What Will This Cost?

Q: What will it cost to build a cabin? 

A: How long is a string?

That's a pithy way of saying - it will cost as much as you make it cost.

And to further expand on that, I know from running many other types of projects that if I go in ignorant of costs and options and make choices before I understand their impact, my ignorance will become a hidden line item in my budget. As much as I need a blueprint for the cabin, I need a blueprint for the costs and a plan for where the money will come from.

My project needs a budget.

There are some sample budgets out there, and they all look pretty overwhelming so I wanted to understand the steps first. I turned to my old PBS favorite, This Old House, and read this Bob Vila article outlining the timelines for major stages of construction.

I am using this to create an outline for both my Project Plan and my Budget. My outline ends up being a lot longer than I originally imagined, and I tried to stay very high-level. It also made me realize how many decisions I have to make, and how each impacts other decisions.

My rough outline is below. My next step is going to be getting a rough idea of what each phase will cost by doing research.

Phase 1 - Planning & Permitting

  1. Land
  2. Pre & Closing
  3. Permitting
  4. Surveying
  5. Design
Phase 2 - Preparation
  1. Clearing
  2. Excavation
  3. Septic
  4. Electric from the street
  5. Water from the street
Phase 3 - Build
  1. Foundation
  2. Framing
  3. Roofing
  4. Doors and windows
  5. External trim & siding
Phase 4 - Guts
  1. Electrical
  2. Plumbing
  3. Walls & ceilings
  4. Floors
Phase 5 - Fancy stuff
  1. Interior doors
  2. fixtures like sink, toilet, tub
  3. Paint

Other helpful sources:

Some sample costs https://homebuildingsmart.com/sample-home-building-budget/

Downloadable sample budget in Excel from ownerbuilder.org is also useful, but it is complex and I recommend not trying to digest it until you've done some more reading about each topic listed in the Bob Vila post.

 

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