construction costs (appliances, custom home, buying)

[kort677]

does anyone have a handle on construction costs in the PVB area?

[stevep]

It really depends on several factors. Are you trying to build a home with a custom builder who builds on your lot or are you trying to build with a builder that already owns the lots (for ex: in a subdivision) and you have to select one of their floorplans and options. It also depends on the size/complexity of the home and also the options/upgrades. If you give me some more information, I can give you a "rough" estimate.

[kort677]

Originally Posted by stevep

It really depends on several factors. Are you trying to build a home with a custom builder who builds on your lot or are you trying to build with a builder that already owns the lots (for ex: in a subdivision) and you have to select one of their floorplans and options. It also depends on the size/complexity of the home and also the options/upgrades. If you give me some more information, I can give you a "rough" estimate.

build to my plans on my lot, top notch all the way

[stevep]

There are several levels of "high end". If you're going very high end (for ex: stone floors, incredible gourmet kitchen with professional appliances, theater room, custom woodwork and cabinets, tile roof, etc.) you're probably in the $250 - $300 per square foot range for a custom builder.

You'd probably be looking at a starting price of $175 per square foot for high end.

[kort677]

Originally Posted by stevep

There are several levels of "high end". If you're going very high end (for ex: stone floors, incredible gourmet kitchen with professional appliances, theater room, custom woodwork and cabinets, tile roof, etc.) you're probably in the $250 - $300 per square foot range for a custom builder.

You'd probably be looking at a starting price of $175 per square foot for high end.

I'd forgo the theater and tile roof but a high end kitchen and wood and tile floors would be part of it. I was figuring around the same numbers, I just wanted to see if I knew what I was talking about.

I probably won't go that route, between the lot costs and building costs, the numbers don't make sense.

[stevep]

Most of the time, if you're trying to stay under $750k, it doesn't make sense to buy a lot and build because the cost of the lot could run $300-$600k (in high demand areas) so there wouldn't be much money left to build your home. If you're looking to spend $800k+ and you can buy a lot for $300k+, then building a custom home on your lot might be competitive to buying a new home from a builder who doesn't customize in a subdivision.

[riveree]

Originally Posted by stevep

There are several levels of "high end". If you're going very high end (for ex: stone floors, incredible gourmet kitchen with professional appliances, theater room, custom woodwork and cabinets, tile roof, etc.) you're probably in the $250 - $300 per square foot range for a custom builder.

You'd probably be looking at a starting price of $175 per square foot for high end.

Stevep,

Is it generally the same price per square foot whether it's new construction for a whole house or simply a new addition?

Also, it sounds like the price per square foot that you're ballparking include the appliances, floor coverings, etc......is that right?

I hope I'm not hijacking the post, it just intrigued me because I have a future project in mind. I have an old house that I currently do not live in (someone else does right now) and it is teeny tiny. I love the location and would like to live there one day (prob. within 12-24 months from now), but I would need to add an entire new kitchen and some sort of master suite. Nothing too fancy, but built to last. I was really hoping to stay under $150/sq foot and some of the numbers above made me think I might need to go higher...any thoughts on this?

[stevep]

Yes, the sf numbers that I was ballparking include a finished house (appliances, floor coverings, etc).

With renovations/additions, I think the cost per square foot method can be a bit misleading, because there are 2 parts to building an addition... 1)building the addition and 2) tying in the addition to the existing structure. If you're just adding a room (for ex: rec room, bedroom) it should be cheaper than the cost/sf of building a house. But when you start adding a kitchen (or bathroom), it could get more expensive because you have to connect the plumbing to the existing plumbing and also have to add more electrical circuits (kitchens need more circuits than a bedroom) and then you might have to also upgrade your electrical service/panel box if it's an older home. These additional costs would bump up your cost/sf.

One suggestion - whenever you're budgeting for a renovation (especially with older homes), budget more than you think it will cost because there's a good chance you'll run into unforseen issues when tying into the existing structure (for ex: old plumbing and electrical wires that need replaced, termite damage, truss/roof replacement where old roof meets new roof, etc).

[FLPL75]

Kort
My Vet is in the process of building a custom house built on a lot she owned and I have another friend who is about to start the process(both are at the beach). I will ask them what the cost are running,
Karla