Part 3; The Effect of Finish-Out Selections on “Price per Square Foot”Understanding “Price per Square Foot” for New Custom Homes in the Greater Austin and Hill Country areas of Texas

In this final section of “understanding price and cost per square foot” we will examine the effects of Finish-Out Selections on the ultimate cost to build a custom home.

In the prior discussions on the topic, we covered plan design and geometry, development costs and the effect of outdoor living areas in the new home budget. So, the question of “how much per square foot can you build a 4000 square foot home for” is essentially unanswerable without more information. Some of that information will come from you, the home buyer. Specifically, what features you want in your home.

Let’s examine a few line items. For the purposes of this exercise, we will stay with the example of a 4000 square foot custom home used in Parts 1 & 2 of this series. To upgrade from a composition shingle roof to either a tile or metal roof on our subject home will cost approximately $30,000 more at approximately $7.50/ per square foot (PSF). To change from high efficiency, low E vinyl windows and exterior doors to a clad wood window and door system you will need another $40,000 at $10/ PSF. Today people don’t use carpeting nearly as much as when most of us were growing up. The result, wood, travertine or other natural stone products and many tiles are easy $10/PSF more to buy than “nice” carpeting. Over the entire home, add another $10/PSF to the total cost. Cabinets have morphed into another expensive line item all together! Today buyers want cabinets in virtually every room…custom designed cabinets that are stained and with all of the bells and whistles that are now available. You guessed it, another $6 to $9/PSF, garage sizes, patio floor covering, lighting, kitchen appliances (one customer spent $ 7,000 on her refrigerator), trim details and many other owners selected items to affect the final number of our original 4000 square foot home.

The bottom line is, giving you a “price per square foot” of a home in Greater Austin without knowing much more about the factors discussed in these three sections is virtually impossible for us at Zbranek & Holt Custom Homes. Or anyone else for that matter!

As I mentioned previously, “How much per square foot?” is greatly determined by the location of the new custom home, the size, the design and finish out of the outdoor living area, as well as the overall finish out selections outlined here. Hopefully, this series has demonstrated that if someone is prepared to quote a price per square foot of a new custom home out of thin air, (not seeing the site, building or finish out) they are making assumptions in these areas that may not be valid for the subject project.

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Zbranek & Holt Custom Homes is a Hall-of-Fame, 2 Time National Master Home Builder and renovation specialist serving the greater Austin and the Texas Hill Country areas with over 38 years of building experience, we offer fixed-price full service and collaborate closely with skilled architects to expertly deliver on our client’s individual preferences.

Every Zbranek & Holt Home is designed and built for the way you live!