HuskerPAC said:

My wife and I recently purchased a .65 acre lot in a small town in central Nebraska. Our current house in the same town was built in 1977 and my dad and I fully renovated/remodeled it, but I’ve never been involved with a build.

For anyone who has insight…
1) what’s a reasonable $/sq foot cost in central Nebraska? One of my buddies who is a contractor said “$3-400/sq foot would be a good start” and I almost had a stroke.
2) Any recommendations of where to go to get plans/modify plans?
3) Any absolute “do’s or don’ts” when making plans and when starting to build?
4) Any recommendations for contractors in the Grand Island area?

Thanks.

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HuskerPAC said:

That $350/sq foot for a simple house terrifies me. You don’t end up with much for square foot before you’re at $1mil and I think that’s nuts in a small town.

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HuskerPAC said:

My wife and I recently purchased a .65 acre lot in a small town in central Nebraska. Our current house in the same town was built in 1977 and my dad and I fully renovated/remodeled it, but I’ve never been involved with a build.

For anyone who has insight…
1) what’s a reasonable $/sq foot cost in central Nebraska? One of my buddies who is a contractor said “$3-400/sq foot would be a good start” and I almost had a stroke.
2) Any recommendations of where to go to get plans/modify plans?
3) Any absolute “do’s or don’ts” when making plans and when starting to build?
4) Any recommendations for contractors in the Grand Island area?

Thanks.

Click to expand...

HuskerHusaria said:

In house plumbing >>

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HuskerPAC said:

My wife and I recently purchased a .65 acre lot in a small town in central Nebraska. Our current house in the same town was built in 1977 and my dad and I fully renovated/remodeled it, but I’ve never been involved with a build.

For anyone who has insight…
1) what’s a reasonable $/sq foot cost in central Nebraska? One of my buddies who is a contractor said “$3-400/sq foot would be a good start” and I almost had a stroke.
2) Any recommendations of where to go to get plans/modify plans?
3) Any absolute “do’s or don’ts” when making plans and when starting to build?
4) Any recommendations for contractors in the Grand Island area?

Thanks.

Click to expand...

Cash68847 said:

I remember the good ole days from 2000-2010 when you could build a house for 100 bucks a sq foot. The 350 plus is ridiculous. You see little cracker box houses selling for 300-400 k now in Nebraska.

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Frogsker30 said:

House down the street from me is a quarter size of my house. 2 bed 1 bath 800sqft no garage sold for the exact price my current house sold at in 2020. And that is 3 beds 2 bath 2 car garage and 2800sft (finished basement and attic/loft)

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betsch said:

If you have a basement, for the stairs going down, make them wide and make a big landing at the bottom so there is plenty of room to move furniture, treadmills, and whatever else you want down there so it fits. It was one of the smartest things I did when we built.

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Tonkasker said:

Homebuilder here. Happy to take this to the dms if you want to discuss further

1. Pick one builder and be upfront about your budget. $/sf is mostly bogus without knowing what you want. Make a list of needs and wants. Agree to cost-plus (12-13% if you can). We can build a simple house around $350/foot but if you want a lot of custom carpentry or cabinetry that can creep up. If you don't seem like a total lunatic client that should be agreeable. A one man show is a good way to get some value. We get beat by guys doing it themselves running projects at 10% occasionally
2. I would work with an actual architect. If thats not feasible there are some that sell ready made plans you can get engineered. Builders are a great resource for guiding you through that if you want. I can send you a few we work with up here that are semi-ready made. Those online plans websites are mostly garbage unless you're building a barndo or slab house.
3. Build to slightly under your budget. There will be cost overruns. The more you press on your builder during the bid phase the more cost overruns there will be. Ask lots of clarifying questions about the bid. Most show up before framing starts.

Absolute musts
- Running tubing for in-floor heat even if you don't buy a boiler
- blown in batt insulation. No spray foam
- sound walls and ceilings
- mudroom
- even if you don't finish the basement (its pretty easy to do yourself) have them hang drywall on the ceiling. Such a pain in the ass

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