The Most Cost-Effective Home Design?

Years ago, a developer came to me and told me he was selling land very cheap ($60,000-$70,000). However, the blocks required water tanks and treatment systems ($20,000). He wanted to product house and land packages for under $250,000. Even then, that was a tight budget. So we set to work to design the most cost-effective homes we could.

What we came up with were 3 bedroom home designs that looked really nice and were much cheaper than anything else selling at the time. The homes included:

* rectangular homes, no more than 7-7.5m wide;

* a low-pitched hip and gable roof with a patio awning attaching to the side;

* Hardiplank cladding;

* sliding windows throughout, with some double sliding glass doors.

Sounds a little boring? Well, painting the cladding light grey and adding white windows, gave the home a stunning look that suited every area from the beach to the bush.

For owner-builders, this was a very easy home to build.

Over time, we specced the design up a little and now it is the Cooroy design on our website range. Modifications of it continue to be a popular choice, and some owners have added a full wrap-around veranda, which looks amazing.

As you add larger spans, kick-outs in the design and a more complicated roofline, the costs start increasing quickly.

Top 3 Design Aspects that Will Add to the Cost Dramatically:

1. large open spaces, voids and raked ceilings

2. complicated rooflines

3. large windows, louvres, casement windows, stacker sliding doors and bi-folds.