Cost to Build Small Designer Home by Owner

[@glennmcintosh4802]

Thank you, THank you, THank you - we used to build starter homes in this country - this is badly needed

[@Chris_at_Home]

My wife and I built a small 600 sqft house 10 years ago. It has a full foundation so we have a utility room there along with storage. All in it costs us $90,000 not including the land. It cost over $6,000 just to get power to the lot.

[@ToddBizCoach]

But your example is not the most commonplace. It’s not usual for people to pay $6k for power hook up. You have no economy of scale by building so small.

[@wardengrn]

Love it. Have had that plan in favorites for sometime. I have a friend that built a small home first and then built his full-time house while living in the small home. Now, the small home is the in-laws suite. Builders are building junk in Myrtle Beach. Cookie cutter and plain ugly with no character. Wish more built like this, owner builder and custom looking. Only a few here and there show up and they disappear quickly off the market.

[@Togglefree]

I've looked at this plan in the past. A very nice small home to consider!

[@nelsonphilldarell]

Some tiny homes can have this level of design aesthetic and cost less than $40,000 especially if you're in Texas, San Francisco, Atlanta Australia or some parts of Canada. From experience I'll suggest TinyPocket Homes

[@EchoSigma6]

I can see myself getting one of these. Maybe a large car port on the side, a short shipping container in the back yard for storage, and an above ground solar panel setup with a garden underneath.

[@paulmeek537]

This design looks ideal for a cabin Airbnb

[@tamara8908]

I love this house! I would opt for 9 ft ceilings and no ornamental beams. Otherwise it's perfect!

[@optymusblu]

Is this a raised slab? If so what do you think about the raised slabs?

[@pmd5428]

Why have you not gone up? To a two story for economics, allowing a smaller foot print with less concrete. Is there a formula to put in play or just estimate both separately, I suppose?

[@jamesgill5511]

It can cost less for the same square footage when going to multiple stories thanks to a smaller foundation and roof, but single story homes are often a better solution for some people. This is especially true for seniors.

[@jerrypauling7809]

Wonder if you could save by doing this as a barndo.

[@saltayre-qq2ou]

What is the plan number for this home?

[@D.N.R.911]

Thanks for sharing

[@DONALD1951]

Very nice.

[@hinklej2]

Can you do a video for 4 bedroom?

[@richardrhee57]

Great :)

[@daviddunn1923]

For a DIY, $189,000 is a high cost to build.

[@jochimbenschneider1915]

I agree. Where are these homes he’s talking about? Get specific.

[@mycrochetobsession]

It’s $150 per sq. ft. That’s reasonable in 2024 Texas. I can’t imagine building anything like this for less than I doubt that estimate includes concrete foundation.

[@MontanaGrizzsky]

That’s still paying subs You can build this for sub 100k easy

[@jamesgill5511]

@@MontanaGrizzsky "𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘣 100𝘬 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘺" Maybe, maybe not based on the location. Here in rural PA, and certainly at my TN property in a 'no code' jurisdiction, a basic mid-tier self build of that house might be doable for $100k. In other areas, particularly those with higher population densities(this house really is designed for narrow lots after all), building codes often leave no choice but to go with higher performance and higher cost materials. There are jurisdictions where code requires all new constructed homes have a blower door test performed and meet certain standards. That's harder to do with lower cost windows or doors. Code may require an HVAC system that exchanges a minimum amount of inside/outside air per hour. A mini-split won't cut it so you might need to add an ERV or HRV. Code may require higher effective r-values than are possible with simple 2x4 stud framing and batt insulation. The list goes on and is why I will never again live in areas like that but other people do.

[@St34mPunkPrivateer]

So, do you think I would have a massive cost savings if I only had labor done for the shell, so foundation/framing/exterior siding and roof/ furance/AC ? The electrical , drywall, flooring, ducting Id be able to handle, plus the plumbing if I had a blueprint to work off of .

[@ToddBizCoach]

Look into building foundation on up to rafters with ICFs. You can DIY and save a ton of money. Then you could have framers put on trusses and floor joists, roof and siding and windows and trim work.

[@marcielynn4886]

My home cost 5G and 3G to move it and 3G to set up solar and infrastructure.

[@kojakdurham]

I usually like the designs you have, but this one, the kitchen in particular, is a bit odd. It doesn't follow the standard 'kitchen triangle', the points of which include the sink, the stove, and the refrigerator. I know you mentioned having the window, but from the perspective of a chef, it makes kitchen workflow disjointed to have to go around the island to get to the sink when doing meal prep. If you put the sink in the island, that solves the issue, but makes the kitchen work area a bit tight. I'll have to ponder how to make that layout better.

[@someonerobloxytroadto200su8]

If it cost you more than 65k to build this house, you are just bad at buying lumber lol...People have been duped in to paying 300% more for a house. same with the morons paying 90k for a truck

[@jtalias]

Can you please explain why the toilet must have a separate room in the master bath? I am preparing to build a 2400sqft home for myself, so no one else would be in there when I would and don’t see the need for the potty to be separate. Would resale value be so negatively affected? I plan to live in the home for at least 10 years.

[@Recklessness97]

Just a personal thing. Some people don't like having their significant other or whoever in the bathroom showering, brushing their teeth, or doing something while their taking a poop or peeing. The separate room for the toilet allows someone to be in the bathroom while another person is doing their business. Not really a thing in old homes but almost every new home has it. At the end of the day I don't think it would really hurt or help resale value. I'm not realtor or house designer though.

