# Cost of building a house



## XabiAlonso

Hi 
I am considering building a house on a site that I own and selling it when built. It is in the countryside. I was wondering what are the average prices per squae foot that a builder would charge to build a house. I plan to build a 4 bedroom in the order of 2500 square feet.

Thanks
xabi


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## Winnie

& that is the reason that people that genuinely want to build one off houses to live in for their whole lives have a problem getting planning permission!!

You will have to agree a 5 year ( I think) occupation period for planning permission to be granted........are you going to do this?


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## Cityliving

I think that 5 year provision may be dependent on the area in which you build the property. I also think that as long as the person building the house is responsible and builds within the tastes of the area why should there be a problem. If they build a good home in keeping with the area and sell it to someone who wants to live in the area as opposed to building a holiday home which is left idle for most of the year I cant see a problem.


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## Cityliving

Oh and price per sq foot I think that its approx 120 per square foot, 2500 sq ft houses can cost up to 300K to build but then again 2500sq ft is a generous house.


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## buyingabroad

I heard that it's €2,000 per sq m for high end finish. Can someone else do the conversions!!


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## Zutz

The cost of construction can vary greatly depending on the location of the build, complexites of the design and the level of finish required. I'am building a c. 3,000 sq.ft detached property in Donegal through a contractor for €300,000 or €100 per sq.ft. The following site maybe of help where you can see construction costs for the different regions. http://irish-house-plans.com/


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## thefisherman

a cousin of mine built a 3500 sq foot house on his own site for 150k, mind you,he works construction so he did all the concrete, blockwork and plastering himself.got the roof on himself with a carpenter friend.laid the underfloor heating pipes himself etc, made a few rooms ready to live in and will finish the rest over time.that is, paint and furnish, which wisely, he is leaving to his wife.
he took a year off work to do all this so i guess another 50k in lost wages so call it 200k to build.
this option is ,of course ,not for everyone.


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## propertyprof

thefisherman said:


> a cousin of mine built a 3500 sq foot house on his own site for 150k, mind you,he works construction so he did all the concrete, blockwork and plastering himself.got the roof on himself with a carpenter friend.laid the underfloor heating pipes himself etc, made a few rooms ready to live in and will finish the rest over time.that is, paint and furnish, which wisely, he is leaving to his wife.
> he took a year off work to do all this so i guess another 50k in lost wages so call it 200k to build.
> this option is ,of course ,not for everyone.


 
Did she leave him because he spent a full year on site and never came home??

Average constructions rates for a two storey on off house in the UK are approximately £90 psf - (x 1.4 equates to approx) 126 euros, (divide by 0.0929 for sqm) so that sounds about right when compared to the figures that have already been quoted.


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## Culchie

I'm about to build a decent sized house in the North West, and am still undecided what way to go about building, as I've been advised so many different things.
'Builders' are incredibly difficult to get hold of, might have to wait up to 1 year in some cases ..... but if there's one available tomorrow morning, you have top ask yourself ...*why?*
Builders tend to be far more expensive, especially if they are good.
Sub-Contracting myself .... not really an option, as I don't know enough about the construction business, and I would be a cowboys dream customer 
Employing a 'Foreman' ..... leaning towards this at the moment, have been given the name of a couple of people... they hire in the required tradesmen (as per sub-contracting option) and are basically paid a 'project management' fee.  I'm told this option could save up to 40% of building costs if you employ the 'right man'.

Opinions welcome?


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## mickeyg

Following on from the options being considered by Culchie how much roughly would the "project manager" cost for a house building project? 
Generally with this arrangement would it be up to that project manager to source the various tradesmen?

m


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## Culchie

mickeyg said:


> Following on from the options being considered by Culchie how much roughly would the "project manager" cost for a house building project?
> Generally with this arrangement would it be up to that project manager to source the various tradesmen?
> 
> m


 
Yes that it the idea, you agree a 'fee' with the PM, he in turn supervises your house construction.

Indeed he may have 3 or 4 houses on the go at the same time, but he is there on a daily basis and looks after the logistics/ordering materials and labour etc...

I've heard fees of €20000 mentioned, so if he does have 3 or 4 projects on the go, he has a good number..... but at same time €20k is easily spent, so they are good value.... if they are a good PM !!


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## jem

my brother is building at the moment did a good deal @€75 psf normally €85 but a job had fallen through on the builder and the timeing was good. a lot to have just one person responsible ie builder as opposed to the sparks no it was the plumber no it was the plasterer etc. I have been there.

bytw is that culchie from boards?


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## Culchie

jem said:


> bytw is that culchie from boards?


 
It is, Jem


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## Glazer FC

The Society of Chartered Surveyors have an insurance-related cost of building guide which may be of use. Good luck!


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## collite

Hi Guys,

Hope to start building a house shortly, was wondering if anybody had an up to date costing on a sq ft ptice for direct labour and using a builder.

Thanks


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