Savvy homeowners want to know what they’re really going to pay for a new home so that they can set a realistic budget up front. Here’s a helpful post that covers useful information about how to set a new home budget—and why it’s important to do it early. Sometimes people building a new home can get blind-sided by unexpected costs that they might not have considered when setting their budget. Let’s look at 4 features that will influence the cost of your new Poconos Home.
1. Upgraded Finishes
One of the great things about building a new home—especially a custom home—is that you have the ability to select whatever finishes you want. If you want kitchen cabinets that are a step up from "builder grade" you can make that choice. The same is true when choosing your countertops. If you want granite, marble, or quartz, you can opt for that. You also have the ability to choose whatever flooring you think is best for your home.
It’d be really nice to have the freedom to make those choices, but there is usually a cost associated with those upgrades. Sometimes it doesn’t seem all that steep—at first glance. The costs can add up quickly. Let’s use flooring in your kitchen as an example.
Typical costs for installing a hardwood floor can run from $7 to $23 per square foot for materials and installation (the type of wood can influence price and labor charges can vary). But let’s say you really love the look and feel of stone tile. Those installation costs typically run from $13 to $28 per square foot. At first glance, that doesn’t seem like that big of a difference. But if you have a kitchen that’s 12’ x 20’ (240 square feet) the wood floor will cost between $1,680 and $5,500 while the stone tile floor will cost between $3,120 and $6,620. That’s a big difference!
2. Upgraded Appliances
Choosing new appliances is another area where costs can take homeowners by surprise. There are plenty of options when it comes to ranges, refrigerators, and dishwashers. Let’s assume you want something a few levels up from economy (builder’s grade) appliances. You can get all three appliances at an “affordable luxury” level for somewhere in the area of $5,000. But what if you’ve always dreamed of having a gourmet kitchen and want a Sub-Zero/Wolf brand set up? Suddenly you’re looking at spending around $23,000!
3. Customization
As custom home builders, we love to give our clients exactly the home they've dreamed of owning. We start by offering them a wide variety of floor plans (click here to take a look at the options). But you’ll notice a statement at the bottom of each plan:
If there is an aspect of a floor plan that you don't like or that you would like to modify to better fit your needs, we can adjust floor plans to work for our customers! Here are some of the things we can change:
- Room Sizes
- Window Placement
- Garage Door Location
- Additional Space
- Higher Ceilings
- and Much More!
We want to create your perfect home! If you don't like something or would like it to be different, we can fix, alter, change, adjust, or redesign your home floor plan to suit your needs!
None of those changes are frivolous or extravagant. They will, however, cost you more, so you need to be aware of that as you customize your plan. It’s also important to keep in mind that the more “customized” a home is, the more it will cost. If you want to build an octagonal family room, it can be done—but the cost would be high due to increased labor and materials costs.
4. In-Process Changes to the Plan
This isn’t really a feature per se, but it’s a factor that can really impact your budget. The farther along you are in the building process, the more it will cost you to make changes. If you decide that you really want to move your bedroom wall “just 6 inches” it may not sound like a big deal. But if that wall has already been constructed (and maybe has wiring or plumbing running through it) it’s a costly decision. You’ve already paid to have the wall built. Now you’ll have to pay for it to be torn out and rebuilt!
Not one of the features or decisions we've mentioned here is bad. They're all good things. Here’s an article that talks about why going over your initial budget may not be all that bad. Just keep in mind that the choices you make can affect the final cost of your home so that you’re not surprised at the final bill.
