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We are planning on adding some sort of addition to our house, at the bare minimum we want to add a bedroom. We figured we would get some ball park quotes to see what we could get for our budget, someone to come out and say here are some options for your budget. We met with only one contractor so far and he refused to give us any cost idea until we paid for blue prints from his architect ($2400). He said he needs the plans to give us a quote. Well we don't want to pay $2400 if this addition is way out of our price range. The situation just seemed so bizarre and a waste of everyone's time. So I guess my question is, can I get a contractor to come out and give me a ball park estimate for what I can do with my budget or do they all require purchasing of blue prints before quote? I've never done this before so maybe I'm asking too much? Thank you for your help!
Ballpark? Sure...$100 to $200 per square foot. Depending.
You need to narrow things down a little bit. Presumably your house has a style. Presumably you have a reason for the addition. Bedroom? Okay. Something more, like an en suite bathroom? Completely different cost per square foot.
First thing you do is think about what you want, and scratch it down on a piece of paper. Crayons will do.
Then you clip articles, pictures, designs and anything/everything else which suits your fancy.
You need plans before you can get permits, or a builder. So, you take all of your ideas to an architect and you explain to him what you are thinking about. Maybe you are not ready for blueprints, so you ask him to take your dream list and put it into some sketches or rough drawings. You work with him to refine those drawings until you have something which is generally pleasing. Pay him by the hour or something, with a credit toward the final project if you decide to proceed. Generally an architect will bill about 10% of the project cost.
So, now you have a broad idea of what you want, number of square feet, degree of difficulty....roofing, plumbing, electricity, basement, foundation, etc., and the architect can give you some idea of the over project cost. Not down to the last $1,000 dollars, but " broadly in the range of $25,000 to $30,000" or whatever.
Ready to proceed? Maybe the architect can suggest a contractor with whom he has worked and feels comfortable recommending to you. Have the architect draw up a set of detailed plans and have a sit down with the contractor. Go through everything and in the end, if he seems like the kind of person with whom you can work, ask him to prepare a quote. If he isn't comfortable with the job, or you feel uneasy with him, try another. If it is a decent sized job and the dollars are significant, get two or three estimates and compare. Make sure each is at the same level of understanding of the plans and the project. If the plans call for 2x6 framing and the contractor says that will be $X, make sure the guy who says "framing for $Y" is including 2x6's, then you can compare them. You need exactly "like for like", much of which will be defined by your architect and plans.
Good luck. Building is a painstakingly slow and meticulous process. If you want to go the cheap route, go ahead. Get a contractor to write something up on a paper pad, give him one third down, and have him start the process. When the lumber supplier calls and say he didn't get paid and is going to put a lien on your house, the contractor has been off on a drunk for two weeks, and the rain has been coming in through the open roof left by the hired day laborers who double as carpenters, you will regret in spades not having taken the less costly route and done things in the appropriate order.
...or do they all require purchasing of blue prints before quote?
The better ones will.
1) It gives them a real plan with real specs... objective.
2) It shows that you're serious about the project.
The architect type who makes those plans will want a fee for their initial consult too.
Cutting to the chase... you need to *really* love the neighborhood.
It will almost always be less expensive to leave it as is and sell as is
then to move to the house with the size/features you want/need.
So let's say I have 70k to spend but it's going to cost me 100k. But I won't know it's going to be 30k over my budget until I've already invested $2400 into blue prints? Seems like they'd be able to give me a rough idea for a bedroom addition but again, perhaps I'm naïve since I've never done this. Thanks for the help.
So let's say I have 70k to spend but (the design I like/want) is going to cost me 100k.
But I won't know it's going to be 30k over my budget until I've already invested $2400 into blue prints?
You're not investing in blue prints.
You're paying for competent professionals to sort through the structural/mechanical
realities of YOUR house and YOUR design preferences and then put it all on paper that
you can then shop apples to apples with several contractors and have reasonable confidence
that there won't be any serious hiccups or problems with subs or the inspector.
As to costs... it'll still end up being over the budget regardless.
Quote:
Seems like they'd be able to give me a rough idea for a bedroom addition...
You have already been given that. Right in this thread too.
Rough isn't good enough to make the deeper decisions from.
Yes I have already received an estimate from this forum. Therein lies my problem. I'm looking for something slightly more accurate for my area from a contractor who has been doing it for 15 years. So back to my original question, I can assume it's unreasonable to ask a contractor to give me a cost per square foot estimate for my area without paying $2400. Thank you for all the time you have invested in "answering" my question.
So back to my original question, I can assume it's unreasonable to ask a contractor to give me a cost per square foot estimate for my area without paying $2400. Thank you for all the time you have invested in "answering" my question.
Actually, you DID get a "a cost per square foot estimate for my area without paying $2400" right here.
And that is about all you can get for FREE.
If you want a more accurate estimate, based on YOUR house and based on YOUR specific needs/wants, you have to pay for it. A professional will spend time doing that, and they deserve to be compensated.
I see what the OP is asking, so here's my two cents' worth.
You should be able to meet with a general contractor and give the general contractor a general idea about what level of construction quality you want. By that I mean, are we talking luxury home standards? Spec home standards? Are you going to want more than builder quality carpet or other flooring? What about trim and cabinetry? Will the bathroom be done with fixtures from Lowe's or will it be a luxury bathroom? Will there be closets involved - with built ins? How many rooms, entrances to outdoors, windows, etc? You need to have a floor plan of the extension you want drawn out (you can do this online or on drafting paper) with the approximate square footage.
If you can do this, you should be able to get a VERY ROUGH approximation of the cost per square foot. Expect to pay at least 20 percent more than the figure quoted.
After getting a very rough idea of the cost, and before your contractor will go a bit further, you will need to fork out money for the plans - and the $2400 sounds reasonable. Then your contractor can give you a better idea of the price per square foot.
Of course, he/she ought to be able to give you an approximate cost per square foot anyway - they know what they're building new construction at per square foot. But in order to get a figure in your head, you're going to have to know how many square feet you're actually talking about and this will involve blue prints pretty early on in the discussion.
Thank you Kathryn. We do have a square footage in mind and my husband will be doing the finish work himself (he's an electrician). A rough approximation is all we are looking for. I have no problem paying for plans after I have a general idea of what my money will buy me. Thanks again, we are meeting with someone else tonight and hope to have better luck.
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