Design Considerations in Residential Construction

• Size of the House – When building a house, it's advisable to work with even numbers. Have your home size rounded up or down to increments of two feet to help reduce wasted materials. It's also more economical to build a home which is no deeper than 32 feet because if the depth exceeds 32 feet, your roof trusses may need to be specially designed and increase your expenses.


• Shape of the House – Rectangular or box-shaped houses cost less to build. More angles and corners in the shape of your home mean more labor and materials. Dome-shaped houses also make efficient use of materials and tend to cost less than other shapes.

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• Site Preparation – Preparing a site for residential construction can have a big impact on the cost of your house. Building on a flat lot typically costs less. If you have to haul in lots of dirt, do a lot of grading, clear trees or blast through large rocks, site preparations can become more expensive.


• Cost Overruns – Usually, the finished cost of a house is more than the original bid price. Cost overruns may occur from overspending the allowances, making changes and encountering unforeseen problems and challenges. Proper planning with your architect can greatly reduce cost overruns. In general, it is a good idea to allot an additional 10% to cover for unexpected costs along the way.


• Inflation and Market Conditions – The cost of building a house usually increases annually. If you’re looking at several more years before you begin your residential construction project, remember to include inflation into the cost estimate for your house. When using other houses to compare prices, try to use those that have been built within the last six months.

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