Measuring House Cost Per Square Foot Can Be Misleading
The price of a house in its square foot measurement is used as a convenient unit of quoting and comparing the actual cost of the house. Most of the architects say that their clients are interested in getting a rough estimate by looking at the square foot rate and then rounding it up to an even number. But since the rate of inflation began to show a constant rise through these years, this way of getting an approximate house cost per square foot has become inadequate. Moreover the rising prices of building materials has also increased the cost of constructing non-living areas such as underground fittings of sewer and basic utilities, porches, garages and driveway. These costs are not included in the "per square foot calculation" but now they make a huge difference to the overall cost of construction.
Thus things like interiors of the kitchen and fittings of the bathroom should be carefully calculated while placing the allowances or checking the item wise break up given to you by your contractor. As, these attract a lot of extra investment these days. The home cost per square foot measurement is a bargaining counter for the buyers and sellers in the real estate market. Thus, if someone has built a house with a lot of investment in the interiors of the living space, it is an added advantage for increasing the sales value at the rate of per square foot. But it is a very limited gain, because at the end of the day, the customers would come down to the basics and look at your framing, furnace, heating system, the plumbing fittings and above all the locality. The ultimate choice of a buyer of a house is the best living space in the limited amount of money. As most houses built go for a resale, while building a new house you should take care of its potential of reselling. In this case, house cost per square foot measurement can be a disadvantage. For, it discounts many vital building components. Similarly while buying also, house cost per square foot measurement can be misleading. The garage or the basement, which is outside this estimation, is also important. A luxurious driveway might raise the square foot price and decrease the value of the living space. Thus, a universal square foot rate is not possible. It will always have regional and geographical variation both for the builder and the buyer. Secondly, it will not be an adequate estimate to consider costs. All other areas of cost per square foot to build a house have to be separately calculated to get an overall figure. |
