I wrote a couple of weeks ago about asking for a quote for my draft underground house plan from Earth Sheltered Technology. I heard back from them very quickly and as expected I'm disappointed. As part of the quote request, I filled out a questionnaire and stated that my "budget" for building the house (excluding utilities and groundwork) was $75,000. I have no way of knowing, but I have a feeling that they didn't read anything beyond that question. Instead of a quote for my draft plan, I received a letter stating that my budget was way out of line. They say that a 2400sq ft home would cost nearly $400,000 (excluding driveway, septic, and utilities!). I should note that Earth Sheltered Technology only builds the concrete house shell; all excavation, utilities, and finishing the house must be done by the owner or a local contractor. It's not clear what costs they are including in the $400,000, but it really doesn't matter.
Earth Sheltered Technology caters to wealthy people eager to spend. That is not me. It really makes no sense for a custom builder to deal with someone like me while there are people out there that appreciate granite counter tops, luxurious bathrooms, and all the nice things that money can buy. I don't even know what those things might be. Why bother working with someone trying to keep costs down? They might be able to profit $10,000 from me while they could profit $100,000 from some rich older couple.
There seems only two options for the frugal home buyer: build it themselves or buy an older, smaller, rundown house. For a landowner like me the only options are to build it myself or get a manufactured home. I am set on a earth-sheltered home so a manufactured one is out.
I am questioning why I want to build a house on my tree farm. I might be committed to spend $100,000 if I could just write a check, but I'm not committed to $50,000 and every minute of my free time for a year. Until I retire, I am probably better off putting more energy into making my current house better fit what I want.
1 comment:
We built out house and subcontracted what we couldn't do.
Local contractors are hurting for work. You'd be surprised what foundation guys can do. We had a four foot crawl space foundation poured...check into it - I bet they could pour a sub-terrarean foundation, too.
If you do pour - be sure to put down visquine for a vapor barrier and don't let anyone talk you out of it. It makes a difference in humidity and ventilation.
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