Budgeting is one of the most important and often misunderstood parts of starting a residential project. This guide breaks down how to estimate costs, understand constraints, and plan your design journey with clarity from the very first step.
There are two ways to approach budgeting a residential project. Most clients start with a vision and a rough idea of what they would like to spend on the project. This number is usually based on savings or the ability to qualify for a loan. If you don’t have a rough number in mind yet, start at the “understanding constraints” part of this document.
In the early phases of the project, the first rough estimate comes from one way through square footage. Here is a table below that can be used:
| New Build Cost | Example Project | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Style | $ US per sqft | Sq ft | Approx. Budget |
| Medium | 600 | 1500 | 900,000 |
| Luxury | 800 | 1500 | 1,200,000 |
| Renovation Cost | Example Project | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Style | $ US per sqft | Sq ft | Approx. Budget |
| Medium | 350 | 1500 | 525,000 |
| Luxury | 500 | 1500 | 750,000 |
One of the services we offer to clients who want a more detailed cost analysis of their project is a feasibility study. As a part of this study, we create initial sketches of a few options of the proposed design and get initial rough pricing from our builder network. A feasibility study typically costs around $5000, but can vary depending on the size of your project. Schedule a call with us if you are interested in learning more about it.
A typical project goes through the following phases:
The feasibility study mentioned above combines elements from the pre-design and schematic design phases upfront for a fixed fee.
While most people have a rough idea of what funds are available for them to spend on a project, it is okay if that is not the case for you. In such a case, we guide clients to understand other constraints they are working with. A way to create a constraint is using a programming questionnaire; in this way, we understand what your current needs are and how they are likely to expand in the future. We understand your likes and dislikes and what elements of biophilic design resonate with you. With this information in hand, we perform an initial feasibility study to present a few options and their associated rough budgets.
We charge hourly per our contract and invoice bi-weekly. For most projects, our overall fee ends up being around 10% of construction costs. Each invoice comes with a timesheet of where the hours were spent, and each phase of work is concluded with key deliverables. The first step to getting started on your project is to book our complimentary 30-minute initial call, which accomplishes the following: