Can You Build A Log Home For $150/SF?... Apparently In Middle Tennessee You Can't!
Jim and I have come to the conclusion that we were completely disillusioned about the cost to build a log home... at least here in Middle Tennessee anyway!
So far, we've spoken to 6 general contractors now (4 of whom have many many years of experience building log homes). Each of them told us that we could build a log home for somewhere between $125 - $150 per square foot.
Baloney.
First We Got A Price For The Logs...
After working closely with a log home package provider (Honest Abe Log Homes), we went through 2 different blueprint revisions and then got what we felt was a fair quote for the log package itself. It was about $63/SF.(For the record, they usually say that the cost to complete your house will be double the cost to dry it in. In this case, that would be about $125/SF.)
Honest Abe's price includes the logs themselves, doors, windows, railings, and the act of "drying in" the house up to the point where a G.C. (or the homeowner) actually takes over and completes all the finishing work, plumbing, electricity, etc. (The act of laying the foundation is also completed by the G.C. -- even though it's done before the dry-in process begins.)
Then, We Tried To Get A Price For The Rest...
Next, we asked three of the four log home G.C's mentioned above to provide a quote for building a 2,300 SF log home (plus basement, unfinished).Our log home floor plan is very similar to this log home floorplan.
It's not a particularly complex floorplan -- not a log of unique nooks & crannies, odd shapes, or irregularities. In fact, one of the GC's told us more than once that this is a log home floorplan that he's very familiar with... and he's actually built plenty just like ours... and there would be nothing unusual or expensive about building this home.
Still, not only could we not get anyone to commit in writing -- on paper -- to actual line-item costs for building this log home, we also had a very hard time just getting anyone to call us back!
We spent months calling, leaving messages, re-calling, and then being caught off-guard on the few occasions that one of them would actually call us back (...usually several weeks later).
Often, so much time had passed between when we initially asked them our questions and/or requested that they fax us some figures and when their phone calls actually arrived that the phone conversations kept turning into more of "How are you doing? What have you been up to lately? Yep, I'll be happy to get you some figures. Blah, blah, blah." It was like starting from Square One each time!
Even though each of these G.C.'s had been provided with an actual set of our blueprints, none seemed willing to put anything in writing for us.
General Contractors Are A Nice Bunch
I have to say this...We genuinely LIKED (and still like) each and every one of these G.C.'s!No doubt about it, they are among the nicest, sweetest, kindest, most knowledgeable, busiest, and most qualified individuals who build log homes in this area. The worst part: They're also about the only ones qualified to build log homes in the area we are building.
Our first thought was: "Well, they're obviously just too busy for our little log home."
Our second thought was, "I wonder if since we're building on a lake (in a development that has 'resort' in the title) that these G.C.'s think we've got tons of money and would likely pay more for a log home than someone else."
The Frustration Takes Its Toll
After months and months of going in circles, the closest we ever got to seeing figures on paper was one of the G.C.'s who put together a summarized list of the things that he generally includes in his price, followed by one big grand total (that was about $165/SF).There were no price ranges, no guesstimations, no high-quality vs low-quality countertop prices, no ballpark ranges for stonework vs brick (such as for retaining walls, fireplace, etc.),
NOTE: For the point of clarification, this particular G.C.'s "total price" also didn't include things like excavation, septic and landscaping -- but these are always huge unknowns and are determined on-site, as they occur.
A few of the things that we felt were obviously missing from this G.C.'s quote were: a fireplace, any tile work (floors, bathroom shower, etc.), a driveway, exterior siding (for the basement), and retaining walls, to name just a few. All of these things would've had to be obtained/managed by us and paid for on top of his price to do everything else.
What about the other G.C.'s???
We had met personally and talked to each of them on the phone several times. Still, they simply kept dodging the actual bottom line question for some reason.
Trust me folks, the bank needs to know dollar-for-dollar the breakdown for what your log home is going to cost!
A Quick Word About Banks & Financing Log Homes...
Our time spent trying to find a bank to finance this log home was just about as frustrating as finding a G.C!It seems there are a lot of hoops that the banks require log home owners to jump through. But the bottom line is: few banks around here are comfortable with financing log homes. Period.
