Getting an idea of cost to have house built?

This may not be the right forum but it looked as good as any others on this site so here I am. We are going to be moving to northern Virginia in the next year or so and we are not sure if we will build or buy an existing house. Can you all give me any input on the best why to find out, rough idea, of how much it would cost to build a house in that area? Who I should contact and such.

If we build it will be a pretty basic house, nothing fancy. Probably 1200 - 1600 sq.ft.

If I do go this route we are looking at ones with a couple of bedrooms and a bath upstairs but I would finish the upstairs myself. I would just get it roughed in and then I would finish that part later.

Anyway, I am just looking for idea on where to get infomation first. Thanks for your input.

 

You can start in one of two ways. Contact a realtor or contact any of the local builders. You can also look at some of the new developments being built and get an idea of cost of new builds.

 

Start asking contractors and realtors in your area what construction costs average for your level of construction. They'll probably say something like $100 per square foot for example. There are also many websites that have housing averages and rough cost estimators.

 

If you get per square foot cost estimates be sure just what is being quoted. Turnkey price, exclusive or inclusive of land, septic (if applicable) drill a well, driveway, porches or stoops included, etc. Years ago when I was involved in building, the builders cost included what was within 5 feet of the perimeter of the structure, all else was extra.

The grade of items in the house will make a lot of difference, standard 3 tab roof or metal or architectural shingles, amount of insulation, type of siding, quality of plumbing fixtures.
However you go, expect surprises.

 

Thanks for the good input. I will take that into consideration. If we do build I hope to do as much as I can to keep the cost down while still getting a well built house. A friend of mine and I build a 30x38 3 car garage and a small 2 story house years ago. I am pretty handy too, kind of a jack of all trades master of none. I will get and install all lighting and plumbing fixtures and can do other finishing work as time allows. Thanks again.

 

All well and good, and it could save you some money or it could save you a lot of money, all depending on you approach it and work things out with the builder, but I would keep that in my back pocket for now, keep it simple, and get several estimates for a finished product. Once you know what, where, and when, have a floorplan, and so on, you will probably want to get more detailed estimates from several builders, get some references so you can begin the decision making process of who you would go with, and that would be the time to open discussions regarding who will do what and so on. There are a lot of components that go into home construction and starting to isolate them now will only cloud the realistic number that you really want.

 

The details are what will really affect the cost. Two houses of the same square footage can have 100-300% difference in their cost depending on the construction and finishing details. Just switching between OSB and Advantech can raise the cost almost $2 a square foot. Then when you consider the difference of all the other material choices you can end up with wildly varying numbers.