BajaNomad

$100/sqft + services???

Nicole - 12-5-2007 at 05:45 PM

When people talk about $100 per sq ft to build does that include an allowance to hook up things like sewer/septic, water, and electricity?

Al G - 12-5-2007 at 05:51 PM

If it does not...look for another contractor, but it will all depend on what your are building...just make sure it all is in the bid.

longlegsinlapaz - 12-5-2007 at 06:04 PM

Depends on where you're talking about. Typically, you, as the owner, are responsible for the electrical contract. The casa would be plumbed & wired.....out to the connection point, the owner is typically responsible for signing the individual utilities contracts. But some builders do include hook-up in their presupuesto (quote/bid). In an established development where the developer is also the builder, that type of scenario would be more likely to have connection fees included in the full-up price, but you'll be paying an appreciably higher price per sq ft than if you were to shop around & find your own builder & contract him direct; the more middlemen, the higher the price per sq ft.

If you're sincerely thinking about building, shop around & ask for detailed quotes spelling out what IS and what is NOT included, so you don't get blindsided downstream & "nickle & dimed" to death!

Edit typo

[Edited on 12-6-2007 by longlegsinlapaz]

Loretana - 12-5-2007 at 08:04 PM

Nicole,

I handled all the off site connections on my small Loreto property. I am an excavation contractor in the US, so I knew what to expect. Its what we do for a living.

The water connection was $120.00 dollars, and the municipal agency here in Loreto dug the underground street connection and ran a copper and pvc 1/2 inch pipe onto my property.

The electrical connection including the meter, post, (called a mofa in spanish) and drop from the power pole cost $500.00 dollars. You need to provide that yourself. My contractor did the work. Last month the CFE (Comision Federal de Electricidad) powered us up and charged us $447 pesos; $24 pesos was my consumo minimo for the first month, and the rest was their hook up fee. So, it cost $550 dollars to get electrical power to the lot.

The real challenge was the sewer connection. There is no sewer line to access in our little street, and Loreto is having a hard time getting the existing sewer main lines repaired. (That's an understatement!)
So I knew the City wasn't going to get my connection done in this lifetime. :rolleyes:

I hired an independent backhoe owner/operator and we installed 209 feet of 6 inch PVC sewer main down our little calle to the nearest manhole. It cost us $600 dollars for the pipe and $500 dollars for the crew. I shot the grade for the pipe, with our laser, and kept the snacks and cervezas flowing.
I like to get dirty with the guys!! :dudette:

Longlegs knows her stuff, take her advice and hammer out the prices with your contractor, and get it in writing!
Buena Suerte!!

Sewer small.JPG - 49kB

bajadock - 12-5-2007 at 11:01 PM

Great post/question. Challenge is your inclusions in price v. contractors exclusions and add/ons. Contractor is motivated to have as many "extras"
as possible, especially nearing completion, playing upon your stress level.

If I had not had terrific contractor, Armando Gonzales, he and I could have had lots of fights nearing end. Example is that he added a tile backsplash on my exterior window wall to waterproof a joint that had slight leak after
weekend rains. NO CHARGE.

Lots of "roostering" about $/sqft occurs. Ensenada sq ft quotes include garage. I've heard lots of $40/sqft boasts. Perhaps, but, this ain't the jungles of Nicaragua.

How much snow in your nhbhd of BC/Norte+? I get there annually and love it!

BigWooo - 12-6-2007 at 06:42 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by bajadock
I've heard lots of $40/sqft boasts. Perhaps, but, this ain't the jungles of Nicaragua.


In the Jungles of Nicaragua it's $150.00 sq foot! :o

bajadock - 12-6-2007 at 07:02 AM

BW, could be true. Friend of mine built 1,200 sqft near Volcan, Panama for $35/sqft complete incl land.
Exclusions from contractors and from braggarts on their projects:
1. Land/lot
2. Utility connection
3. Septic, pila/water pump, propane tank
4. Appliances
5. 50" flat panel LCD w/ surround sound :lol:

BigWooo - 12-6-2007 at 07:29 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by bajadock
BW, could be true. Friend of mine built 1,200 sqft near Volcan, Panama for $35/sqft complete incl land.
Exclusions from contractors and from braggarts on their projects:
1. Land/lot
2. Utility connection
3. Septic, pila/water pump, propane tank
4. Appliances
5. 50" flat panel LCD w/ surround sound :lol:


We just got an email from a friend in Nicaragua who told us that the contractors he talked were at $150, but that's for a nice block house (like yours) using an established contractor. I don't think they have easy access to materials like in Baja. I'm sure there are $35 builders, but it will be much more rustic. Anyway with Ortega working to become the next Castro, Nicaragua may not be the best place to have a house anyway. (Sorry to hijack the thread, although it's interesting to compare the cost of other countries to Mexico).

bajadock - 12-7-2007 at 08:31 AM

WoooGrande, construction costs are always an interesting topic. The subjectivity involved makes for great communication challenges, true? Add a dollop of ego, splash of poor financial acumen and a pinch of selective memory and you have a 25% plus/minus error factor on costs.

Does anyone else notice this part? When constructing, everyone convinces you how much they saved on materials and how shrewd they were about negotiating custom work/add-ons for no charge.

When selling, the square footage is inflated, the custom woodwork was done by an artisan from Guadalajara, the iron work by a Mazatlan iron sculptor and all of the wood hand-picked and imported from Brazil.
:lol::bounce::o

vandenberg - 12-7-2007 at 09:18 AM

I built in the early 90's in Nopolo and the end result was around $ 60.00 a ft, land excluded.
So, taking inflation and other economic factors into consideration, $ 100.00 a ft. seems like a bargain.