I don't know much about actual building houses, never have to deal with those kind of details. Is there a rough number I can use when looking at floor plans to calculate a rough cost? We live in Virginia, and I already own the land with well and septic. I am trying to figure actual build cost of the house. Any info would be great, Thank you, Blair



P.S. > this is my example of what I'm looking for.......


$35.00 per finished sq. ft., 2,450 @ $35 sq.ft. = $86,000 roughly.

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 28-Oct-02 AT 10:01 PM (EST)]It's been 14 years since we built. That alone makes the price go up. Myself and 1 other more knowledgeable guy did all the carpentry work. At that time in 1988 it worked out to $45 per foot. That was including his labor costs but not paying me a dime. Along with my wife who stained every piece of siding. Some on both sides where we used it on the house. Just a wild guess at todays prices and figuring you would have it all done by a contractor, I would have to guess at 60-75 per sq.ft. I might be on the low side depending on how extravgant you go. The more you do can help and even becoming the general contractor can save about 10%. Be prepared if you do for headaches and lots of chasing around. When it is done thou, you will be proud of your accomplisement?. Good luck.

 

In Kansas, it can vary from $90 to over $120 per square foot.

 

the devil is in the details, in this case the "devil" is $$$. If I remember correctly when I built my house ( I contracted and did a lot of the work myself) approx 1/3 of total cost was spent getting "dried in" the remaining 2/3 came after that. Depending on how expensive your taste run...$65-$100 / sq. ft.
Brian A

 

Around here, (SC), we figure $75-80.00 per sq. foot for site built. Brian mentioned the devil in the details as well. Fancy = $. If you're interested in saving money now, go for some things that are easily upgraded later. Lighting fixtures, plumbing fixtures,porches and decks, etc. That's what my wife and I did. However, don't skimp on the things not easily changed-heating and cooling, floor plan, etc. Just bite the bullet on those and pay for them. You wont be happy if you compromised the important things.

Hope this helps!

Chuck

 

I built new in 2000. A 4000 sq ft house w/ 3000 sq ft finished. The figures from $75.00 up are accurate. I don't know about the devil, but I can tell you add 25% to the final figure. Over budget is better than under budget. Use the excess for new furniture and don't forget the landscape. It can be expensive.

It also depends on what kind of quality you want. Granite counter tops run $100 per ft. If you go around the sink, you pay for the granite first, then cut it out, and use what you cut out for a cutting board. I built 2 fireplaces made from flatstone off the property, the chimney goes 20' high faced with stone, the other just a 4' square but dry stacked, and it cost $11,000.00 complete. This whole deal really depends upon what kind of quality you are after.

For instance, I spent $4,000.00 on light fixtures because I did not want the chinsey ones provided by the electrician. I did the same with the plumbing fixtures, spent $5000.00 there and had them all delivered for installation by the plumber.

There are two ways to go with this. You can hire one general contractor, making him responsible for the entire project, or you can act as your own general contractor. You take a whole lot more responsibility by doing this, but you can save a whole lot of money by getting the best price on all of the sub contractors. It is'nt easy though. Getting these guys to work together and coordinate together can be next to impossible. Unless you have the time to supervise the work every day, then forget it and hire a general contractor you can trust and check his previous work.

Follow the bank's schedule on the payouts so you don't get burned.
Get construction, liability, and fire/disaster insurance. Plan on a full six months to finish. Longer if weather is a factor. For those of us who have been through it, we can help you with any questions, so don't hesitate to ask.

Good luck!

 

When I worked in the trade, 20 years ago,
cost per square foot was running about $45
per sqft, in this area, for spec homes, and
up to $100 for customs, and we could frame
and roof a spec house in 2 days...

Steve & the Rockette
'63 F100
'68 F100
'72 Capri 2L
'73 Capri 2.6L V6
'73 MG B GT 2.6L V6(Ford)
'98 Contour SVT 2.5L V6, That blowed up real good...
'01 ZX2 (No Mods yet)

 

>For those of us who have been through it, we can help you with any questions, so don't hesitate to ask.

I plan on being my own contractor for my 24'x28' addition. You better belive that I'll be contacting you next spring! :-)

Do these figures that everyone is throwing out count the foundation too? Would the figures be less on an addition with just bedrooms, baths & open family room? I've been told to use the $75 per SF figure for around here. Sound right?

Are engineered/stamped plans a good idea? Any reason NOT to use them? I want NO mistakes or questions down the road.

 

Monsta, et. al.,
I was my own general contractor 9 yrs ago. Also, did a lot of the work myself (wiring, insulation, porch, deck, shrubs, etc.) I saved all of my expense records and would be more than happy to go back and look and answer any questions.
I am not a builder, but learned a lot.
For what it's worth, my house is approx 2900 sq ft and cost me about $40/sq ft. not including the lot. I saved about $50-60,000 by acting as my own contracttor, doing a lot of the work myself, and (as Chuck mentioned) not spending money up front on things I could go back and add or re-do later.
Again, I'm happy to help (if I can)
Brian A

 

>
>Do these figures that everyone is throwing out count the
>foundation too? Would the figures be less on an addition
>with just bedrooms, baths & open family room?
I've been told
>to use the $75 per SF figure for around here. Sound right?
>
>Are engineered/stamped plans a good idea? Any reason NOT to
>use them? I want NO mistakes or questions down the road.

Start by checking local/state requirements as far as being a licensed contractor. You might not be able to pull a permit if your are not a licensed contractor.
If you can, have your local building inspector review your plans for any variances you would need to address to meet any local building codes.
Aw heck, too much to go into...e-mail me if you'd like.
Brian A

 

Just finishing a mid-level quality house in NE PA. +/- $75/Sq. foot.

 

>
>>
>>
>
>Start by checking local/state requirements as far as being a
>licensed contractor. You might not be able to pull a permit
>if your are not a licensed contractor.
>If you can, have your local building inspector review your
>plans for any variances you would need to address to meet
>any local building codes.
>Aw heck, too much to go into...e-mail me if you'd like.
>Brian A

Brian & 78: I had my framer pull the building permit. It worked. You reminded me of the bank though. I had 2/3's of the money to build and only had to borrow 1/3. Yet the bank wanted me to show some construction experience. Luckily I had framed a house with a crew in my past. Otherwise it may have been a little trickier to get the bank to go along with my GC scheme. As for plans, I had to file them with the building inspector, so it is wise to have several copies. Also, if there is a next time I would just hire a general and spare the work and hassle. I would echo Brian's statement, there is so much involved, you can email, or call me, as well.
Good luck.

 

I haven't talked to anyone local yet, but we have many questions. As of now we are living in a double wide, don't like the term but thats what it is. We are looking at some small capes running around 1800 -2400 sq ft with an unfinished basement. Are looking into the real "modulars", not another trailer, but these are big cubes put together apparently. My Uncle is retired, but he was a contractor for many years, hope to hire him as a GC. Our plan is to find a builder, and see about building the house here on the lot and removing the doublewide. Seems like alot of work, but financially, we can't afford to buy another lot, this one is paid for. Anyone ever done this before? (Moving trailer to build house) Is there a service that may handle it for me? Unfortuneately, we put a block foundation under it, but for the right price, and ultimately the right house, I will hammer it out and drag the trailer myself. The unit is nice, but way, way to small for the five of us. Thanks for the many replies, I may be contacting you guys for some info. Blair

 

As far as moving your mobile, any manufacturer in your area can recommend a company for you. Most builders contract out the trucking part of the business. We used to go in and prep the mobile, move it, and set it up wherever the customer wanted it. It's pretty straight-forward for the pros.