Recently, there’s been an uptick in renovation inquiries from homeowners and frequent discussions about Renovation Cost and the cost of architectural services, so I figured this would be a good time to write a brief post about the topic, NYC Residential Renovation Cost.
While the price range will vary based on the extent and quality of work may designers and architects, like ourselves, will use a cost per square foot estimate in the early stages of the to describe the project and set expectations with our clients. Below are a few price ranges, and forecasts, we typically work with to set an expectation.
Price Ranges:
- Below $100p/SF – Miscellaneous work or repairs; okay quality.
- $100 – $200p/SF – Limited renovation; decent quality.
- $200-$300p/SF – Gut renovation; good quality.
- $300-$400p/SF – Gut renovation; high quality
- $400+p/SF – Gut renovation; luxury
Typical Forecasts:
- +/- $35,000 new bathroom, reworking plumbing and changing location or types of fixtures
- +/- $75,000 new kitchen, reworking plumbing, and changing location or types of fixtures.
- +/- $300,000 full gut, good quality, per floor.
- +/- $400,000 full gut, good quality, per floor if turning into CONDO’s
- +/-$500,000 per 2000 sqft
We, WAKE, use these numbers as a starting point for the project to set the expectation, define the project goals and scope, and while acknowledging that the numbers are general and will vary on a case by case basis.
To further break up the cost with clients, we discuss the difference between project cost, hard cost, and soft cost along with where they’re money is going and what to expect when working with a qualified team of professionals.
Hard Costs are those directly related to the actual construction, paying for the cost of materials and labor (T&M) from the contractor and sub-contractor.
Examples of Construction Hard Costs:
- Hardware & Products
- Materials
- Labor/ Time for Construction Contractor & Sub-Contractor
Soft Costs are those that do not directly relate to the physical construction of the project. Soft Costs include things like the architect and DOB fees and other sub-consultants like expediters, structural engineers, mechanical engineers, asbestos, etc. These costs vary greatly depending on whom you’re using but typically cost between 12-25% of the Hard Cost and are in addition to your Hard Cost.
Examples of Construction Soft Costs:
- Lawyer Fees for Contract Review
- Building Management Fees
- Department of Building Filing Fees
- Expediter for Department of Building Filing
- Special Inspection Fees
- Interior Designer/Architect
- Architect
- Engineers; Structural, Mechanical, etc.
Miscellaneous Work & Repairs
<$100p/SF
- Should your budget fall within this range, it’ll be next to impossible to do a gut or complete renovation with a qualified team of professionals. This budget is good for the essentials and general repairs, not complete rehabilitations of residential buildings.
Limited Renovation – Decent Quality
$100-$200p-/sf
- This is a decent budget for a general renovation; while it’ll be hard to do a full gut, you’ll be able to obtain a good overall renovation. Pushing for a larger gut renovation with this budget will limit the overall quality of the work and force you to work with suppliers like Ikea or Home Depot/ Lowes.
Gut Renovation – Good Quality
$200-$300p/SF
- This is a good budget for a gut renovation and allow you to select products and goods from vendors/ suppliers you like while retaining a quality contractor and team.
Gut Renovation – High Quality
$300-$400p/SF
- At these prices, you’re able to pick the top of the line products and contractors with little to no compromising to stay within your project budget.
Gut Renovation – Luxury
$400+p/SF
- At this price point and budget for a residential project, you’re able to have all top of the line products, materials, and detailing work done by your team.
Disclaimer: Please remember these are just rough numbers used as talking points with potential clients to set an expectation. There is a lot to be said about these numbers, and everyone has a different definition of what “good” and “high-end” are.
With the Forecast numbers, specific parts of a renovation cost that have been pulled out and isolated for a more natural understanding as many of our potential clients want to target a particular area of their home.
Assuming a 2000sf home some of
- Bathroom Renovations; $10,000 – $50,000
- Kitchen Renovations; $25,000 – $125,000
- Air Conditioning; $3,000 – $80,000
- Through Wall $3,000 – $4,000 per unit
- Central Air $30,000 – $80,000
- Electrical Reqiring; $30,000 – $50,000
- Window Replacement; $1,000 – $2,000 per window (typ. double-hung)
As resources to our clients, we typically point them to the following sources: