500 a square foot? Sure.

Please clarify? I don’t understand what you are asking?

I assume you are wanting to build for $500,000 or less. Sure, just don't build a crazy, multi-gabled, faux stone, 16 foot ceiling, four car garage monstrosity like you often see posted here. A simple house shape, with perfectly acceptable finishes inside and out, is what you would build. Find a builder who is in tune to your desires. And, of course, a lot of it depends on your location and the site.

Find a builder who is in tune to your desires.

Excellent advice. It applies to residential projects of all types. Your project outcome depends more on the builder or remodeler you choose than any other professional involved in the process.

That doesn’t leave much space for yard. Have you checked that would work?

Hi thank you for all your replies, i was asking if i could build 2,000 sq ft two storey house with two car garage for under 500k, and if you have contractor recommendations or if you know anybody who was able to do that so we can gain insight how they did it.

we already checked zoning for this plan on the lot.

the lot is narrow but long so it still leaves us with about 500 yard.

I have a friend who built a home that was 2000 sqft with almost all finished basement for under $350k 3-4 years ago. The caveat is that it is a rectangle with fairly simple interiors minus a vaulted open living, dining, kitchen. No fancy fixtures/tile and only slightly upgraded cabinets. It was also built in a small town which probably made it cheaper. Given the increase in construction in an area of higher cost of living like Denver, I'd assume you'd be in the 500-600k + range for a very simple home. Perhaps if you post your home plan, some of the pros could give you a more definite answer. Are there new homes for sale near where you're building, in your price range, for comparison?

Inferring the cost of residential construction using pre-pandemic cost data is sure to create some real heartburn at some point in the process. Talk to some local builders.

Have you checked zoning, set back, utility easement and other possible requirements? I would start there to figure out allowable footprint.

We did it in a low cost of living area and pre pandemic. And 1900 sq ft. Finding the right builder will be key. Also don’t underestimate the time to be spent on town hearings, variances, etc. at least a year for that part for us. demolition is a risky stage is they find asbestos or something like that.

where do you live? my husband and I are building an 1800sqft house in a subdivision, 3bed 2bath 2 car garage,

we are spending 300,000 and thats with 90,000 worth of upgrades on every single item in the house countertops, flooring, tile, cabinets, etc. I live in Oregon

The cost to build is so regional. Three years ago we built for close to $300/square foot. Now friends who are taking on building are paying $4-500 a square foot.

We live at Coles neighborhood in Denver Colorado. We‘ve already checked the zoning and easement.

What is your footprint size and setbacks? Because the math seems difficult to get that to work. Is it a 3 story house?

Thinking of house pricing as square foot is poor metric and most often leads to great disappointment.

I think we are missing the important piece - appraisal. I think the OP needs 1 + 1 - 1 to equal 2 here. A brief glance tells me the Coles neighborhood is a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood in Denver, which is a higher cost city.

Can you build for 500k? Probably. How do you need the numbers to work out? We cant help you with that here.

Thinking of it as cost per square foot is a good step to see if you are even remotely aware of costs. It can’t ever be the only measure but it’s a decent way to learn you can’t do something or that you should dig more and see how feasible it could be

Lumber prices, according to an article in the April 19 2021 issue of Barron's, are up 40% so far this year after more than doubling last year. In our area, drywall is up over 25% so far this year. We just got notified of another 12% increase in PVC (I think it's the third increase in the past year), and our garage door supplier reported a total of more than 20% price increases from their supplier so far this year. Copper wiring is up significantly--as is anything with copper content. Ditto for steel and asphalt-based products like shingles. I'm developing a fear of opening the mail.

With those kind of cost increases, using cost data that are more than a month old is likely to produce a significant estimating error. Couple that with the usual error produced by estimating costs by the square foot and you're in for a severe case of heartburn at some point in the project. Stock up on Tums.

Did you buy that 1890 shack on north humboldt for 305K? Nice bones, just add on.

Haha kevin you got it! Yes we bought the shack!

Thank you for all your replies. Yes construction cost materials are over the top, are we right to think its now might still be a good time to build because the cost is still gonna get even higher next year or the years to come?

Yes the location is rapidly gentrifying thats why we think its worth it to invest on the property its just our loan to value at the moment that are we considering.

