I think the best way to save money on a home is on the trim and finishes.

10%

What is that room in the upper left corner? Can you eliminate whatever that is, and move the lower left room one row to the right by squaring that off with the main section?

Make the garage a carport for now.

Master bath toilet backing on to BR 2 will transmit lots of noise late at nite when adults go to bed and a kid is trying to sleep.

MBR closet's onlyaccess is through the bathroom. Seriously? Ewww. And not practical nor private for a shared bath.

There is a lot of wasted space in the front entry.

6 elevation changes on the front means lots of extra money framing the roof. Simplify.

Honestly, without a lot more detail no one will really be able to help you cut 10% off the costs of the build. We would need elevations and a roof plan and some information on desired finish levels to even take a stab at it.

Of course, there is the standard simple roof and simple shape advice and that is great for someone who doesn't have a plan and is looking at cost savings. However, the marginal cost of scrapping what you have so far and starting again has to approach the point of diminishing returns.

So what does the roof look like and what are you envisioning for elevations?

Build a different house, one where you can't hear the urinal activity from the Family Room.

Build a two story home, decrease the roofline. Also know that most new build will end 15% higher than planned.................so if you need ti cut 10% maybe not this home from the get go,

Does the number you want to decrease by 10% already include you picking your final selections out? For instance our builder sent us to the cabinet place, granite place, flooring and so on and figured in exactly what we wanted into the final number.

If you don't already have your builder on board, I recommend you add them to the design team. They will have knowledge of local material and labor costs that we don't and put them in a better position to assist with your cost cutting efforts.

Best wishes for a successful project.

Simplify the front ins and outs and make the bedrooms' bathrooms back to back. The WIC should be accessible from the bedroom, not the bathroom. There's an awful lot of wasted space in the foyer. The garage is huge compared to the house size.

A house is more than simply a floor plan.

A house is an integrated construction consisting of all the floor plans, site planning and development, exterior elevations and roof plan.

If the OP seriously wants advice about saving money during construction, then all these drawings will have to be posted.

Otherwise, with only this floor plan to go on, it's pennys here and pennys there in the form of savings.

This is more nickel-and-dime stuff, but remove the bumpout from the garage. While you’re at it, shave off the entire lower edge of the garage so it lines up with the house edge on the left. The garage is HUGE now.

Another nickel -- single sink vanity for the non-master full bathroom.

It would help to know how many people are going to live here, their ages, what you do in the family room, how many do you need to seat in the dining room, at the island, etc.

We will have my wife and 4 boys living in this house.

There is also another bedroom in the basement

File 13 this. It’ll be more than 10% over where you want to be. You need something 25% smaller, eith 8’ ceilings, and more simple in shape. And keep your I Want list under control. Carpet and vinyl, not hardwood and tile. Slab on grade, no basement. No bumpouts or bump ins. The more you can make it look like a house trailer, the cheaper it will be.

If you want small and with character, not looking like a house trailer, you need to hire an architect.

Or just buy existing. Your money will go further.

Thanks for your comment but no thanks. It was done by an architect.

That’s designed by a drafter with delusions of grandeur. Not an actual licensed and registered architect designing independently for you.

As others have said, not enough information to give good advice. But here goes anyway:

• Simplify
• Eliminate stairs and basement
• Go cheap on finishes
• Simplify rooflines, whatever they are
• Reduce square footage, whatever it is
• Simplify

If you post the rest of the drawings you'll get better advice. If there are no other drawings, hire another architect.

There's no mention at Krouse Design's website or Houzz page of anyone on staff who's an actual architect. Mr. Krouse has a "Master of Architecture/Design Visualization" from Bowling Green State University:

Bowling Green State University’s Master of Architecture (M.Arch.) program is for students who intend to become licensed architects. The two-year professional Master of Architecture builds on the four-year pre-professional B.S. in Architecture degree currently in operation—or its equivalent from other institutions.

You need to cut 10 percent but that dining area as drawn is already tight if not impossible for 6 people. Not sure how old your sons are, Jeff, but it *will* be impossible once they achieve full size, plus no extra space for grandparents, friends (yours or theirs), etc.

Designing to a particular budget target is the single most difficult thing we do as custom home designers (licensed architect on staff) and builders. Because each of our designs is different and the characteristics of building sites can vary quite a bit, it's difficult to use historical cost data from other homes to infer the construction cost of a new project. Add to that the rapidly escalating costs for construction materials and labor and we're basically required to start from scratch when estimating a project.