Even M&T -- a national company known in the industry as "experts" in log home lending -- took 3 weeks to call us back after we met them at a Log Home Show.
And then, when the guy said he "had to check on one thing & would get back to us"... we never heard from him again. What the #@*!?!
CAll Big Logs and speak with Chris. He right out of ST Louis
I purchased my home from Summit Handcrafted Log Homes (Owner Tim). I promise you would not have any problems with this company at ALL. I have gone through many companies before feeling 100% SATIFIED with Summit Handcrafted Log Homes. They build your home in the log yard first then your contractor builds it on your site but they send Keith down to work with your contractors to make sure its built properly. 1800 sq. ft house built in 3 days. We started in March 09 going to be completely done end of July 09...MOVE IN. I HIGHLY recommend this company.
I am thoroughly impressed and inspired! I am 64 and I also want to build a log home. I am trying desperately to sell my stick home so that I can take the money and purchase my log home kit. I am, however, having a difficult time picking a log home company. I have the log home plan I want to build but feel unsure as to what company to go with. What company did you purchase your kit from? I too want to do alot of the inside work myself. I do woodworking and have participated in building a stick home about 30 years ago. How did you decide on the log home company you picked? I would appreciate any information you can provide. I enjoyed your video! I look forward to hearing from you.
Ann Wollman, Kansas City, MO
Bill, I read your blog and I am wanting to build a log home in Kansas City area. What is your home location and have you ever built in Missouri? Would you consider it?
My wife and I have just got an approved final inspection on our 1st Log Home. The home has about 2500SF finished 1st and 2nd floor. The basement is about 1250SF with about half of that finished and 3 1/2 baths. We used Suwannee River Materials and are fairly pleased with the way it has turned out. We were fortuneate to find a local builder experienced enough to do a satisfactory job. It has been a tremendous amount of work even though we had a builder. I directly contracted several of the key trades myself such as log package, HVAC, painting, earthwork, septic and foundation. We agreed on a cost-plus contract with the builder where he would add 18% on top of all items he provided. Though the 18% was a little high for me, he was a qualified outfit. Anything I directly provided did not fall under the 18% markup. I estimate this saved us at least $36K. Now we intend to vacation rent by owner. Our 2009 will be built around getting the property out there, up and running in the vacation property rental market.
Advice: Employ a reliable builder - even if it costs more than you'd prefer. It's something that needs to be done right the first time. Budget alot more than you think. Our home turn key without land will end up costing us about $133SF and I think we worked hard to keep costs down. This $ includes 1000SF of premium Hardwood flooring, some stone, a gas fireplace, screened in porches, a bomb of a hot tub, premium wood sealers, Cambria kitchen counters, corian vanity tops, hickory cabinetry.
Bill - I'll be building a log home in Centerville, Tn. starting late next summer. Would you be interested in working with me and providing a quote?
I am completing the interior of our log home now and I anticipate the final cost around $100sf. The estimate is slightly more than I was hoping for but I was unable to raise the logs myself so had to buy a shell home. There are other items that I have hired people to complete, plumbing, electrical, roofing, tile work but the remainder I am trying to complete myself. Not an easy task, I am 65+ and caring for my disabled husband. However, it is not our first project since we built our first home in 1987 and helped my son build his log home in 2001. If you would like to see our work in progress - I post videos as often as I can at http://www.youtube.com/mayosdream I will say that it is very difficult to get any contractor to work on a log home - they are afraid it is going to require more labor. A totally false idea. So, if you do hire a contractor to work on any phase of your home, be sure he is really familiar with log home construction first. Plumbers are the worst!
im looking for a basic instruction on how to build with linear ft logs (machine logs) do you have or know of where i might buy a booklet of some kind?
thank you
dlm
Wow!! I understand everyones concern over log home costs I'm a Log Home Builder, and should know first hand everyones frustrations with the process.