Feeling a little anxiety Zip? In my opinion I'd let the titanic sail away without jumping aboard and wait for the housing market and/or the lumber market to collapse before building.

The problem comes from a number of sources like population migration and low interest rates but the biggest instigator of high prices is wall street, corporations and speculators in both the houses and the lumber market. The villains have been buying up houses since 2012 and now own millions, mostly in major cities and sucking up inventory like a sponge. . These Mr. Potters have turned America into a nation of renters and then raised the rents, and until they change direction and unload inventory it may not end any time soon. To put this in perceptive owner occupied homes rose 1 million while renter occupied homes rose 6.5 million.

This brings us to lumber prices your worried about on the heals of the building boom. demand helped raise prices but again we have wall street to thank for a 350% increase. Right now I could buy the lumber to build three 2000 sq. ft. homes (110,000 board feet) for $110 in the lumber futures market for May 2021. if I held it until the expiration date I would be obligated to pay the contract price and take delivery but I'm speculating with control forcing up prices, just as wall street is doing now, reducing available supply. It needs to implode and the price is going parabolic, and a sign it will. Should you build now? No, wait until the lumber market tanks. Regulations limiting logging has also helped raise lumber prices.

But you want to know what's ironic, the same young brain washed environmentalist activists who helped to decimate the logging industry in America are now actively trying to buy a house but can't. And are renting from Mr. potter who goes by many other names including Warren Buffet and Blackrock investments to name a few.

Thank you very much Kevin it was very insightful and on point! yes it's very frustrating, i am from the Philippines and everything is quite easy to build there and from my perspective what i see here in USA is quite frustrating, everything is concentrated and filtered to corporations advantage leaving the general public scrambling. That's why i am here in this forum, i'm just in disbelief,.

wait, how come you specifically know our location? are you the same Kevin we will meet at 2 pm tomorrow?

Maybe, are you buying lunch? ha.

Actually you mentioned coles neighborhood in Denver Colorado and 500 sq. ft. so I searched recent sales of the area on zillow and found the sales data. I'm not the same Kevin.

Good luck with the build just think it out.

Ha! ok haha lunch is on me if you are the same kevin :D anyways thank you for sharing your insights. do you have idea when the lumber prices is going down? :D lumber prices are up but interest rates are low, maybe when lumber prices go down loan interest will then go up?

"do you have idea when the lumber prices is going down?"

Right now and from the looks of it, pricing will continue up and or remain steady in between spikes for the next year at least. Even then if and when they drop expect only a slight drop. They will not come back down to what they were 2 years ago.

Millworkman, what is your opinion or reasons to say lumber prices will stay 300% higher than the average price in the past? High prices have always been the cure for high prices so you think mills won't increase production for the windfall profits?

Just the trend. The global pandemic is still in effect. Imports are still won. The president is raising the corporate tax rate (which will have a trickle down effect despite what they proclaim). The 2T$ "infrastructure package" is basically a barely watered down New Green Deal which will hurt the logging industry. Demand is still very high. Maybe I am wrong but it definitely will be a long while.

In the op’s shoes i might not focus on square footage (2000 sq ft +) but rather on rooms etc you need. extra bedrooms used as offices or kids rooms can be small IMO. Think about what you really really need. If you shrink the house that’s less drywall and lumber. And probably more appropriate for the lot. Will be an easier sell to town planning boards too.

It's more appropriate in comparison to the neighborhood he wants to build in. Average home age is 60 to 70 years old and average sq. footage is around 1400 sq. ft. Millworkman brought up a good point about the green new deal stuff. A new proposed bill would incentivize foresters to turn their tree stands ear marked for harvest into carbon storage banks and sell carbon credits to the evil carbon producers(everyone), instead of turning those trees into lumber to build houses. Be prepared to live in concrete boxes built by 3d printers which will cost America millions of jobs, but I hate to admit it and pains me to say this, but I kind of like the idea. It's coming and can't be stopped so prepare for the future comrades. I've always liked trees so can someone be an conservative bible thumping gun toting environmentalist?

Is that a real tree in the counter zip? I've never seen this done before and if it's a real living tree how was it done? Very creative.

Price of lumber is through the roof right now. Maybe if you can wait a bit the costs will normalize.

Yes its a real living tree, we call her alexa. she’s installed into the island with her pot. If she grows taller we can just lover the shelves and we placed two skylights above her so she gets plenty of sun.