Just blew past 90K on a spec build and I'm not even drywalled yet

I budgeted 75K for this whole thing and the foundation alone ate 20K more than I figured. Anyone else's estimates just keep getting completely wrecked by material prices?

2 comments

2 Comments

fox.derek3d ago

Ngl 'came in under by 8 percent' has me wondering if we're even building in the same dimension.

the_avery3d ago

Are you absolutely sure it's the market and not just your planning? I built my garage addition last year and came in under my first estimate by about 8 percent, because I actually called around for concrete prices and locked them in before I broke ground. You say you budgeted 75K for the whole thing, but that sounds like you just picked a round number off the top of your head without actually pricing out lumber, windows, or labor on a per-item basis. If you planned on foundation work for 20 grand less than what it cost, then maybe you were just guessing on the whole budget from the start. Spec builds are always going to change, but that's why you add a 15 to 20 percent buffer instead of hoping everything holds steady. I don't think material prices themselves are wrecking you nearly as much as not having a real cost breakdown before you started digging.