Self Build Mortgages

motorguy

ciaran120 wrote: »

I'm being quoted between £45 and £50 per sq foot to have my 3,400 sq ft self-build home completed. Typically after the contractor completes his portion based on this pricing what exactly will still need to be done? and how much additional should I budget for this?

Can you define what is included in the completed build price.

motorguy

mofopants wrote: »

we had a timber frame company out with us a few weeks ago and they told us that £75 is still a realistic figure. Quite scary when we know someone who built a few years ago (2 or so) for approx £50 per sq foot.

You really need to be careful with this £45-£50 per square foot figure and what 'completed' means.

Its certainly 'do-able', but there are going to have to be some serious corner cutting done along the line and the level of finish is going to be low.

motorguy

ciaran120 wrote: »

Does anyone know what a guideline cost would be for a self-build these days?

Would prices have fallen from a peak of around £75 per sq foot in the summer of 2007 to around £45 per sq foot in the spring of 2011?

Would £45 per sq foot to have my 3,400 sq ft self-build home completed be a good guideline to work from?

This works out to be a total price of £150,000 using roof tiles (not slates). How accurate is this?

You might get it built 'on the grip' for that sort of price, but it depends on what level of finish you want.

A friend of mine boasted about getting his 6000sq ft house completed last year for £47 a square foot. He moved in on 1st November and had put £2000 of oil through it trying to heat it in 12 weeks.... Maybe not so much of a bargain then.

mofopants

pgilc1 wrote: »

You really need to be careful with this £45-£50 per square foot figure and what 'completed' means.

Its certainly 'do-able', but there are going to have to be some serious corner cutting done along the line and the level of finish is going to be low.

he did say we could do it for less, but to get a decent finish it would be arppox £75.

I am not too fussed on putting a 20k kitchen in, but I do want a nice house at the end of the process and having been in some of our friends newly developed houses, the finish has definitely been scrimped on to keep costs down.

Graham727

In my opinion square footage prices are very misleading. I've priced domestic jobs anywhere from £42 to £150 per ft2!! Theres that many factors that need taken into account ie. ground conditions, finish, site works etc. Its always best to get someone to price the works as per your drawings and give you provisional sums for finishes ie bathroom suite, tiles etc. so know exactly where you stand.

There is a lot on price increases on materials at the minute to. Quarry materials have risen £1.50 m3 which over a big job is a lot of £££££££'s!!

polpoo

Hi Guys
i was just reading through all your posts above. I am an architect and we specialise in residential work. I have also just built my own house. I would suggest a cost pert square foot of £75 woud get you a really good level of finish (timber windows slate roof uf heating etc). some builders will quote as low as £50-55 per sq. foot but you get what you pay for! We have recently completed a small development (timber windows / facing brick / nice staircases and internal joinery) for approx £67 per sq. foot but, as with many developments, its not quite the level of finish you would want for your own house - the cost also reflect repitition in the build.
I would also recommend uf heating but be careful to go with reputable system / supplier. Timber flooring also works well with uf heating but again be careful in the type you used.
Feel free to ask me anything else

slipped_disc

polpoo wrote: »

Hi Guys
i was just reading through all your posts above. I am an architect and we specialise in residential work. I have also just built my own house. I would suggest a cost pert square foot of £75 woud get you a really good level of finish (timber windows slate roof uf heating etc). some builders will quote as low as £50-55 per sq. foot but you get what you pay for! We have recently completed a small development (timber windows / facing brick / nice staircases and internal joinery) for approx £67 per sq. foot but, as with many developments, its not quite the level of finish you would want for your own house - the cost also reflect repitition in the build.
I would also recommend uf heating but be careful to go with reputable system / supplier. Timber flooring also works well with uf heating but again be careful in the type you used.
Feel free to ask me anything else

Didn't you just write the following in another thread about handyplan? Or is there another Polpoo who's not an architect?

"Hi Snowmen
I came accross this offer that Action Cancer are running - Its called Improve dont Move and tyou seem to get an hour with an architect for £40 (which goes to Action Cancer as far as i can see). It might be worth checking it out to see how it works. THere is a website improvedontmove.org and a number to call Paul@07745 020854.
If you contact hem will you post a response to see what its about as i wouldnt mind getting a bit of work done at home myself and am nervous about contacting an architect - i dont know if they would be interested or how much they cost."

motorguy

mofopants wrote: »

he did say we could do it for less, but to get a decent finish it would be arppox £75.

I am not too fussed on putting a 20k kitchen in, but I do want a nice house at the end of the process and having been in some of our friends newly developed houses, the finish has definitely been scrimped on to keep costs down.

I think £75 a sq foot is probably bang on, and possibly even a little low, if you were to include finishing the outside of the house - fencing, edging, driveways, gates, landscaping. Ours came out at £82.50 a sq foot when you included the £23K of siteworks.

Also, as others have said the cost of raw materials is going up, as is the cost of labour. The contractor who built our house is pretty much at a standstill at the moment because the brickies / roofers / plasterers that he subcontracts the work to have put their prices up so much to the point that he cant compete with those contractors who are will to cut corners, use low quality materials and use cheap inexperienced labour.