The value of your log home is not just the cost but how well it lives up to your dreams and expectations. As with all custom homes, knowing the exact cost of your log home before building it is impossible. It is possible, however, to narrow the expected price range of your home as you move through the log home design process. Contributing cost factors such as size, complexity, finishes and build site are not all addressed at once, but throughout each stage of the design process. Therefore, your home estimate becomes more accurate as your project progresses.
Reviewing Your Log Home Project: The best way to line up budget within your expectations is through open dialogue with your log home architect and researching costs as the plan is developed. At PrecisionCraft, this means working directly with the team at Mountain Architects to review your project-specific requirements and style considerations. At this early stage, an estimate should normally be 45%-50% accurate.
Initial Plans: As the design of your log home is developed and begins to take shape, your cost estimate will also be refined. The preliminary log home design will give the estimator and builder significantly more information to begin narrowing the costs. You should be able to rely on the preliminary design to give you an estimate within a 20% to 25% plus or minus range.
Construction Drawings: The completion of the final construction drawings and specifications is required to get a solid estimate for your log home project. Even with final construction documents, you should normally expect the estimate to be within 10%-20% plus or minus of actual costs.
Building Your Home: The primary job of your general contractor is to solicit bids and pricing from subcontractors and to manage their performance as the work progresses. Before you begin construction of your custom designed log home, your general contractor has probably accumulated many of the subcontractor bids and will have a good idea of the actual cost of your home. Depending upon the terms of your agreement with your builder, the cost of your log home should be well established before construction. Of course, it is normal to encounter unforeseen circumstances during construction and it is always a good idea to have a 5% to 10% contingency built into your budget.
More About Major Pricing Factors
Size of Your Home: The size of your log home is probably the biggest cost variable. If the preliminary budget is significantly out of alignment, the first place to look is the square footage of the home.
Level of Finishes Selected: The level of finishes that you choose for your log home also has a dramatic impact on overall cost. Depending on your turnkey budget, you may select a higher level of finishes for your home. Granite counter tops, Jacuzzi tubs, and wide plank flooring are beautiful amenities, but are more expensive than Formica counters, fiberglass tubs and carpet.
Complexity of Design: The complexity of a log home’s design is probably the least understood factor impacting cost – the more corners, roof ridge lines and roof valleys, the higher the cost. Adding gables, dormers, hips and other architectural styling elements to your design increases its complexity, and as a result, the overall cost of your home. On the other hand, a simple rectangular design with one roof ridge line is simpler, and therefore less expensive, to build.
Log Home Build Site Location and Site Considerations: Your building site will have an important impact on the cost of your log home. Many of our clients build in mountain locations. Mountain locations can impact costs due to accessibility, site slope, snow loads, and availability of services such as water, sewer and power. Often times, the limited availability of tradesman and subcontractors in mountain communities can drive up the cost of building. Lastly, many communities and developments have strict CC&Rs or architectural review committees which may also impact the cost of the home.
