Once you’ve made the decision to build or extend, find out from your financial institution how much you can borrow. Seek advice from a professional builder to give you an estimate at this early stage, as a general guide to costs. Estimates between builders may vary widely. However if the estimates exceed your budget, you may at least be able to identify what could be reduced in scale or even deferred.
In order for your initial ideas to be made into workable designs, you basically have two options to choose from. A design & construct builder can provide you with everything – plans and permits as well as construction in their services to you. While the designs are not necessarily 'architecturally creative' their prices are generally the lowest.
On the other hand, you may wish to use an architect or draftsperson to draw up your plans for builders to quote on. Unfortunately it often occurs that you end up with wonderful plans that are too costly to build. It is important to obtain an estimate from your architect or draftsperson based on current building costs. Some builders offer an invaluable service to liaise between you and the person designing your project to keep construction costs within your budget. |
