Cottage Building Costs
There have been some requests lately from readers that would like to follow the same steps I did in building a cottage and they are looking for costs to put a budget together. I know where they are coming from because before I started all this I couldn’t find any costs or quotes or even a task list of things I would need to pay for.
So I thought I would list some of items I paid for and their approximate costs to help folks out.
Take into consideration regional prices, taxes and the size of the building.
So here’s what I did:
- Customized cottage kit from Home Hardware (1050sqft, 25’x25’ footprint, included drawings and materials for a cottage shell) – $27,000
- Grading, Septic, Driveway (I had to bring in a lot of fill because of a high water table) – $17,000
- Full Basement Foundation (8 inch poured concrete) – $10,000
- Drainage Membrane for Foundation – $500
- Tree Removal – $2,500
- Framing Cottage (in a weather tight state, see picture) – $9,000
- Shingling the Roof – $1,000
- Temporary Electricity (power from the street to the cottage and a circuit panel installed) – $1,500
- Building, Plumbing, Entrance Permits – $1,500
Estimates – Items I haven’t completed yet
- Install Vinyl Siding – $2,000
- Install Ducting, Propane lines, and Propane Furnace – $5000
- Interior Materials (Drywall, Flooring, doors, cabinets, sinks, shower, toilet) – $6,000
DIY – Items I plan to do myself
- Install electrical wiring throughout the cottage – ?
- Install plumbing – ?
Total Approximate Cost of the project = $83,000+
Hope this helps and good luck!
Thanks Tim so much!!
Your story has been one of the most helpful that I have read in a long long time…and that says alot cause I live in the same area (or cottage in the same area) and have been looking at building for a very long time. I bought my cottage when I was single and about the same age as you are. It was ok for a while but it is old! Now we (my husband and I) had no idea what we where going to run into as we want to build. We have a very old cottage on a good lake in Halibuton and want a new building but don’t want to run into major cash just to put two bedrooms, a bath and a kitchen into the space. Thanks for detailing the costs, that was great. Now we can see what is reasonable and what we can do without (we have a driveway and hydro etc already for instance,.
You should submit your story to cottage life magazine, I am sure they would love to put stuff like that up on their website or in the magazine (by the way, you HAVE to get that subscription, its like a cult and keeps you connected to your place over the winter!) Enjoy your new place and congrads
I’m stunned with all your efforts. Simply amazing, it just shows that no matter one’s situation, as long as your committed to do something it always turns out great.
I do have a really tight budget, may I ask the permission to use your image/post as a reference? All will be linked back to this post.
Thanks for sharing
Can you give me the estimated cost for electrical wiring and plumbing installation? I don’t think anyone capable to install both themself like you did.
Sorry, I mean “not everyone” instead of “anyone”
Wow, great post. Thanks for the great information! Where is this project located? I’m impressed at your dilligence…keep up the good work.
Zach
It’s not too bad on the price, but prices to hire contractors should be very cheap now. However, having it done yourself is much more satisfying
-Mike
I wish I could build and have a cottage like that. It is nice and it seems comfortable to stay in. If I had it, I could use it during my vacations or any time I needed.
Nice series of articles on building a cottage. My fiance and I are debating this prospect right now. She totally wants to find land and then build. I like the idea of being able to buy and rent right away, to help offset some of the payments. This would be our first property period. It’s too expensive to buy in Toronto, where we live, so having a cottage sounds like it could be ideal. I like being outside the city anyway. I’m thinking that a decent piece of waterfront land (within a 3 hour drive) is gonna be around 100k, and then it’ll probably be another 90k on top of that to build. Who knows? I really have no idea. That’s what scares me. We’ll be able to plunk down about 50k for the land, but will then need a pretty big mortgage to cover the rest of the land cost and the building costs. You can get cottages for around 200k and rent them out right away. Of course you can always build something you exactly want. We’re just beginning to look at this, so we’ll see.
I think your a little light on the interior materials. Cabinets and flooring alone would eat up 6K pretty fast.
tree removal truly can be costly. At 2500 dollars that’s a deal due to the way things are now.
What about lighting and hardware? And the cost for the plot of land?
Thanks for the information. I think very beatiful the cottage
Amazing project, this is a drem I would like to turn into reality sometime soon. We will begin surching for property within 1.5 hrs of Ottawa. Then begins the project which is exactly what you went through.
Would you have add’l info that you can provide to me to help get me started. Like pics, budgets, pitfalls, things you would have changed if you would have known…..etc….
Robert
$27K is pretty good for a kit all the way to close up. Which Home Hardware kit is this and did you have to do any design modifications?
