On Jan 2, 1:55*pm, "
wrote:
Hello everyone,

We are looking to build a 3000 sq ft home in Fl. 4-5 bedrooms 3 baths.
We are looking at some of the owner builder programs. Does anyone have
any advice on cost and how to go about hiring subs, making sure work
is done right?
About how much would a project like this cost?

Thanks in advance.
T. Stevenson

Hi Taryn,

I think if you have no experience in building, or have familly /
friends who are in the trade, then I would avoid trying to do it. I
built a home in New York from the ground up, including blasting rock
with dynamite. However I had a very good General contractor and an
Architect.

The most risk on a build is the site. I.E. no one knows what is under
the land. Will it support the weight of the house? Is it swampy? In my
case I had to blast, and no one knew the cost of the excavation /
foundation. Once the foundation is in, the rest of the house pircing
can be predicted pretty accurately.

From your E-mails it looks like you already have a site. Maybe it is
familly land or are you thinking of buying it. If you need to buy the
land, bring along an expert. Can something really be built there?

If you already have the land, I think your next step is to hire a good
architect. A good one will know the cost of a build, and be able to
advise you. My Architect charged about $US 100 per hour. So if you are
at the exploration stage, you need to keep a tight rein on his work
hours. All you need is to see how much you need to spend to see if you
can afford what you want and what is possible. This should be no more
than maybe one site visit, and maybe another 3 hours or so work. At
the end he should be able to sit down with you, and tell you where you
are at.

Costs are really difficult to predict, but in general I would say
whatever you think + 30%. I would also say about $US 250 a square foot
is a "Nicely Equiped" house in car buying parlance. On top of the 250
per sq foot, I would add additional money for basics: Well, Sewage,
Electricity, Driverway. My land was very rocky so I had a $US 100,000
charge for all the blasting and rock work, so do not get caught out on
the basic infrastucture costs.

Good luck and I hope you achive your dream. Note that houses around
you are cheap due to the property crash. However I would also say,
construction costs are also cheap. Material costs are lower,
construction peoples prices are lower. Also less lag time in trying to
get a good carpenter etc.

Warmest regards, Mike.