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February 16, 2008
The cost of new everything
I am thinking of buying a three-story brick townhouse (note, not in Brooklyn, a cheaper city) with floor plates of 2,000 square feet each. The building is basically a shell -- there are original staircases, existing fireplaces, etc. but it's going to need new EVERYTHING -- heating, electricity, windows, kitchens, baths, etc. I am trying to figure out what to offer for the building, but want to hear what most people think is an optimistic budget for this? $200k? Can anyone break it down, contractor style?
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Don't know if labor is cheaper in the mysterious city in which you are buying, but in NYC, I've been told $200 psf is pretty much the lowest you want to estimate - you might be able to save below that here and there with careful choices (i.e. Ikea cabinetry that's customized a bit to make it better). So, if you have 2000 sf per floor, that's already 400K per floor, and if you have 3 floors that size, that's 1.2 million! Maybe I misunderstood the size of this building - 2000 sf per floor sounds huge...
Posted by: housesearcher at February 16, 2008 9:09 PM
This is a $1MM project and up in Brooklyn. Could be less or more in the anonymous city you choose not to name.
Posted by: guest at February 17, 2008 7:56 AM
Get a pad of paper and write down everything. permits, archtects, insurance, plumbing, electric, heat, roofing etc. when you get to flooring go to metrocrete blog for ideas on floors and cost
Posted by: guest at February 17, 2008 2:11 PM
One tool to help find an answer is Means Construction Data. It is most useful for new construction, but it will give you an idea for what specific items will cost, and it's updated every year. It also has multipliers for location, probably even including the Mystery City.
Posted by: Smokychimp at February 17, 2008 2:39 PM
Agreed. Comparing to Brooklyn doesn't help at all, because I can guarantee based on personal experience in other large U.S. cities like Los Angeles and Atlanta the cost of renovations and new mechanicals are half what they cost in a Brooklyn house.
Posted by: guest at February 17, 2008 2:44 PM
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