Blog

by *Mike Fournier, CAPS, CPB

Comparing apples to apples for remodeling homes and for new home construction is a common trap that people easily fall into.  According to Wikipedia, there are over 7,500 different types of apples.  Which apple are you comparing?  Instead of comparing an apple, it is best to find a knowledgeable, competent builder or remodeler that you can trust.  Then work with them from the land purchase, to building design, to project completion.  Building or remodeling a home is a long, sometimes stressful relationship.  

If you are a builder or remodeler, you and the customer must insist on blueprints and a detailed spec sheet for the scope of work that coincides with the blueprints.  Please, do not fall into the trap of cost p.s.f. as it will doom your budget to failure.

When clients begin researching a builder or remodeler for their home; most often the first question asked is – “What is your price per square foot?”  Most people believe this is the best way to get an idea of what it will cost to build or remodel their home.  The misconception is the potential customer believing that a builder or remodeler can give them an accurate ballpark price based on another home they saw on the builder’s website, or on social media – because the square footage is similar.

Unfortunately – this is not the right question to ask a builder or remodeler when starting to develop a long relationship.  What is really happening is the builder or remodeler (who has frequently been cold-called by the prospective client, sight unseen of any drawings or specs; and without the customer performing any due diligence on the builder or remodeler) is now being forced with that question to give a starting point to at least capture the potential client’s confidence.  If he does that though, it will then melt like a snowball in south Texas in the hot sun once the builder sees the plans and begins giving true costs (which are always higher) and the potential client is still stuck on the original price quoted as if it were the Gospel of Mark.

The REAL Factors That Make Up Price Per Square Foot:

Will your house cost $200 per square foot or $1,500 per square foot or $7,000 per square foot to build or remodel?  It is impossible to say based on a builder or remodeler not seeing any finished blueprints, not having any idea of interior or exterior specifications, etc.  

Living space size of the home and property lor or land size is not enough to gage a ballpark price per square foot from; even though builders and remodelers might try to give you an idea.

If you choose to go this route, you will end up feeling like you might have fallen for the “bait and switch” when the builder or remodeler tells you the initial price per square foot given over the phone has now increased and you have just spent weeks (or months) in the courtship process.  Even if it is increased by only $50 a square foot, multiply that by an average size house 3,500 s.f., and that is an increase of $175,000!  Any builder or remodeler that gives you a price per square foot over the phone without having seen the finished working plans from your architect or designer, or has not met with you, or has not walked your property etc., is NOT providing you with a professional and honest answer ~ and you should prepare yourself for unhappy surprises.

Lot or LAND Prices are as different as the elevation of your home:

Would you like a 50’ wide beach front lot with total square footage of .1 of an acre along 30A in Florida?  Well, be prepared to spend $2 to $5 million for it.  Compared to Tulsa, you can buy a beautiful 5-acre track in Claremore for $200,000.  Or, if you want to live in the original mid-Tulsa location, a decent lot can run $300,000.  But, lots scattered all around Tulsa in the non-hot neighborhoods can be had for as low as $50,000.  

Bottom line: the total cost of your home INCLUDES the cost of your lot or land.  This is obvious to many that resell a home.  The value of the land is NEVER separated from the sales price of the home when you list it with a Realtor.  

But you say, I don’t want new construction, I want to remodel.  No problem, as you just eliminated the cost of the lot or land ~ IF YOU ALREADY OWN IT ~ otherwise, you are still paying the current value for the price of the lot or land when you buy the home.  And everyone knows that remodeling costs “on average ~ according to the NAHB” are 40% to 60% more expensive than new construction. 

All Rooms Are Not Created Equal:

Some rooms are much more expensive than others.  Kitchens contain the expensive items of cabinets, appliances, flooring, lighting, and countertops.  They have more lights, power hook-ups, gas and plumbing connections, and tile or granite or Quartz counters and backsplashes.  Bathrooms contain a lot of plumbing piping and fixtures, tile floors, tile showers, tubs, and walls.  Kitchens and bathrooms, and theatres are the most expensive rooms; and price per s.f. is way higher in these rooms when building or remodeling.For example, kitchens can cost $5,000 p.s.f., while a living room might only be $300 p.s.f.

Just look at the cost of appliances.  Just to name a few, but Wolf, Viking, and SubZero pricing can be up to 1,000% more expensive than Samsung, LG, Frigidaire, or GE.

The lower cost rooms in your house are rooms that are built within the roof structure, i.e., the attic, garage, or a basement (if you live in a part of the country with basements).  The shape of a roof over a room with a flat ceiling creates an attic space that is going to be constructed whether you finish off the attic or not.  Because most houses have a sloped roof, an attic is the by-product.

The steeper the roof, the greater the volume of space created within the attic.  For example, a 10/12 roof pitch will have 80% more storage space than a 6/12 roof pitch.  Finishing off attic space is very economical.   

There are several other things that affect the construction cost of building or remodeling your home without adding square footage.  The type of construction, the exterior wall surface materials, the appointments, finishes, and equipment within the house, and the building site are big factors.

A house built with a poured concrete basement, 2×6 stud walls, a slate roof, and a high efficiency heating and air conditioning system will be a lot more costly than one built on a concrete slab with 2×4 stud walls, an asphalt roof, and a basic heat pump.  

A house built with radiant heat, wood windows, slate roof, concrete tile roof, and oversized custom cabinets will be a lot more costly than one built with a basic forced air furnace, vinyl windows, asphalt roof and a minimum of cabinets.

A house with a stone exterior is more expensive than one with composite siding or brick.  A house with a Sub-Zero refrigerator, and a Viking range, Bosch dishwasher, and exotic 3cm granite will cost eons more than one with a basic free-standing Frigidaire refrigerator and laminate countertops.

A house built on a steep slope will cost more than one built on flat land because of piered walls, stepped footings, or retaining walls.  All of these houses could be exactly the same square footage, but the constructions cost, and their cost per square foot, would vary wildly.  

Each of these are excellent examples of why you should not put much faith into an “cost per square foot apples to apples” exercise.

* Mike Fournier is a multiple National, State, and Local award-winning contractor, and is the 2021 Builder of The Year.  The NAHB awarded him with a National Remodeler award in 2017, and a National Builder Award in 2019 and again in 2023.Mike has been published in Qualified Remodeler magazine, and he has also published over 700 business blogs.  Additionally, Mike has won many local “Best Of” awards, and several state awards over the years.  Mike is the proud owner and founder of SonriseConstruction.com since 2000, and has served over 11,000 customers as a custom builder and remodeler.Mike holds the professional designations of CBC, CGB, and CAPS.  License #CBC1265832.