Fourth month budget and the cupola on our LEED house in Houston
As framing completes, we have the April budget to report. We had a second noticeable overage this month, related to framing materials. We had been warned abou this by our builder - the prices for framing materials are of course largely determined by the cost of wood, which is a commodity with significant fluctuations. The Houston construction market is warming up noticeably, at least in some neighborhoods and in custom homes - can't speak to the more high-volume end of the market. In any case, our budget quote had become quite outdated, and we were expecting an overage - we have about half of it in this month, with another half expected to hit in May.
You will also notice that the projected cost per sq ft is creeping up, as the overages accumulate. We started around $165 and are now more at $170, still very affordable for a custo m home. We will continue to go higher, no doubt. Not least because some of the LEED regulations, related to Energy Star and HERS ratings, have recently changed, forcing us to adjust our plan somewhat, on the fly. Not sure what the budget impact will be, but we may have to invest some more to ensure we end up where want to be - Silver LEED at least.
Posted
by Oliver Bogler
