How Much Does It Cost to Build a Home?

lockmc on 08/11/2017 - 16:16
Last edited 08/11/2017 - 17:26 by 1 other user

My partner and throwing around the idea of building a house instead of buying.
The thing is.. we have no idea how much it costs to build a house.
We would be looking at buying a $600k-$800k block and would want to build a 3 bed, 2 bathroom.
I know its a "How long is a piece of string" scenario.. but we need to make a budget and decide whether we can afford to build.

I'm assuming most builders won't be able to quote us as we aren't serious enough (yet) and aren't quite at the stage of building.
We wouldn't want to go through a volume builder and would probably put in slightly higher finishings etc.

Is anybody able to show some pictures and ballpark etc of a place they may have recently built? Are we talking 300, 400, 500?
Any help would be great. I know its not an easy question to answer but we need to know how we can have some ballpark figure.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • 87percent on 08/11/2017 - 16:23

    Never Mind didn't fully read your post

  • ShortyX on 08/11/2017 - 16:23

    Depending on the builder of course but for a completed house, rough ballpark is about $1,000-$1,100 per square metre.

    Obtain a base price from a plan and add $30k-$50k for extras like fences, retaining walls, driveways and paths, etc.

    • dcep on 08/11/2017 - 16:25
      +2

      that's project builder $

      custom builder , double or triple or quadruple that.

    • ShortyX on 08/11/2017 - 16:27

      Also, bear in mind that base prices are for M type soil. If you have other soil types (H1, H2, E1, E2), you'll need to pay extra for foundations. We normally use this as a rough guideline:

      H1 - add $5,000
      H2 - add $10,000
      E1 - add $15,000
      E2 - add $20,000

      • teasatotalling on 10/11/2017 - 06:03

        What about Class P - mountainside?

  • dcep on 08/11/2017 - 16:23

    Single storey 3 bed 2 baths from volume project builders cookie cutter house = $150k+

    Custom builder ? well, could be anything.

  • 0FoxGiven on 08/11/2017 - 16:25

    I would say 200k+

  • boomramada on 08/11/2017 - 16:35
    +3

    $$$$$ when partner involved.

  • participant123xyz on 08/11/2017 - 16:44

    For what it's worth, we have just started the building process

    Our architect has said to budget $4-5k per sqm building costs (he did mention this is worst case scenario, but one needs to prepare for this eventuality). We'll end up with probably about 160-170 sq m over two stories.

    This is for the the inner west of Sydney where building costs are absurd - not sure where you are, building costs might be different.

    • dcep on 08/11/2017 - 16:49
      +1

      obviously yours are custom design to be built by custom builders.

      • participant123xyz on 08/11/2017 - 16:51

        Indeed, project builders won't touch our dinky block of land

  • Banana on 08/11/2017 - 16:50

    Custom-built house plan, 5 bedrooms+ 4 bathrooms, stone benchtops and porcelain throughout(including skirting) was ~600k for us.

  • chumlee on 08/11/2017 - 16:50
    +2

    Sounds like a $300k piece of string

  • Euphemistic on 08/11/2017 - 16:51
    +1

    Just have a look at some house/land packages and subtract the value of the land for a ball park figure.

    Your piece of string is 'this long'. Be prepared for the string to get fairly long too if you want to include driveway, landscaping, extras, upgraded materials etc.

  • tio on 08/11/2017 - 16:56

    really depends on the sqm of the house plan and location. Some councils provide building cost estimate so you can follow that to have an idea.
    For example here's an example of Blue Mountain council:
    http://www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au/download.cfm?f=3759E142-6EEE-4F8E…

    Western Australia though is a different beast.

  • Stewardo on 08/11/2017 - 16:57
    +1

    Partner, high end finishes, D’oh!
    So many variables to consider
    Ballpark $450-$1.2
    Go to a display home village just to get an idea of cost, suitable design.
    Going thru architect and custom build can potentially cost $$$$

  • hasselbladsnapper on 08/11/2017 - 17:50

    You will find the cost's are very vairable in the case of a custom designed & built house. In our case it was circa 680k up to $1.3m for the same architect designed house, at the top end we were going to get 3 coats of paint though!!.

    The best tip we were given by a builder friend, was to have a professional quantity survey done ….and wow did that help with the negotiations with the several builders we had shortlisted. Once they are aware you have a full QS costing, they start to talk sense, as I expect they realise they are not dealing with a total novice. We spent the $680k and had a fantastic family boutique builder that did a great quality build with a complex design. Now that was 10 years ago, but the relativity might give you an idea of the great differences in cost - we were amazed at the time!!. Another tip, have a fixed price contract, we did …there may be some negotiation with the prime excavation and slab in that one in case of real unseen problems in that area. We had some extra excavation and concrete, but still the builder did not hit us for that.

    Good luck, just find the right builder.

  • Cheapo Moose on 08/11/2017 - 17:51

    Perhaps go to a display village and ask the sales people for an "As Displayed" price.

    That's what we did back when we built our first house.

    Pay no attention to the advertised price. After carpets, tiles, concreting etc etc are added up it can be quite a bit more.

    Asking for the 'As Displayed' price will give you a good idea.

  • HighAndDry on 08/11/2017 - 18:06

    Depends where you are and how big a house you're thinking of, and if the land's flat, etc, but you're looking at $300k plus.

  • tunzafun001 on 08/11/2017 - 19:01

    Find a house price from a Volume builders catalog. Assuming flat neutral soil, avg fit out..add $150k
    Ie, "The Padwa" $120K…All fitted $270K. Higher end specs increase the price rapidly (ie flooring $25/m2 vs $50/m… double the price….therefore the $150k will double if you take this approach with everything).

    Not including sheds, back yard entertainment etc.

    BUT - potential to save here if you get trades yourself / do a bit of DIY.

  • oscargamer on 08/11/2017 - 19:08
    -2

    whoever said $1000/m2 is a fool

    budget $2000/m2 and you'll probably come in on the mark

    • Logical on 13/11/2017 - 23:12

      This is very correct for Brisbane area. Standard build is $1,000 per sqm and for custom build will be $2,000 per sqm. For top end luxury custom you can go to $2,500 per sqm.

  • Ughhh on 08/11/2017 - 19:15
    +1

    Lots of builders (volume or not) have brochures of their home designs, along with the price. Won't be exact cost, but will give an estimate.

  • coxjon on 08/11/2017 - 23:18

    Our home fully complete excluding window furnishings and carpet in bedrooms/theatre (tiling included throughout everywhere else) was $390,000 for 358m2 of 32 course house and 198m2 of driveway/alfresco/garage etc. This was built to 'display spec' with the nice fittings, 900mm oven, rainfall shower, 8-zone A/C etc.

    We modified a display home plan to fit our battleaxe block and added the extras we wanted (double shower, gym, etc)

  • Drj55 on 09/11/2017 - 07:40
    +1

    At the beginning someone said to us it will cost you twice as much and take you twice as long. They were (nearly) right.

  • TheBilly on 09/11/2017 - 09:48

    For budding home builders / owner builders / couples doing feasibility - There is a resource that is available for a few hundred dollars called the "Rawlinson's: Construction Cost Guide" - As a builder you would only use this as a guide to price items/trades where you cannot get a lump sum quote in time to submit your tender, because there is unknown risk that will need to be catered in that only experience can identify (i.e. tradesman/builder review). BUT it is a fantastic resource none the less and is fairly accurate in what it details.

  • jhmtaylor on 09/11/2017 - 10:04
    +1

    I agree with the comments above about $1000 per m2, at that price the finishes will be of a very low standard. First thing you need to do is work out how big it is going to be. An old style (60's) home of 3 bedroom with one bathroom separate kitchen, lounge and dining room was about 150m2. Houses tend to be bigger these days so say 180 m2. All are excluding garages, balconies, fences etc etc. I think the price will be between $350K and $400K for a standard design with a reasonable quality finishes. One thing I would suggest is do not scrimp on ceiling heights, a trick of some builders to cut costs. Go for 2.7M as a minimum; it gives you far more versatility if you decide to change things in the future, the house is a lot easier to sell and you get a much better price

  • Looking4Bargians on 09/11/2017 - 15:27

    anything between 11k - 13k per SQ from any builder.

  • SupeNintendoChalmers on 09/11/2017 - 15:39

    Very basic 'Walk-in price' is around $200K*, if you spend another $50K you'll get the nice(r) kitchen, carpets and tiles

    https://henley.com.au/home-designs/essence-collection/ava-se…

    *I'm assuming $200K provided the block is flat

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