how much does it cost to build a house

Log Homes and Cabins - How Much Does a Log Home Cost to Build?, Cost of Home Building Materials - A Big Chunk of Money But a Fraction of the Cost to Build a Home, how much does it cost to build a houseThe cost to dig a basement hole on our 1800 sq. That $790 figure of digging a basement suddenly became a whole lot more didn't it? The reality is, however, that the real cost only involves a few of the above: digging the hole, flatwork cement, and windows, window bucks and window wells.

You still have to either poor a cement slab, or put in footings and foundations, which in the case of the later, go down to frost level. You still have backfill whether you have a basement or not. You still have sub-rough plumbing, with gravel before the slab. With a slab you will have furnace ducting to consider too.

Even though you have all the above items to consider in building a basement, it is still only a few thousand dollars more to add a basement, in comparison to the total cost of building your home.

Considering that your home may be worth $250 thousand to $400,000, your basement will probably only cost $7K-$10K+ added to the cost. All things considered, there isn't a better investment for that extra 10K in comparison to doubling the living space of the first level, that a basement adds.

As an example, consider the storage space it adds to your home. If you didn't have to rent storage space, what would it save you each month? Or wouldn't it be nice to park the car in the garage instead of using it for storage space?

In addition, the basement maintains an even temperature of around 59 degrees all year, so the cost of air conditioning in the summer is drastically reduced when compared with air-conditioning an upper story with the same amount of floor space.

If you build your home on a hillside, a walkout basement makes for a nice feature opening up the basement so it doesn't feel so "deep" in the ground.

Many people are putting home theaters in the area of the basement that doesn't have any windows.

The furnace, hot water tank and water softener can all go in the basement utility-furnace room and not take up precious main floor living space.

Some areas of the country are too close to sea level to have a basement, but if you live inland, having a basement is a real advantage when compared to the cost of putting one in. To dig a basement is a an economical way to increase the square footage of your home.

In reality, what is the cost to dig a basement? Very little, and the benefits far outweigh the negatives.

This could be your time to build. You've decided that the only way you're going to make this happen is by building a kit home. You understand the advantages of having the majority of the materials in one package with much of the framing labor done for you.

 

And, you appreciate the value of controlling your costs.

 

But, what is the price tag? You just want know! Well, you need to dig much deeper than that. First it's critical to set the stage a little.

 

The Kit Home Price Tag is Just Part of the Equation

cost to build a house

I am not sure I adequately answered the question "How much will building a new home cost me", but hopefully you have a better understanding of the things that attract cost and some ideas about how to go about selecting a builder.

how much does it cost to build a house, Cost of Home Building Materials - A Big Chunk of Money But a Fraction of the Cost to Build a Home, How Much Does A Log Home Cost?"How Much Does a Log Home Cost?" is the single most asked question in the industry, and also the most difficult one to answer. The customers aren't the only ones who are frustrated; dealers and manufacturers are fully aware that not giving an easy answer could lose a sale. However, in reality the answer is "That Depends", and the sooner the homeowners accept this statement the sooner they can start looking in the right place.

WHAT DO I MEAN BY THE RIGHT PLACE? Like everyone else, my husband and I started our search by oohing and aahing at the majestic, multi-faceted homes with numerous peaks in the roof, giant trusses, huge windows, and big logs. What we didn't realize right away is that every one of our favorite log homes were hand-crafted, and so far out of our price range that we might as well have been shopping for a castle.

The first thing you need to do is distinguish between a handcrafted log home and a milled log home. Handcrafted log homes will cost anywhere from 2-4 times as much per square foot as a milled log home, when you take into consideration the size of the logs and the intense labor required from the first day the logs are selected. If the logs are not evenly sized, you know right away you are looking at a handcrafted home.

MILLED LOG HOMES: If you select a handcrafted log home, you don't need to be reading this article! For the rest of us, there are other basic factors to consider if you are looking at price: log diameter, log species, and log corners. The first two factors speak for themselves. The corner system, however, can make a big difference. For instance, think about how the logs are stacked. If you remember your Lincoln Log toy, you had to find the half-log to start the first course. This is the way a Saddle-Notched corner system is constructed. The courses are staggered and logs are notched to fit snugly together, and when you look at the corner you will see each log end lying on top of the one below it, creating a continuous unbroken stretch from top to bottom. The notches require another run through the mill, and will add to the eventual cost.

When you look at a Butt-and-Pass log home you will see a gap between each log past the corner. This is because all the logs are laid on the same plane; the first course is started with a full log and it butts up against the other wall log which runs past it. The next course reverses the process. There is no notch to hold them together, hence a less time in the mill. If you compare a butt-and-pass house to a saddle-notched house, dollar for dollar the butt-and-pass house should be less expensive. This is where aesthetics kicks in.

