong, hurricane-resistant, and earthquake-resistant because the system acts as two houses held together.

Timber frame buildings with SIP panels are significantly more resistant to hurricanes and tornadoes than stick frame buildings, and stick frame homes are commonly seen to be easily blown apart during extreme weather events while timber frame with SIP would not be.

A significant local advantage of timber frame construction is that all materials can come from the property owner's own lot if trees are available, with timbers milled directly on-site, resulting in a home that comes entirely from the owner's property.

In timber frame buildings with exposed wood interior, occupants have the joy and aesthetic benefit of seeing and experiencing the visible wood that has come from their own forest or property, which creates a personal and emotional connection.

Timber frame buildings provide better sound dampening (noise reduction) than stick frame buildings because timber has acoustic absorption properties whereas stick frame construction is characterized as a 'gypsum palace with lots of flat drywall surfaces' that reflects sound.

Some people do not prefer the aesthetic of exposed wood interiors and thus would not find timber framing an appropriate choice, but cathedral ceilings and wide-open spaces that timber frames enable are attractive features for others.

Pat Henan has been teaching people how to design and build their own timber frames for the past 45 years through the Shelter Institute, offering five classes per year.

Participants in Shelter Institute timber frame classes go from having no prior timber framing knowledge to becoming capable timber framers in five days, with about 20 participants per class, and leave wanting to build at their own house sites.

All methods of framing—stick framing, timber framing, straw bale, heavy steel, and concrete block—have their place in construction, with the choice depending on local factors and whether engineering specifications are met.

Stick framing evolved primarily due to economic factors, the availability or non-availability of trees, and labor pressures rather than because it is superior for actual construction purposes.