Sydney Architect Adam Pressley FRAIA runs a residential practice designing homes. 'We focus on our clients brief, provide designs in 3-dimensions and we can manage just one stage or every stage of the process'. F A Q - Frequently Asked Questions:

How much does it cost to build a house?

---

This is a complex question and depends on many factors as listed below:

• How large will the house be?
  Example: 300sqm, four bedroom, three bathroom, two cars


• What materials will the house be constructed from?
  Example: Full brick and render


• What quality of fit-out will the house have?
  Example: Timber and stone


• What area is the house located in?
  Example: Regional or council area


• What type of site will the house be built on?
  Example: Steeply sloping


• What environmental factors may affect the house?
  Example: In a bushfire prone area


• What sort of access does the site have?
  Example: A narrow lane only


• How complex is the design?
  Example: The 'wow' factor or high perimeter area

---

Without considering the above factors, there are some square metre rates that are frequently used for 'ball park' estimating:

• Project homes cost between $900-$1800 / sqm


• Custom designed homes can cost between $2500 - $4000 / sqm or more for luxury homes

These square metre rates usually only refer to the area of the house measured to the outside of the external walls, and do not include work outside of this area such as swimming pools, driveways, decks, and siteworks or landscaping.

To accurately find out the cost of a project you can use a Quantity Surveyor (QS) or Building Cost Estimator. Builders costings are often not reliable early on in the design process and can increase greatly when the full scope of work is revealed. Builders also do not tend to provide a detailed costing list as a QS would.

Back to FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

---

Copyright All Australian Architecture 2009