Two-story house only for the richest. This is how the number of storeys affects the cost of construction
Construction costs have a large, if not the largest, impact on the choice of a future home. Keeping them as low as possible is one of the priorities for almost every investor. It is no wonder that questions about which house will be the cheapest still arise. And how do basements or attics affect the cost of construction?
The basement can constitute as much as 20-30 percent of the total investment costs. From a structural point of view, it constitutes an entire floor, which additionally requires extensive earthworks and appropriate waterproofing.
Home Building Costs. Or Maybe a Partial Basement?
The use of a partial basement does not change the situation, because under the rest of the building we have to make so-called stepped foundations to evenly distribute its weight. Therefore, I strongly advise investors who want to reduce construction costs against choosing a project with a basement.
– In the case of single-storey houses and houses with usable attics, the situation becomes more complicated. It is usually assumed that single-storey houses are slightly cheaper to build, but this statement is true only for small buildings. The limit runs precisely around 100 m² of usable area, and the main determinant is a simple and compact body. Larger single-storey houses will be more expensive than their two-storey counterparts by several or even a dozen or so percent – explains Wojciech Rynkowski from Extradom.pl.
What is the reason for this? In the case of a single-storey house, we can give up several rather expensive and complicated to make elements – concrete ceilings, skylights and stairs. Especially the latter can be a considerable expense.
Lighter construction means lower costs
To save on costs and time, you can use prefabricated trusses in combination with a light, wooden suspended ceiling. It is also worth completely eliminating the ceiling in the living room, which will affect the appearance of the interior and the sense of space.
The structure of the house can also be slightly lighter. A small, single-story house is usually cheaper than its counterpart with the same usable area but with an attic or upper floor.
– However, the situation is reversed if we look at much larger houses. The costs of building foundations (or, increasingly often, foundation slabs) and – most importantly – the cost of roofing start to play a significant role – adds the Extradom.pl expert.
If we decide to use ceramic roof tiles, the additional expense in the case of a single-story house may quickly exceed the savings resulting from eliminating stairs and ceilings, and the structure will still have to be adapted to bear significant loads.
Customers choose houses up to 100 m2
– Large single-storey houses often have a fragmented L-shaped body. This results from the need to properly connect and illuminate all rooms or to mark the division into day and night zones. In some cases, the roof area of a single-storey house can be almost twice as high as its counterpart with an attic. This is a big difference, especially if we take into account that a square meter of ceramic roof tiles currently costs an average of PLN 100 to PLN 250 – adds Wojciech Rynkowski from Extradom.pl.
In the current reality, when builders are most interested in houses in the 80-110 m² range, the still popular “single-storey houses” have a clear advantage, invariably constituting over 55 percent of projects chosen by future investors.