Thanks for the great information!
We have enjoyed reading your posts. We have a piece of property and are in the early stages of planning for a new cottage build. We are in your area (North of Madoc) and were wondering if you are able to share the names / contacts for your framers / contractors. We also plan on ordering a kit from Home Hardware. Thanks
Mark,
Thanks for following along. Unfortunately the framing contractor is the brother of my boss and lives in hamilton. He came out to my place as a favour. I will mention it to him and if he says yes I’ll email you his contact info.
Good luck with cottage!
Tim
All the calculated true enough, but then more price may vary by region.
i think it is expensive. Instead building i prefer renting one. if bored i can rent one again in a different region.
Great article, by far the most detail I can find online.
You quote $27k to lock up? Did you purchase the complete kit? I understand the complete kit includes interior finishes, doors, insulation, soffits & faccia and even primer paint. Did you purchase a scaled down kit to cut down on costs? Any idea what the complete material kit from Beaver Homes would cost?
Thanks Pete. The kit I purchase was scaled down, just studs on the interior. The kit included materials to build the cottage and decks, exterior doors and windows, house wrap, shingles, and vinyl siding. I’m not sure what the full kit would have cost.
Hi,
If you contact the Beaver Lumber people with the name of the cottage plan they will quoye you the price.
A
how does this have any thing to so with the show
A follow up:
You chose a 2 storey model to reduce costs? Considering the foundation pour was a separate cost, how did you achieve such a significant saving? I ask because I’m trying to gauge materials cost for a similar sized, but 1 storey structure and am wondering if your $25 per square foot cost could relate to my project.
I know, it sounds crazy doesn’t it. It was just dumb luck. I had no idea what the prices of the other cottage packages were until I talked to the guy at Home Hardware. The only reason I could see for the difference in price was the roofing of the single level building we were looking at. It hung over the front to make a covered porch and I’m pretty sure the trusses had to be enginered before they were delivered where the trusses were just built on site for the cottage I have now.
Dang, I have 10 beautiful acres on the water in muskoka with a trout pond in the back and it blends into thousands of acres of crown land and I’m about the same age you cats are (I acquired it through big dreams and major hard work) BUT without a down to earth Gal to enjoy it with… It’s intrinsic value is frozen ….this is for all the people wishing for “a Muskoka Cottage”….the real value is in the people surrounding it….this is true in all regards, it’s a good thing!; and it’s harder sometimes than saving up for a muskoka cottage….Do / live what really matters and enjoy it along the way..
LOVE your blog and this post in particular! Thanks for the itemized list of costs. My husband and I are in the process of investigating options for building. We recently purchased an island property on Rice Lake. We hope to have a cabin built in the next 5 years, by the age of 35. You’ve inspired me to document the journey and our adventures on a blog: http://www.canadiancottager.blogspot.com
I found a similar cabin plan in “Cottage” magazine. Never thought of Home Hardware for pre-fab cabin kits.
Building these days isn’t cheap
but it is always better to have everything planned so you can see how much it is going to cost you and what’s need to be done. Thanks for providing this list I am sure folks that building cottages will appreciate it.
80 some K seem like a reasonable price considering that you’re building it from scratch, I mean it would probably cost more to buy a house that is already build and furnished.
i want to build a little cottage in the uk, probably the scottish highlands or just a bit of woodland? i haven’t drawn up a plan yet and it wouldn’t be anything elaborate (no gas or electricity) its more of a cabin than anything. this is just a little dream im entertaining and i just want to know how id go about getting planning permission.
Thanks for the information. I think very beatiful the cottage
Most peoples read about DIY from how.com, a great site.
You should be proud to share your story and experances
This is just waht i’m looking to do
I’m a contracter on home renos and build new kitchens and any thing to do with wood
I can make magic with the stuff
It’s my own small low over head bussiness and I’m looking to build a cottage and possible nothing fancy
place to go on a lake fo my son’s to enjoy
Thanks Gary
The special pre-fab “Katrina Cottages” can be built in 6 days by a crew of 5 people. What is an estimate for how much this would cost to build?I m taking it.
It depends on how elaborate you want to go with the details. Generally you can build a house as cheap as $50-$60 a square foot. I just built a custom home myself and did not cut any corners–I was however a savvy shopper but didn’t sacrifice the look I wanted and we averaged spending around $100-$110 a square foot.
Go to the site below and click on DIY projects and scroll down to soundproofing in the home and hopefully that will explain what you need.
What is the foundation of this cottage is made up of?Is it having wood or some other things..Its a kind of imagination and the best thing is that how some one put that imagination in reality.I think it is not made by a single person.