For a designer or architect to accurately "project a construction budget" at design launch as per your designer's process would require both the homes and the sites on which they are built to be substantially similar and for them to be plugged into cost increases in real time. That's a tall order for a design-only firm.

That said, if your design firm got you within 10% of actual cost to construct, I think they served you pretty well. I can't recall a time when a client brought a set of plans to us that was only 10% over budget. More typically they're 50% or more over budget.

We've found that "value engineering" a plan by changing components, finishes and appliances can achieve at most a 5% to 6% cost savings. To reduce the cost more requires "radical surgery" to a plan.

I'd get a local builder and your designer in the same room and discuss options for reducing the construction cost.

I'm sorry but this was not designed by a LICENSED architect as noted by Becky and it shows in the plan. Honestly it's just poor design, starting with the plan lacking a central "spine". If you'd like me to enumerate further, let me know and I will. :)

I've worked with a number of talented designers and architects over the years who, for various reasons, weren't licensed architects. I've also worked with some lousy ones who were. Ditto for engineers. 50% of all professionals are in the bottom half of their class!

I don't have the benefit of a site plan or elevations, but the majority of the 1st floor plan--including the generously sized garage to the Mudroom, Laundry, Powder Room, Kitchen, Dining, Pantry, and Great Room-- would work well for my family's lifestyle. If the plan meets the OP's needs, I wouldn't suggest throwing it out before exploring value engineering options with a builder and the designer.

“50% of all professionals are in the bottom half of their class”

I had to think about that one for a minute.

Knowing what I know now, and if I were not an architect, if I had to select an architect I would look for a licensed architect with grey hair, has a good reputation, has done nice work, and has spent at least five years in a State or Federal penitentiary. It doesn’t guarantee anything, just increases my chance for success.

@Mark--Yogi Berra lives on in the hearts and minds of those who have hearts and minds.

Hi Jeff:

If you are planning on a finished basement right now, dont' get it finished, that can save you a bit. Downgrading finishes won't save you as much as you think. When I upgraded from Laminate counters to Tier 1 Granite I only paid an extra $800, so not a huge savings. Going with carpet and vinyl is of course cheaper than hardwood.

If you are planning on a stone fireplace, use something different stone is crazy expensive. Or ditch the fireplace completely, you live in Ohio not Alaska, it is decorative not a necessity.

Get rid of the garage bump out and all the windows in there.

Don't put in the back patio yet, save it for a future project, or just pour concrete and forget about the roof until later.

I doubt this will get you down 10%, you don't mention if 10% is $50K or $500K so its hard to know.

As you are considering modifications also take time to actually walk through your home doing daily tasks. Rushing out the door for work, taking laundry to the laundry room (it's a long walk with 3 doorways and 3 corners to navigate with a full basket), etc.

Would you consider a 2-story home, sometimes they can be cheaper to build?

As Yogi also said once, "We made too many wrong mistakes." Words to remember, especially when embarking on a new house project.

“50% of all professionals are in the bottom half of their class”

Actually not true. For example, if 100% of the class had 4.0 GPAs...

You're welcome.

@Virgil--are you from perhaps, Lake Wobegon where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking and all the children are above average?

Budget is 420 build is coming in at 460

That difference is mostly due to the last 9-1/2 months of cost escalation.

Agree with those that say build a rectangle -- and do so w/o a lot of different rooflines.

Another cost saver would be to not build an attached garage -- at least not initially.

You could build an open car shelter -- perhaps even a drive thru one -- rather than a garage, lot size/shape permitting -- perhaps adding a storage closet/room accessible only from from the car shelter -- only from the outside of the house; or

You could prepare the lot for a separate garage to be built later, perhaps to then connect it to the house via either an open breezeway or a screened porch; or

You could create a storage closet accessible from the car shelter (carport) on the opposite side of the car shelter from the house for your mower and yard tools.

The home looks nice. The Architect or designer did a nice job consistent with projects typical of the area, so I'm guessing local builders are pretty sharp on the costs.

If you take a few months to replan, you'll incur more inflation escalation. Usually the builder will have suggestions as Charles Ross says. I am often asked to recommend cuts. Usually they end up spending the money anyway.

My thoughts? Baseline the finishes with pre-priced options. Pay for upgrades as you go. The earlier you make decisions the faster the project will go at the least cost in my experience.

Will you actually be using the fireplace? If not, consider not including it.

