Building a custom home is a major undertaking and a milestone event for most people. It is more than likely the largest investment you will make in your life.
As you prepare and begin planning for your new home build, there is a lot of information to gather and the task can appear daunting. There is general information that you will gather along the way as well as very specific information you will want to know before making the final decision on what builder you end up choosing.
1. Cost to Build a Home in Texas
If you have been dreaming of building your new custom home in the Ft. Worth area chances are you are more than aware of the financial investment involved. Going into the project with realistic expectations is crucial as well as knowing what your non negotiables are vs. what areas you might pull back on.
Most custom home acreage lots start at $70,000 for a 1 acre lot and can push well over $350,000 for a 10acre+ lot. After the cost of the land, you factor in the cost to build the home of your dreams which can averaging between $200 – $300per Sqft. Establishing a preliminary budget before you fall in love with a piece of land or particular floor plan is important to ensure the land, floor plan, and finish out can fit your total projected investment.
2. Factors that affect Home Building Cost
The two factors that have the greatest impact on the total cost to build; location and floor plan. It is very important to have a trusted builder analyze a prospective property to assess the development cost before purchasing a property. We have seen development costs range from $6,000 to over $40,000 to simply get a property “Build Ready”.
The floor plan and architectural style of a home has a major impact on the overall cost to build. From the complexity of a roof layout to the size of the porches and garage, those two items alone have a significant impact on the total price per Sqft. The total square footage under roof as well as the quality of materials and fixtures has the greatest impact on your project price. You want to fully understand what feature level is being priced into your home when a builder offers you pricing.
3. Questions to quickly qualify a Builder
The processes employed by a builder to ensure the home stays on schedule, within budget, and with quality at the forefront is of the utmost importance. What we call the “fundamentals” are monthly budget reviews, weekly project status updates, milestone on site homeowner meetings to review work completed and discuss upcoming next steps. If one of the “fundamentals” is missed communication breaks down and expectations go un-fulfilled.