How much Does a Timber Frame Home Cost?


One of the most common questions individuals have when researching timber frame homes is just how much do they price? Does this style home price much more than conventionally brick properties? What's the cost per square foot?

This is really a challenging question to answer because this will depend on the home design and what finish elements are picked for the brand new house. The price per square foot for a new timber frame home can be anywhere from typically £150 or as high as £300 per square foot. The price per square foot estimation generally incorporates the exterior shell and finishing touches (does not consist of land or site work).

The timber frame houses exterior shell package usually costs much more than the average stick built property package because of the high quality and energy efficient materials that go hand in hand with the building technique. Most timber frame businesses work with Structural Insulated Panels (SIPS) or even a high r-value insulation system to produce a thermal envelope. SIPS do cost much more upfront than the standard insulation used on a conventional home; however the energy efficient advantages outweigh the costs using the SIPS high r-values. Using a high r-value insulation for the thermal envelope will ultimately help you save cash on your heating and cooling costs and will outperform a brick built house over time. The mixture of timber framing, SIPS and energy efficient doors and windows make this style house one of probably the most energy efficient homes today.

While this kind of home will typically cost much more to develop, it is not unheard of for conventional homes to surpass the price of a timber frame home. Here is a good example, there are two people building a custom 2,000 square foot house; both homes provide the exact same square footage but have various designs and use various finish materials. Let's say client 1 is constructing a conventional home. Client 1 has a more complicated design with more dormer windows and is choosing to add high-end finishing touches (custom kitchen cabinets, expensive lighting, etc.). Client 2 is building a timber house and has a easy design with straight lines, no dormers and is choosing to use moderately priced finish supplies. The example timber frame home's exterior shell package may price much more, but the design and finishing touches of the example conventional house will most likely position the conventional home at a higher price per square foot.

There is a fantastic array of finishes readily available for every room of yoru self build property and this is where the cost do start to increase. A new kitchen can cost anything from £5,000 up to £50,000 for a bespoke hand built kitchen and then the bathroom and ensuite costs can be excessive, but again this shoudl all be dependent on your budget and tastes.

Overall, the price to develop any style house is dependent upon the design of the home, appearance, size, groundworks, building and interior finish materials employed. It does not matter what method of construction you use to build your new home, if you choose high-end materials throughout your home and/or an elaborate house design, your price per square foot will be greater.

Oakworth Homes is a premier architectural designer and manufacturer of timber frame homes. They combine the art of traditional timber framing with modern technologies to build beautiful energy efficient homes. For much more information on timber frame homes, please go to www.oakworthhomes.co.uk