Putting two rooms (with plumbing between them) on each side of a great room would give you three bedrooms (needed for parents/sons/daughters) and a "bonus room" that could be used for a guest room or a more formal dining room or a study or a game room -- any purpose.

On one side of the great room put a hallway leading to outside of the home -- perhaps to a carport or perhaps to a porch or breezeway between the home and a garage -- with two doors on each side of the hallway. One door on each side would lead to a bedroom. The other two doors would lead to a full bath (on one side of the hallway) and a laundry room (on the other side of the hallway. The hallway would become the mudroom and all the walls between the four doors could be floor to ceiling cabinets/closets -- a pantry. The bathroom accessible from this hallway could serve as a visitor' powder room, too.

You'd make some changes to a mirror image of that floor plan for the other side of the great room:

... You would want one bedroom for the master bedroom but could leave the second bedroom/bonus room open to the great room and not create a hallway; or

… You could move the hallway from the center, making either the front or back section larger; and/or

… You could have another hallway -- but one that would not go all the way to the exterior wall. Off the half hallway, you could have floor to ceiling cabinets/closets (linen storage, etc., ) between the three doors: one door on one side of the short hall would lead to the master bedroom and another door on the other side of the short hall would lead to the bonus room. The third door in that short hallway at the end of that short hall could lead to powder room -- one with the fixtures in the powder room NOT visible from the great room -- perhaps "L" shaped, with the fixtures ending up beside a large closet in the bonus room.

… that "L" shaped powder room could be connected via a door to a room with a tub/shower combination with, via yet another door, would be accessible from the powder room w/double vanity and dressing area that is a part of the master bedroom suite.

Simply by locking the door to the second powder room from the short hallway, the bath-and-a-half thus created would give the master bedroom a his/her powder room option when the bonus room was not being used as a guest bedroom by overnight visitors -- or handicapped guests: you could make this one powder room larger and more easily used by those with handicaps.

You'd also have the option to have the bonus room accessible from the great room via either a cased opening or French doors if you wanted to use it as your formal dining room and, perhaps, add a Murphy bed so it could be used as a guest bedroom.

Ditch the stone. Ditch the fake craftsman details that don't even go with the style of house. Ditch the arched window over the door. Ditch the garage bump out. Pull the left section of the house down so it is even with the front entry area. Right there you'll save thousands although not as much as you need to.

You need $40K? Have you talked to your faux architect and your builder? They should be your primary source of assistance for this.

Thanks for your comment but no thanks. It was done by an architect.

Respectfully, no. I figured out in about 60 seconds that this was laid out by a designer, not an architect. The firm's name and the city are right there on the drawing; their website discusses designing houses, but the word "architect" is nowhere on their site. If I went to school and earned an architect degree, I'd plaster it on the front page of my website.

I'm not in the camp of "every house must be custom designed, or it's total shite", but I don't like to see people thinking they're getting one thing, while they're really getting something else.

As others have said, not enough information to give good advice. But here goes anyway:

• Simplify
• Eliminate stairs and basement
• Go cheap on finishes
• Simplify rooflines, whatever they are
• Reduce square footage, whatever it is
• Simplify

I agree with most of this ... especially Simplify. And Simplify. With four boys in the house, cheap finishes just make sense.

I would keep the basement (which require a set of stairs) because it's cheap space, and -- as the boys become teens -- you'll need it. However, I would lose the second set of stairs; stairs are quite expensive, and two sets are not needed.

My thoughts on the plan:

- The proportions of this house seem "off".

- Overall, this plan does not value natural light, which is one of the big things people tend to like best in a house. For example, the family room bumps out towards the back, but the plan doesn't take advantage of that expensive choice by adding windows to the sides! And the main living space and kitchen lack natural light.

- I agree with the above poster that the dining room is tight. It'll be fine when it's just the six of you at home, but with a guest ... or as soon as you have that first daughter-in-law, it'll be too small. On the positive side, you could turn the table the other direction when you need more space and could extend the table towards the living room ... but you don't want to pay for a new house and have to do that kind of fix-it when people come over.

- The hinged door by the fireplace would be better as a slider. It wouldn't impede people going from the living room to the back yard.

- The entrance to the master bedroom lacks privacy.

- I'm completely ambivalent about whether the master closet is in the bathroom, but I would hate carrying baskets of clothes (two ways) through the middle of the living space, through the kitchen, and finally into the laundry room.

- Circulation is poor. People coming /going from the garage and to the laundry room should not need to cut through the kitchen.

