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What Should a New Home Cost to Build here in Birmingham Mi.?

  

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As a Custom Home Builder I am asked this question more often than any other question. Can you have a home cost you as little as $55 a square foot or as much as $150 a square foot? The factors that affect a cost of a home are many. I cannot answer that question to the dollar but I can give you some ranges.

 New Homes that cost $55 to $70 a square foot will share the following characteristics

• There most likely a box-design home. Boxy design homes cost less to build per square foot
• The home will not have a lot of brick on the exterior. Maybe a little on the front as an accent.
• Interior finishes will be basic and a lot of use of plastic materials.
• Will see inexpensive flooring such as carpet and a little vinyl flooring.
• The builder most likely will not let you make too many changes to the home. They control they purchase very tightly which means little opportunity to make changes

New Homes that cost $70 to $100 a square foot most likely will share

• The same box type design but a few breaks in the roof line
• Will start see brick on all sides and maybe a little stone ascents
• Will start seeing stone and ceramic used on the finishes.
• Will most likely see some Hardwoods on the floor.
• The home builder will be giving you more choice to chose from

New Homes that cost between $100 and $125 a square foot will just have more than the previous mention items in the home.

New Homes that cost over a $125 a square foot is the beginning stage of creating a piece of art instead of a cozy home.

As you can see, the finishes are the real variable when it comes to the cost per square foot question.

Other Facts That May Interest You

• Typically, as the square footage rises, the cost per square foot will decrease. This is because the same home, regardless if it is 3,000 or 4,000 sq. ft, built on the same lot with the same quality will have the same amount spent for landscaping, utility impact and tap fees, driveway, mailbox, appliances, pool, garage, and many more major items. As the square footage increases those common costs are spread over more square footage which reduces the actual cost per square foot.
• Not all areas cost the same per square foot to increase or take away. To add square footage to a kitchen or bathroom will cost you much more pre square foot than a second floor bedroom or family room.

• The typical new home builder works on a gross margin of 15%  to 18% of the sales price of the home. This margin represents the gross profit remaining after all direct construction costs are paid. The home builder must pay all overhead expense, all current and future warranty cost, all supervision cost, and much more out of this amount. Furthermore, there are normally numerous unforeseen cost items plus increased costs due to inflation during the building process that the builder must absorb. This also comes out of the gross profit.
• If three different builders were to prepare a bid on the same home with the exact same finishes and level of quality, I would be shocked if there was more than a 2% to 3% variance in price between those builders. The problem is that this never happens. Each builder will include different items in the home as standard and their trades will have different quality levels than the other builder which make a very real difference in the price. This makes comparing builders prices almost impossible.

The important point is to find a home builder that you trust and who you can communicate well with. Is he a guy that likes just to throw money at things or does he think out of the box to create new and exciting things that can save you money?

Remember, greatness in is the details. It is those small details that will make the difference. Most new homes in Birmingham Michigan will have those small details. So don’t forget them. Good luck with your search of that new home. I hope this article will help you.

If you have any other questions about buying homes, selling homes, building a new home or any new construction question here in or around Birmingham Michigan, feel free email me at rick@livewellcustomhomes.com  Thanks for visiting my blog.