Quotes regarding how many square feet there are in a home (and consequently what that home's "square foot cost" is) can be very deceiving, depending on the formulas used to calculate those areas. For starters, the areas of free standing residences are measured by the lines of the outside walls. Condominium areas are measured from the inside walls. The different ways of measuring the same building can vary 10-15% on that basis alone.

The next controversy stems from the formula used to "weight" each part of a structure. The example included here is an 800 sq.ft. home with a 400 sq.ft. unfinished basement, a 400sq.ft. attached but unfinished garage and 200 sq.ft. of uncovered deck on the rear of the house.

RAW (OR GROSS) SQUARE FEET

Someone simply measuring the house or maybe wanting it to appear as large as possible for sales reasons might simply total all the structural areas involved:

House (@100%) 800sq.ft.

Basement(@100%) 400

Garage (@ 100%) 400

Deck (@100%) 200

_____________________________

1,800 sq ft.

BUILDER'S (OR COSTING) SQUARE FEET

Contractors and real estate appraisers need quick, accurate ways to value a building or determine what it will cost to build. Within a locale, similar houses are known from construction market experience to cost a certain amount per square foot. Obviously an unfinished garage or basement costs a certain percentage less than a finished home to build...

this is usually valued at 50% for enclosed, unfinished spaces. Uncovered decks are valued at

about 25%. Measuring the house and weighting it along these guidelines (which is the method that SHOULD be used for cost comparisons) produces a different picture from the one above.

House (@100%) 800 sq ft.

Basement (@ 50%) 200

Garage (@ 50%) 200

Deck (@ 25%) 50

_________________________

1,250 sq ft.

HOW BIG'S YOUR HOUSE???

If someone asked the person who lives in this house how big their house is they might say 800 sq ft...and also be right

SO , HOW MUCH DOES A STRAWBALE HOUSE COST

When you hear prices for any kind of building quoted, you not only need to know whether that price included their own labor, site utilities, roadways, wells, permits, septic systems, green technologies....or just the shell, but you also need to know how that person figured their square footage and what their finishing standards were...outhouses or french bidetts...rustic Nevada or Down town Manhattan...personal tastes and demands make a tremendous difference.

Standard construction in the Montrose area in l996 is going for around $75/sq ft with the builder's cost method of valuation...a 1250 sq ft home would cost $93,750.

The same $93,750 home evaluated on the basis of its RAW square footage (1800 sq ft)

would be $52/sq ft.

On the basis of the area of the house itself (800 sq ft) it cost $117/sq ft......differences of

225% all depending only on the way the person figuring the cost calculated the building area.

MORAL

**Take square foot cost quotes with caution

** Use them only in preliminary budgets

** Find out whether they include owner& friends labor or not

** Find out whether they include often-forgotten costs like permits and site utilities

** Adjust them for costs not included on your PROJECT BUDGET format

** Don't believe that ANY house is cheap or simple to build. They're expensive and

complex..a serious undertaking...but doable.

**Do your research, costing, design and budgeting homework thoroughly....revising

your costs carefully noting what is and isn't included in price quotes.

** FRONT LOAD your project...do all your homework and don't get in a hurry to build.

Preparing to build an alternative house takes at least 2 years.

**Take workshops, read everything you can get your hands on, avail yourself of design

or consultant help...a few bucks invested before you build can save you thousands

after it's too late.

**Evaluate the experience level of those you choose to help you...talk to their last customers.

**The joy you find in building and living in SMART SHELTER is directly related to how

well you had your act together before you built.