- The dryer cannot vent directly to the outside. Venting to the outside is cheaper and more fire-safe.

- The pantry would be better located near the garage door ... instead of on the opposite end of the kitchen.

- The garage entry hallway is nicely laid out.

- The boys' bathroom lacks natural light. I'd want to move the stairs to this location, center the bathroom between their two bedrooms, and bring one bedroom over to where the stairs are now.

So many critical and snotty comments...also some very helpful and worth considering. Grow a thick skin and stick around.

Im surprised we ever get new posters brave enough to post here.

Jeff...I’m not an architect, just a simple home builder...but I think your house has a certain appeal. Love the basement stairway from the garage and the mud room family entry area. A few changes to the interior would make it better imo. But for the price range you are in...not bad imho. A nice home to raise a family in.

Pick out a fireplace that doesn’t require a masonry chimney. Don’t let the temptation to upgrade take control of you as you are building. If you really want us to help you lower the cost tell us a little more about the house. Is it fixed price with allowances? Cost plus? Etc.

Remember that it’s very difficult to stay on budget and and to control cost....if that is critical, it may be worth reconsidering building at this time. If your family budget can take the hit then plan for it and do it before prices go any higher as mentioned upthread.

good luck!

Here is how you save money. You simplify the exterior without the bump outs. You also remove the extra windows in the rear of the garage. You could also remove that fireplace that will be impossible to decorate around. This removed square footage from the rear of the house too without removing functionality of the spaces.

Turning the dining table sideways allows you to straighten the back wall which will say money.

If all you need to cut is 10%, that’s a pretty good plan in response to the stated budget. Come up with the money, have that 15% contingency fee, and get started before costs rise any further. If you don’t have that extra 25% in reserve, then your stated starting budget was too ambitious for the reality of building from the beginning. You’ll need to make way more cuts than that plan can absorb, and will need to start over.

When building a budget project that has a very hard low number that must be met, you need to start with the goal of being at 50% of that number. You won’t make that either, but there is a heck of a lot more room to experience the normal scope creep and unexpecteds. And you might have enough left over to not have to move in and live on bare floors with no furniture.

Yes, this is more simple and fixes a number of things ... and I'm sure it's cheaper. Is it enough of a change? That I don't know. A few things I'd change:

- The boys' bedrooms are pretty small for four. I'd really try to "up" their closet sizes ... they might manage the beds, but they need storage. Imagine them as teens with musical instruments or football pads to store.

- This is a small thing, but I'd move the entrance to the front-boys' bedroom to the left, placing it further down the hallway /giving it more privacy from the living room and stairs.

- With four boys, I'm sure the urinal is a great idea, but I'm not sure you have enough space for it where it's placed. Would the boys' buttocks be touching the sink as he, um, did he business?

- I'm still in favor of losing the second set of stairs. This would take a huge bite out of your budget.

- I'd look into flipping the pantry and the laundry. This doesn't do anything to help the laundry situation, but it makes the pantry convenient as you walk int he door.

- I'd lose the pillars near the dining room. I think they'll just be in the way. If you're feeling that the dining room needs to be "differentiated" in some way, do it with a ceiling beam.

Overall thoughts: This is a simplified, streamlined version -- good. But is it "enough" to justify the trouble and expense of building? I don't think so. It's an average house.

Throwing my re-imagining into the ring ;) Basically:

1. Bring the two bedrooms level at the front of the house

2. Move the laundry room between them and the master

3. Move the Master bed into the top left corner (with bath & closet between it and the family room) - one hallway connects all three bedrooms, the hall bath and the laundry (no more accessing the master from the family room (????))

4. Since laundry room is moved, the whole 'utility' side + the garage can be shrunk; have both fixtures in the powder room on one wall

5. Bring in the family room

6. Long pantry, accessible from mud room and kitchen

Red outline is the proposed new outer walls

Blue walls are ~location of the rooms

Overlaid onto original floor plan

Are you paying the builder a cost plus profit or do you have a set contract price? If it is the first, based on my recent experience you will go over. We tried really hard to stay in budget and for all of the items we controlled we were either at budget or under, but our general contractor went over on almost every category and unfortunately we were under the cost plus profit model. The house turned out great but I am not sure that I would ever build a custom house again. Seems so much better to buy an existing home where you know exactly how much it is.

I think damiarain is on the right track, but I would further make it more like a rectangle by bumping out the family room wall to be even with the dining and master. I would also bump out the laundry room/ mudroom to be even with the front of the house.