BACKCOUNTRY STUDIO

Cost of construction continues to increase, having gone up substantially in recent years. This is mostly due to inflation making the price of materials and workmanship more expensive. The price increase can also be explained because our standards have been raised, making new houses healthy, comfortable and inspired by grand designs.

While we don’t have control over the price inflations, we do have control over the design brief. The type of site, building shape, and choice of materials are just some of the contributors to construction cost differences between two houses of the same size.

However, the most effective way to save on the overall cost of a build is to reduce the size. In New Zealand, for the last decade, the average size of new houses has been steadily decreasing. In 2023 the average new house size built in Canterbury reduced to 145m2, however, this is still significantly larger than the 110m2 of the 1970’s. This trend may be the consequence of the continued increase to cost of construction.

Know your budget.

Whether you are building a new house, an extension or small alteration, the first step is to establish a realistic budget for your project. It is recommended to also allow for cost over-runs, typically 10-20% of your budget.

Determine the size of your project.

Once you know your budget, this can help you determine the size of your project. Contacting local builders or quantity surveyors can help you establish the current average construction price per square meter in your area. The more details you can provide around your brief, the more accurate the pricing will be.

In 2024, standard homes are said to average around $3,500 to $4,000, while prestige one-off designed homes are typically $6,000 or more per square meter.

List non negotiable and nice to have.

Now that you know your budget and the approximate size of your project, you want to make sure you have a realistic brief. A good thing to do is to list all the non negotiables and nice to have. It is great if you have enough space to fit all of them inside your house, however people often need to make some compromises.
You might have to lower some of your expectations, adapt your brief accordingly but make sure to keep some nice to have, you are still building your dream house.

We are here to help, sometimes a multi functional space can replace two different rooms. We can be creative, think outside the box and deliver a functional and quality home.

Remember this and you will avoid a lot a trouble down the design and construction stages: Your brief should fit within your budget, not the opposite.