First I work for myself and not for any particular log home manufacturer. I take no money from log home reps. to guide people to their office for a sale. I can't sell so I build!! I love working with wood, traveling to new areas, seeing new wilderness areas and meeting new people. I actually will cut my price just to build in a unique area. Most builders will not travel very far from home because it's outside their "comfort zone" so most clients are stuck with just a few choses for a builder, and by the way builders know this. So knowing this they sometimes take advantage of the buyer. another fact is it takes time; many years to understand the conscept, process, and actual construction of log homes. They are completely different than a convential framed home. My thought is anyone can build a stick built home but few can build a log home, the right way. To many stick built contractors come into the log home industry and cause such outrageous estimates just due to the lack of experience. You will end up paying for thier mistakes and lack of experience. there is the old saying in the trades; "You can tell a good carpenter by the way he hides his mistakes." The problem with this in log homes is, these mistakes can be fatual to the home owner. Most estimates should be broken down into the major "Phases" of the construction process, ie. excavation, log stack, roofing, etc. Log Builders will usually only estimate the wood portions of your log home. General contractors as usual will be charging extra to finish off your home. Our estimates for a log home starting at the subfloor and going up to a finished weather proof roof, doors and windows included, average between $18.00/ sq ft. to $45.00. The major cost of log homes is the package not the log home builder if estimated correctly.
My wife and I are just starting the process of planning to build a log home. My brother recently built a log home up on a river in north Georgia. I'm relying on his experience to budget. His is a beatiful place and could easily appear in a Southern Living issue. It is worth much more than he and his wife have in it, BTW. We are in the moulding business and can buy D logs from up in Tennessee. You buy them by the linear foot. You buy more than you need and cut them to length. You'll have maybe 15% waste. My wife and I are planning a home that will have 1750 sf. My brother and I did some initial figuring and came up with around 100,000. This would include grading, excavation for basement, concrete walls, driveway, heating, plumbing, septic system, electrical, kitchen cabinets (no appliances), electrical, and doors and windows. This also includes all of the labor for the subcontractors. I would have to build the interior walls and install v board panelling. However, there are few interior walls in our design. Two closets in the Master bedroom, one in the second bedroom, two bathrooms account for most of the interior walls. Most of the walls will be complete with the drying in of the exterior walls. I would also have to install the fixtures in the bathrooms but not the plumbing. I would anticipate that this will bring the finished cost up to around 110,000 - 115,000. This should be around 65/sq ft. In addition we will have an unfinished room of around 25 x 30 sq feet in the basement area that will have windows and doors in one end. For way less than 65/sq ft this could be turned into finished room. However, I am toying with the idea to just finish the basement and live in it and just get the rest dried in by the subs and do all of the rest of the work myself to save even more. If you take the risk of being the contractor you can save a lot of money as you can see.
Charles
my husband and I built our log home in 1999 it cost us 50.00 sq/ft. My husband was our GC and we stained put all the hardwood sanding and finishing all tile work, paint, cabinets/countertops plumbing fixtures, light fixtures and a few extras. We sold it in 2004 we made a little over 100,000.00 profit.
Hi Cheryl,
THANKS for taking the time to share your story.
We knew you could save a lot of money by being your own GC, but we didn't know you could save THAT much!
A couple of questions:
How much of the work did you (or your husband) do yourself vs hiring contractors to do it for you?
Is your husband in the construction business... or some other related field? We're computer geeks, rather than do-it-yourselfers, so we question our ability to tackle most of the projects ourselves.
For the contractors you did hire, how did you find them? We worry about finding REPUTABLE contractors in the area. Was that at all a difficult process for you?
I'd be interested in hearing more about the wholesaler you used and the deals you found. (I'll email you privately, in case you don't wish to share that info publicly. But others would probably benefit from your answers to the other questions.)
Thanks again, Cheryl! You've brought us a renewed sense of hope...
P.S. Does your husband have any interest in being a GC on others' homes? :)
Hi Lynette,
I read your story on building a log home in middle TN. My husband and I live about one hour from Cookville, TN. We built our log home 4 years ago and finished out at $65 sf. We used a wholesaler and found DEALS on everything. We are going to sell our home this year, then build another log home, using the equity from the sale of our current home! Our estimate is to finish at $80 sf. Now that's not including landscaping and a nice fancy paved driveway - we live in the woods - those type things we will add after we build. My husband was his own G.C.- We were in our home after 5 months of construction (our home is 2100 sf and designed much like yours with a catwalk). We had no problems with financing through a local hometown bank that was anxious for our business.If you are still looking for some answers, please email me. We would be glad to help.
Cheryl