Home Addition with Some DIY?

Question

Looking to add another 250-350 square feet on to our older home, and was just wondering, if we did the dry wall ourselves and had a family friend do the electrical work, how much can I expect to pay for the addition, approximately? We would most likely also do the floors ourselves as well.

Just not sure of how much getting the electric and dry wall done by ourselves and a friend will save us in the long run. I do trust the electrician, by the way.

Oh and nothing special, just a bedroom and possibly small family room addition. Most likely a 14 by 14 room and a 10 by 14 room.

Very true.

Our friend is licensed, but we may just go with the contracters electrician if the quote is low enough.

If we dry wall ourselves, is that a nice savings? If it's not a decent chunk we may just get it all done so we don't have the hassle!

Answer 1

I question Mr. Wolf's estimate of $200 a sq. ft. +/- for simple framing, with site prep/slab or foundation/windows/insulation or roofing extra. I use as my point of reference the cost of new homes being built by Lennar Corporation in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, where the cost of land is not exorbitant:
http://www.lennar.com/findhome/city.aspx?CITYID=DAL&BRANDID=ALL

For these projects, the finished home plus the land it is built on sells for less than $100 per square foot. Since in your case, the land is already paid for as well as all the costs associated with roads and other improvements, I'll estimate that Lennar's construction price by itself may be around $70 per square foot.

I'll grant you that there are significant economies when there are many homes built together in a housing development. There are also regional variations in the cost of labor, and to a lesser extent, material. And a small 350 square foot addition will have higher overhead costs than a full-sized house. However, the fact that your proposed addition will not require plumbing will tend to lower the cost per square foot. But $200 for framing alone? Sounds excessive.

I would encourage you to do as much of the work as you are comfortable with. Certainly you can do the insulation and hang the drywall. Your electrician friend can do the electrical. I recommend that you hire out the drywall taping and texturing. But the rest of the finish work is not that difficult, and you may save as much as a quarter of the total cost.

By the way, you might want to work out an arrangement with your contractor for him to stop by the job site periodically as needed to answer any questions you might have and to check on the progress of your work. Depending on how busy he is, this might fill in some gaps in his schedule for a little extra income, and it would give you the advantage of his experience.

Answer 2

a rapid calculation is eighteen*20 = 360 squareft * $one hundred/sqfr = $36,000 DIY could be appreciably decrease. you could DIY by first having blue prints drawn up by an architech, then persist with the plans religiously. while you at the instant are not that reliable with masonry, sub that out. Then start up your self from the floor joists on as much as the partitions. there's a superb type of sturdy pictures in this previous homestead application. purchase a reliable e book on electric wiring. it is not that complicated to do it wisely for the style of room you defined. reliable success consisting of your project.

Answer 3

Is the family friend licensed? Will you have to pull permits and have inspections?

Simple framing might cost $200 a sq. ft. +/-.....Site prep/slab or foundation/any windows/insulation/roofing/all would be extra.

Certainly you'll save by finishing yourselves. The issue may be that your labor hours and effort might cause you to think the savings might not be so great?

Steven Wolf