How Much Does Building a House Cost?

There are many answers to this question, as a house can be built with a budget that is either economical or very luxurious. As a rule of thumb, the construction cost of a timber frame house starts from a range of 1000–1200 euros per square meter. With this price, you get a house that has a heating system and is ready for moving in.

Of course, the cost of a house depends on whether you build the house completely or partially yourself or order all the work from a construction company. By building yourself, you can save somewhat on expenses, but house construction has plenty of work that should still be done by specialists.

Definitely draw up a detailed budget for house construction and when ordering a project from an architectural bureau, inform the designer what your price limits are. Since with any type of construction there is a rule that work becomes more expensive than planned and takes longer than anticipated, leave yourself a financial buffer in your budget that covers increasing costs, and also be prepared that moving into a new home may happen somewhat later than hoped.

The simpler, the cheaper

In addition to construction work, other factors also affect the final price of a house. For example, the condition of the plot is very important from a price perspective. There is a big difference between building a house on a plot where utilities already exist or having to build everything yourself – from access roads to utility lines.

Building a house with complex architecture is more expensive. The most economical in terms of cost per square meter is a rectangular house with two stories: the foundation and roof are the same for any house, but with the second floor you get more space.

Is there still a way to do it cheaper?

When building, you can also play with the size and materials. A large house is certainly impressive, but when planning a home, it's worth thinking with a longer perspective. On average, an Estonian family has two to three children, and for such a family, a house of 130–150 square meters is quite sufficient. When the children go their own way, it becomes quite unreasonable to maintain a larger house than that.

Most often it is cheaper to build according to a standard project, because in that case the design costs are lower. Many functional elements also significantly affect the price of a house: for example, the price of windows can differ several times over, depending on what material the windows are made from and what system they open with.

If you wish to finance house construction with a loan, it would be worthwhile to contact your bank to clarify your financial options at the moment when the idea of building starts to take shape. An initial consultation with an expert gives you an idea of what price range to consider for house construction and what additional attention should be paid to when building a home with a home loan.

Read more > Building a house with a home loan