Insight Piece: The true cost of a house
— 27 July 2026 by Magnus Strom
One of the first things we establish with a new client is a realistic budget. Most arrive with a figure already in mind, sometimes a square metre rate found online or quoted elsewhere. Our job is to test that figure against the reality of their project, set expectations correctly and guide them from there.
On its own, a square metre rate tells you very little. It says nothing about where the house sits, the characteristics of the site or how complex the design is. A basement is a good example. It costs far more per square metre than a ground floor because of the structure, the excavation and the waterproofing that a straightforward structure never needs. A covered terrace or a deep overhang for solar shading adds cost while adding no internal area at all. Two houses of identical size can differ enormously once the design is taken into account.
The site matters just as much. Is there access already, or does it have to be built? Are there services, or do we need to drill a well, as we have done before? Is there an existing building to demolish, or an empty plot to start from? On an island, everything has to be shipped in. All of this shapes the real cost.
Our aim from the outset is to turn a generic rate into a figure grounded in the actual project. At Stage 1, before any design begins, we set out the cost and expectations for the project as a whole. We start with the Core Build, the structure and fabric of the house. Onto that we add Fit-out and Interiors, the kitchens, bathrooms, finishes and joinery, usually between fifteen and twenty-five per cent of the core build, though a client who invests heavily in the interior can push it well beyond that. Landscaping typically adds a further five to fifteen per cent. Then, where they exist, we separate out the Big Ticket Items, such as a pool, a spa or a cinema room. These sit outside the square metre rate because they cannot be measured against it. They are expensive things in their own right. Professional fees and a contingency sit on top, because every house is in some sense a prototype and no site is entirely predictable.
The rate we arrive at is calculated for that project alone, and it is usually higher than the one a client came in with. What matters is not the Core Build in isolation but what the whole project will cost, and it is essential to have a true picture at the start of the project.
This honesty does sometimes cost us work. There will always be someone willing to quote a lower number, usually because they are pricing the core build alone. What has happened more than once is that those clients have come back. They start with another practice, get a cost plan drawn up, and find themselves close to the figure we gave them at the outset. I would far rather set that expectation early than watch a client fall in love with a house that costs far more than they want to spend.
Our experience is what adds value for the client. Fifteen years and more of project data means we know what a house should realistically cost, and how to qualify that number for the site and design in front of us. Beyond that, a house is the sum of tens of thousands of decisions, none made in isolation. We may not always recommend the cheapest product, but we recommend the one that works with everything around it, and that resolved whole is worth far more than any single item within it. We are not selling a set of drawings; we are selling an outcome.
That is why we begin with a Stage 1 study, establishing these parameters before we put pen to paper. It is one of the most important stages of a project, and it sets a solid base for everything that follows.
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