Cost Per Square Foot
 

Ok. A difficult question but what are ranges for the cost of new construction per square foot, excluding land, in the Lakes Region? I have a friend who is building a beach house on the sea coast just off the water and he is paying $436 a square foot. I was blown away by that cost. Spending $1,200,000 for 2,750 square feet. Lots of high end deck space and the house is on specialty piers but it seems like an extreme price to pay. He owned the land outright so that was outside of the construction cost. Can anything get built in the lakes region for $300 a square foot or has the escalating labor and building material costs made this an impossible target. Or did my friend get taken?

Another question, how far out are the builders. Is it possible to line up a good company for 2023?

Thanks!

www.winsorhomes.com, a modular home builder in Meredith will easily beat the pants off that price, $436./sq' for new house construction ... omg! ... yikes! ... go modular!

www.winsorhomes.com/gallery.php

Depending on the quality of the builder, the timeline is years.
Depending on what they are building $436 may be the appropriate cost.

You can alter the cost and timeline through several different choices in the timeline.

I have heard many times the numbers of $400 sq/ft + multi year waitlists and I have no doubt that is the case. I am just starting the design to do a 20x20 addition to my existing house. Total of 800 sq ft, 2 floors with big playroom on first and bedroom and bath on second. I can't imagine that will cost me over 320k! With no kitchen it's really just a finished garage. Anyone care to give me a guess on what I will spend with an average finish?

Interesting topic. Our kitchen half bath renovation begins next month. Project costs have increased over 40% since the first sit down with the contractor over 20 months ago. Yes, almost two years since we first started speaking with local contractors. Very difficult to pay almost $300 a sq foot. However, do we wait until prices drop? Wait another two years after that to schedule? Much of that increase is labor. Keeping good help and hiring new in the lakes region has become a job in itself. Product lead times are what surprised me the most. Kitchen cabinets 20 weeks. Windows and doors 12 to 14 weeks. Flooring 6 to 8 weeks. Appliances 12 to 22 weeks. Most were ordered back in October and hoping for the best.
I am sure the first batch of pancakes with the grandkids will be well worth it all.


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Though sometimes not buying the most expensive items of a new build, renovations and additions can actually cost more per square foot as many of the choices were made with the original structure.

Prefab?
 

I'd look at custom prefab. At least the scheuuling is more precise and you aren't depending on the health of one guy to keep things moving. You also aren't depending on one guy who overbooks and can't keep his promises. Of course, you can't show up at the site and ask to move a wall six inches.

I think the question for the seacoast friend is whether he is building a modest home, a luxe home, or something in between. For a luxe home, it is "easy" to drop $400+/foot--complex foundation, granite, lots of woodwork, high ceilings, lots of glass, premium materials every place else....On a cash basis, this may be easy for your friend since the land is free. On an investment basis, this may be the only rational choice for a piece of land that is likely super valuable itself.

Four hundred in our area is pretty reasonable for high end.

I walked through his almost complete home and it is certainly nice but not anything that blew me away. The lot is directly across the street from the ocean with an access lane to the beach steps from his front door. I suppose finding a new house across from a beach with 2,750 square feet for less than $2,000,000 is impossible so the price is probably about right once his lot is considered.

The normal lead time for a window is four to six weeks... so when you are seeing fourteen to twenty-six, that is a signal from the industry

Interior doors and unfinished exterior doors lead time should be a week to ten days... so when we are seeing six weeks to as long as twelve months (yeah months), that is a signal from the industry.

Can I get product with the normal lead times? Traditional products for this area... no problem.