Construction Estimating Guide

This estimating guide has been prepared by Natural Spaces Domes, Inc. for the would-be dome builder, as an effort to give some help in figuring the rough costs one could expect to pay for a finished dome, built on an existing prepared lot. Many of the inquiries we receive have to do with various degrees of owner-participation in the actual construction and with various levels of finished quality. We have prepared the following to help address these variables. It must be stressed that these figures are only rough guidelines; actual costs will vary with numerous other factors. To obtain a total, multiply the gross building square feet on all floors by the figures below.

(Multiply the gross building square feet on all floors by these figures)
A,B,C = Quality Level. See definition on following page.

Licensed Contractor built homes are the customary built-from-plans dwelling in which the owner formally contracts with the builder to deliver a specified home for a specified price. The owner does not become involved in the building process except for making decisions on the allowances and options of the contract. The owner purchases the home "turn-key" - that is completely finished.

Owner Contractor built homes are by-and-large the same as those built by a licensed contractor, except that the owner himself does his own financial planning, materials purchasing, scheduling, arranging for subcontractors, and dealing with building departments concerning codes, fees and permits. Similar to many licensed contractors, the owner-contractor does no actual labor himself. Barring serious mistakes and setbacks, the owner-contractor might expect to save 10-15% off the total cost of the home.

Owner Finished homes are owner-contracted homes in which the owner becomes directly in the construction labor. Often, this owner subcontracts the more difficult aspects of the and does the rest himself. The savings on such a home might be as high as 25-30%, though project becomes a full time occupation and requires a great deal of skill and patience.

Owner Built homes offer the greatest amount of savings, but requires the greatest degree of skill, time and risk. The owner-builder does all of the work, except for specialized sub-contractors/finish tradesmen. Only the person with significant building experience should consider this approach to home-building. Many lending institutions are not willing to risk loans to owner builders without a higher dollar investment by the owner or by providing a loan for less than 50% of the value. Some lenders will require the owner-builder to hire a professional project manager or work under a licensed contractor. Owner builders can expect to save 30% to 50%.