How to Build a Chicken Coop - How Much Does it Cost?

How to Build a Chicken Coop - How Much Does it Cost?, Estimating Square Foot Building Costs the Wrong Way, how much it cost to build a houseIf you are planning on building a home in Central Texas, do you know what to look for when looking for a lot? The cost of the lot may be more than you think it is. So when you are attempting to determine your own costs per square foot to build a home, don't try to depend on the square foot prices that a track builder provides. While they may be completely accurate for the homes they are building and selling, you don't have the same buying and hiring power they do.

What's most important to realize is that applying a cost per square foot formula to your own building project is not an accurate way to determine costs. To get an accurate estimate of building costs, you will need to complete a cost estimate for each category of the building project. This is not as daunting a task as it may seem.  And there are ways to get help along the path.  Our book, The Ultimate Guide to Building Your Own Home: Save 30% to 40% on the Cost of Your New Home tells how.   

I was shocked to find the price of chicken coops on sale. Actually it took me forever to even find any decent ones for sale. There is a big gap in the market for someone to make affordable chicken coops. In the meantime the high cost persuaded me to build my own and pocket the saving. Assuming you have the basic DIY skills to put up shelves and do basic home maintenance you will easily be able to make your own chicken coop. What's more, you probably have all the nails, screws and tools you need to do the construction.

The costs really are the basic timber that you need plus some chicken wire. The other things you will need is a way to make the coop waterproof and warm. Insulation materials are not too expensive if you go to a good builders merchants. The cost can increase if you plan to have a special design or extra features such as egg collection hatches and automatic feeders.

I use timber that is prepared for external use. Decking boards are particularly useful because the are treated and are very strong. They are certainly strong enough for constructing the base of the chicken coop. They are also useful for laying out a small yard for the chickens to run in. The chicken wire can be stapled directly to the deck wood.

For the roof you can use a piece of roofing felt to make it water proof. This comes in very cheap and most merchants will sell you just what you need. In fact you can probably walk round your builders yard and get most of what you need in one trip.

The final factor in costing out your home made chicken coop is the number of chickens you have. For a modest 2 chicken coop you can probably make one up for well below $100. If you have different breed you want to keep separate then you will be looking at quite a bit more. For most home made chicken coops you should have plenty of change from $200.

cost to build a house

How to Build a Chicken Coop - How Much Does it Cost?, How Much Does a Chicken Coop Cost to Build?, how much it cost to build a houseHow much does it cost to build a home? Everyone wants to start with the cost of the building materials. There are a lot of builders selling "green bling". "Green bling" are things that consumers have heard about and want added to their home and either have a slow payback or no payback at all. Unscrupulous builders can take advantage of a buyers desire to be environmentally conscience by selling a bunch of upgrades that are not only expensive, but are not really that green.

For the average American, building a new home will vary depending on the factors above and more, but in general the higher the square footage, the lower the cost per square foot and vice versa. The majority of houses I have seen around the country range from a low of about $80 per square foot to a high of $300 per square foot. In the Midwest, a good guideline is to budget for $150 per square foot on the main floor, $100 per square foot for the second story and $50 per square foot for finished square footage in the lower level. To these budget numbers you add the lot cost and lot improvements and you should be in the ballpark. For example, a 2,400 square foot two story home with 1,2000 square feet on each floor would cost approximately $380,000.000 with a $80,000 lot. In a down economy the pricing will be lower and higher in an up economy. There are wide differences in the quality of construction at the same price point between various builders.

As you can see, there are many factors that go into the cost of a new construction home and therefore it can be very hard to compare pricing between builders. Sending out a set of plans for bid does not mean you are comparing apples to apples. Builders are smart and know how to cut costs to win a build, but that does not mean you are receiving the best value.

Larger builders tend to deliver the most square footage for the least amount of money, but have cost reduced the product to make that happen. Cost reduction usually means materials are on the lower end of the price spectrum. You will see things like hollow-core pre-painted doors, plastic or pre-finished trim, vinyl floors, shower inserts, vinyl siding and the list goes on and on and on. While lower cost materials does not necessarily mean lower quality, there is a definite difference between homes built with higher quality versus lower quality materials. Square footage, house floor plan and granite counter-tops shouldn't be the only considerations if you are planning on living in that home more than 5-10 years.

On the other hand, smaller builders tend to provide custom type construction with higher building materials, but can come with their own set of challenges. Smaller builders may not have adequate staff to provide the customer service you may be looking for or may not even be in business in five years. Many smaller builders fail to run a very tight ship financially and the cost of your project could easily be over budget. Also, using a smaller builder does not guarantee a quality built home.