[@rangerdoc1029]

We're spoiled

[@dozydoedown859]

just think how nasty that private bath doorknob is! if i were to have a private toilet area i would add a small sink to wash hands BEFORE going out the door into the main bath area.

[@dozydoedown859]

also how on earth can a handicap person wheel a chair into one of those private toilet rooms

[@fraza9807]

I thought the average cost to build should not be more than $114- 120 sq ft to save money (assuming one is taking a role of GC). This is $150/sq ft. Seems high to me.

[@DONALD1951]

It’s about $300 a SF fora quality home today.

[@ToddBizCoach]

@@DONALD1951 depends where you live and if you don t know much about building.

[@greyalien9074]

What state is this ? If this is 189 k that means my crappy house is worth a half mil .America is so crazy I think capitalism is making ppl greedy and stupid . No way this is 190 k they are trying to rip ppl off

[@dollydog5]

I'm going to take this class within the upcoming few months. I plan to build in a HCOL, where the GC % really makes or breaks things for us. We will need the walkout basement option. And we will need a 1000 ft shop. So the cost rises, of course, but my idea is to build a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment above the shop to serve as a short term rental. The Colorado location where we want to build is highly desirable, but including these additional options should allow for a nice income stream to supplement the mortgage. Also, the kitchen and living room are a little too small for us, so it seems like an easy option to add square footage to the length of the structure. I think we can accomplish this, comfortably and conservatively estimated, for under $500K, which is below what we can qualify for, even at today's interest rates. In terms of resale, we could sell the property I've described for $800k. That would be a tidy profit for us to roll into our forever home. That said, given affordability is an issue, we have discussed using a plan like this to build 2 homes at the same time. One would be for us to live in for a few years, and the other would be an "affordable" option with an unfished basement, and 2 car garage. We think we can turn a good profit on something like that where we want to go, and even price it below the avg. price per sq ft for the area... addressing the pressing need for more affordable, quality housing. Additionally, this home would work nicely as a cabin in the woods vs. a farmhouse with the current design. We'd just choose a Hardi siding color that was more of a cabin look, with more of an overhang on the roof to shed snow further away from the house. This is a great house. Thanks for sharing, Michael. I'm tempted to bite. *** Looking at this further, the plans could be modified slightly to include a half story making for a second floor game room, office, or even storage. If the budget were to allow, a larger dormer would make the space for usable.

[@rangerdoc1029]

Be careful. The consensus is that the US will be in deep recession by 2025. Don't count those chickens before you even have any eggs.

[@byrde4329]

What part of Colorado?

[@magulapagula2123]

👍🏻

[@carylhalfwassen8555]

Kitchen is a no for me. Terrible work flow, but it looks nice.

[@tamara8908]

I really like it but I often have multiple chefs in the kitchen, i like that each work station is not on top of each other.

[@Orlando_63s]

😍👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@rangerdoc1029]

$150/sq ft for owner builder? That's nuts!

[@dollydog5]

It's not nuts anymore.

[@ToddBizCoach]

Depends what part of the country you build in. That price is nuts for Midwest.

[@dollydog5]

@@ToddBizCoach The cost to build where we are looking in Colorado (mountains) is about $330-350/sf. $150 seems like a steal.

[@ToddBizCoach]

@@dollydog5 that’s not the cost if you are the owner builder is it? You really need to get a cost breakdown; materials vs labor. Unless all the finish work is coated with gold, materials should not be more than $60/sq ft.

[@dollydog5]

@@ToddBizCoach Materials costs are one thing, but shipping them into The Rockies where there are no major highways costs more. Additionally, subcontractors cost a lot more because there is a shortage of skilled labor, their cost of doing business is higher, and the cost of living is high there. We are looking at 3 acres. That's about $$180-225K for land alone. So, to your point, we really do need a good cost breakdown and that's my goal for the next several months. I'm going to take Michael's class. Based on what I'm seeing, 2000 sf new construction on a quarter to a half acre lot in town will run you about $700-750K. That assumes there's a general contractor. I find that obscene. Given those prices, we have to go the owner-builder route to save the GC costs. We will also do some of the work ourselves, where we can and know we will do an excellent job.

[@Bromo_Sexual]

90% of houses in America are low quality at high prices.

[@enigmaticennui]

Jesus Christ, there really is no hope

[@ToeFerTalks]

What Profesional builder uses the term "HOT" water heater?

[@curtishancock432]

What term do they use then?

[@ToeFerTalks]

@curtishancock432 a water heater, a "hot water heater" is a boiler, just a pet peve of mine

[@curtishancock432]

@@ToeFerTalks 😂😂ok. It's funny ,people call it that all the time where I live it .

[@johnnyboy13642]

Used all the time in the midwest.

[@ToeFerTalks]

People can use it all they want doesn't make it correct, I just had it drilled into my head working on them so much over the years

[@letstalktruecrime01]

are you kidding? . i could buy a 4 bedroom for that much. if not less.

[@DONALD1951]

That’s cheap …

[@chadlegaultgmail]

It would be nice if the side overhangs were longer to help protect the windows and siding.

[@ToddBizCoach]

Agree about the overhangs. Classy look is 24” overhang.

[@ToddBizCoach]

Standing seam metal roof makes it look like a pole barn. Metal is more than 2x to 3x cost of asphalt shingles.