[dfsandford]

Are there any real estate or buliding folks out there wh can giv eme an idea of an average cost per square foot for pre-owned homes? South of town looks attractive but we don't want to overpay. I know a lot depends on how a place is finished etc. but any information you can provide would be appreciated.

Thanks.....

[Twostep]

Your price per square foot has nothing to do with furnishings. It is builder cost. Yes, upgrades and changes add up in a hurry. We always have a builder work with so called "builder grade" and make our changes within the first year. Here we changed all appliances, floors, light fixtures and door knobs (I have a hard time with American hardware) and will not have it with the mortgage. Consider your capabilities before making such a decision.

I could not find much on the web. You may have to contact real estate agents or builder direct to get info on spec or custom homes in various neighbor hoods.

[harry chickpea]

Average SF costs on a pre-owned home? I don't think there is a figure that would have any meaning. No one is going to take an average of an old sharecropper shack and a mansion and have it mean anything.

The building cost of recently built stick-built homes might be $100 to $200 per SF, or even more, depending on who constructed it and what materials were used, etc. An older home might only be worth $40 to $80 SF or less, if it has termites, poor construction, outdated wiring and plumbing, bad roof, etc.

Then you have the real cost of location, location, location. Is a nice house in the middle of a squatter's field of trailers worth what it cost to construct? We walked (no ran) away from one reasonably priced house like that. It was relatively new, nice construction, five acres, chain link fence, small stream, and well sited. The surrounding property on the north had free-running dogs, on the west an old trailer where people were getting rid of their trash in a burn barrel, and out back a big trailer park with more tricked out monster pickups than you might find at a rodeo. Alarm signs were posted all around the property.