What is the Cost to Build a Basement?

how much it cost to build a house, Cost of Home Building Materials - A Big Chunk of Money But a Fraction of the Cost to Build a Home, How Much Does a Chicken Coop Cost to Build?When building a new house, whether you are contracting it yourself or having it built, most people want to know the "square foot building costs."  The question always makes me cringe. As an example, consider the storage space it adds to your home. If you didn't have to rent storage space, what would it save you each month? Or wouldn't it be nice to park the car in the garage instead of using it for storage space?

In addition, the basement maintains an even temperature of around 59 degrees all year, so the cost of air conditioning in the summer is drastically reduced when compared with air-conditioning an upper story with the same amount of floor space.

If you build your home on a hillside, a walkout basement makes for a nice feature opening up the basement so it doesn't feel so "deep" in the ground.

Many people are putting home theaters in the area of the basement that doesn't have any windows.

The furnace, hot water tank and water softener can all go in the basement utility-furnace room and not take up precious main floor living space.

Some areas of the country are too close to sea level to have a basement, but if you live inland, having a basement is a real advantage when compared to the cost of putting one in. To dig a basement is a an economical way to increase the square footage of your home.

In reality, what is the cost to dig a basement? Very little, and the benefits far outweigh the negatives.

The above question is asked by most people before any discussion ensues about log homes in general. The above question cannot be answered unless many questions are asked of the prospective home buyer. As an example, the above question is similar to one asked, How much does a car cost?

A basic consideration of home cost is what part of the United States are you planning to build.

There can be a great disparity in building costs between these various regions of the country. Costs may be higher in California than in Arkansas due to the fact that living costs may be higher in California than in Arkansas.

In some states, there will be greater requirements of the builder and more approvals from various state and local agencies before a permit can be granted to build the home.

Some states do not have building codes or stiff building code requirements or in terms of engineering and contractor licensing and thus costs will be lower.

Building materials can also be higher in some states and in some areas of individual states than in another location. Thus, where you plan to build is a major consideration when the cost of a log home is analyzed.

Other considerations are:

The type of log home you intend to build. Will it be a precut package, a custom hand-crafted log home or random length logs from a local sawmill. The price of these various components can vary greatly and thus it is a major variable in the cost of building a log home.

Do you intend to ship logs in from another part of the country so that you can get the home and the home plan that you desire.

Estimating Square Foot Building Costs the Wrong Way

For the roof you can use a piece of roofing felt to make it water proof. This comes in very cheap and most merchants will sell you just what you need. In fact you can probably walk round your builders yard and get most of what you need in one trip.

The final factor in costing out your home made chicken coop is the number of chickens you have. For a modest 2 chicken coop you can probably make one up for well below $100. If you have different breed you want to keep separate then you will be looking at quite a bit more. For most home made chicken coops you should have plenty of change from $200.

This could be your time to build. You've decided that the only way you're going to make this happen is by building a kit home. You understand the advantages of having the majority of the materials in one package with much of the framing labor done for you.

 

And, you appreciate the value of controlling your costs.

 

But, what is the price tag? You just want know! Well, you need to dig much deeper than that. First it's critical to set the stage a little.

 

The Kit Home Price Tag is Just Part of the Equation

 

Do you buy things based upon the price? I know I often do. It's pretty much a habit, isn't it? When we do this, we often neglect to differentiate between finished products like a TV, vacuum, car, or completed home and something like a kit home that is more of a process than a thing. This is why, when figuring the costs of building a kit home, the kit's price tag is of little value.

 

Because of our "price tag fetish", we have become so conditioned to just ask for the price no matter what we're buying that we often overlook the real or complete cost of things and make blind decisions.

 

You are doing yourself a disservice if you do this when building a kit home.

 

What Are You Really Doing?

 

You're not buying a house, you're building a home. Let me go even further; you're not just buying building materials, you're embarking on a project, an adventure ... an adventure that takes preparation, equipment, and personal involvement throughout.

 

For comparison, think of an African Safari.

 

Just as an African Safari requires many things (like vehicles, food, tents, guns and guides) for a successful adventure, building a home takes similar preparation and involvement. And, just as you wouldn't try to figure the price of the safari by asking the cost of the tents alone, you shouldn't focus on the cost of the kit home package.

 

The Kit Home Cost Equals 25 - 40% of Your Home Building Cost

 

While the percentages are different for every situation, the cost of the kit home package vs. the cost of completing your home will almost always be half or less.

 

What determines the percentage has everything to do with who's providing the labor, the cost of the land you're building on, the money it takes to add or connect to utilities, the cost of architects and engineers, the cost of the loan, and your "home-building coach" fee.
how much it cost to build a house

Estimating Square Foot Building Costs the Wrong Way

how much it cost to build a houseThis could be your time to build. And, just as you wouldn't try to figure the price of the safari by asking the cost of the tents alone, you shouldn't focus on the cost of the kit home package.

 

The Kit Home Cost Equals 25 - 40% of Your Home Building Cost

 

While the percentages are different for every situation, the cost of the kit home package vs. the cost of completing your home will almost always be half or less.

 

What determines the percentage has everything to do with who's providing the labor, the cost of the land you're building on, the money it takes to add or connect to utilities, the cost of architects and engineers, the cost of the loan, and your "home-building coach" fee.

 

Considering these things, you can see how the price tag on the packaged kit home is just part of a much bigger picture.

 

Research, Preparation, Price Tag

 

I encourage everyone I help to research, learn, and compare wisely. Make sure that when it comes time to ask for prices, you're evaluating similar offerings. Once you're serious about building, part of your preparation should be to find a home-building coach who can help you analyze and calculate.

 

After you've prepared, calling for prices on packages is more productive. You'll not only be able to compare package prices from one company to the next but you'll be able to see the relationship of its price to the entire building project.

 

Only then does the price really mean something. Now you're on the right track! Keep reading and learning. 

When building a new house, whether you are contracting it yourself or having it built, most people want to know the "square foot building costs."  The question always makes me cringe. In reality, it's almost impossible to provide a standard cost per square foot to build a house.  The problem stems from the definition of standard.  Homes, even of identical size, have many, many variables that factor into the costs.  Thus, the overall cost per square foot will vary, sometimes dramatically.  For example, when someone says it costs an average of $100 per square foot to build a home these days, does that mean a home with a basement and an attached garage? Or does it mean the finished square feet only?  

There are many other variables besides the obvious noted above. Consider the following: 

The foundation.  You may wonder how much it costs to build your home with a basement foundation rather than a concrete slab. Many factors come into play here.  Is the basement going to be poured concrete walls or concrete block? How much of the basement walls will need to be concrete and how much frame?  Is extra grading required for the basement?  Since land is inherently unique, the amount of grading for a basement will vary, so there's no standard cost you can assume here. 

The framing materials and techniques.  What type framing is planned? Is the structure pre-fabricated or stick-built? Does the plan call for floor trusses or floor joists?  Does the house have an elaborate roof system with many dormers and gables? Differences in construction methods, material costs, and contractor fees all add up to differences in price per square foot to build the home. 

how much it cost to build a house

cost to build a house"How Much Does a Log Home Cost?" is the single most asked question in the industry, and also the most difficult one to answer. Another thing to look for, that you can't really see, is the plasticity index (PI) of the soil. The PI is a measure of ground expansion and contraction when the soil is wet or dry. Much of the Central Texas Hill Country is made up of limestone and generally has a low PI, but there are areas of clay and sand that have a much higher PI. Land with a high PI will require additional reinforcing of the foundation, meaning additional steel rebar or extra thick steel. This can add to the cost of the foundation.

What about water drainage on the land? Any water that flows toward the house will need to be diverted away from the foundation. Depending on the topography of the lot and the location of the house, this can add some costs. If you have the money and creativity, consider turning challenge this into a water feature.

Look at the trees on the lot. Most people love oak trees. They are slow-growing, last a long time, don't easily split or have branches fall in strong storms and provide great shade. You generally don't want to remove many oaks, especially if they are large. If there are some good oaks, you may want to build the house around them. This can present design challenges and construction challenges that translate into additional costs. The other thing about trees is that you will want to clear anything you don't want to keep. Some lot owners clear most of the unwanted trees in order to show prospective buyers what the lot really looks like. If not, there will be another small cost.

Of course there is more comparing lot cost to build cost, but this is a good start. The best thing to do when you see a lot you like is to have your REALTOR find a good builder to come out and look over the lot. A builder should be able to tell you what kind of costs you may incur when looking at the lot and the home you want to build.

I was shocked to find the price of chicken coops on sale. Actually it took me forever to even find any decent ones for sale. There is a big gap in the market for someone to make affordable chicken coops. In the meantime the high cost persuaded me to build my own and pocket the saving. Assuming you have the basic DIY skills to put up shelves and do basic home maintenance you will easily be able to make your own chicken coop. What's more, you probably have all the nails, screws and tools you need to do the construction.

The costs really are the basic timber that you need plus some chicken wire. The other things you will need is a way to make the coop waterproof and warm. Insulation materials are not too expensive if you go to a good builders merchants. The cost can increase if you plan to have a special design or extra features such as egg collection hatches and automatic feeders.