Starter Home Plans

For a starter design, simpler with lower cost materials, build cost starts from $150/ft². If owner provides most the labor (without counting labor cost, paying only material and minimum professional services), it starts from $70/ft².

Adding complexity will increase the cost per ft². Bathroom cost has a minimum regardless of ft², therefore more bathrooms will mean higher cost per ft². Similarly, kitchen cost is typically higher for the same area. For a starter design, complexity and cost of a kitchen should be scaled down.

An attached garage with insulation costs less than a conditioned room.

A typical size single family home in the US, about 2400 ft², has about 30% living area in bedrooms. Essential rooms in a home are bedrooms and bathrooms. In an efficiency, a bedroom plus a bathroom, the bedroom is majority of the living area. Therefore, for smaller homes, our base plan would have higher percentage area for bedrooms than 30%. You can arrange a "bedroom" for other uses, including dual use like as living room or office during the day.

In our base plan, floors will be LVP and showers will be pre-fab bath enclosures. Rooftop garden is an option. Interior walls and closets etc. will be designed based on choices by the homeowner.

We build on your land or we provide around 1600 ft² lot in Houston for 1000 ft² home, priced $20k to $50k depending on location. Two such lots would be required for a 2400 ft² home.

B200

Smallest home plan here is a 200 ft² tiny home, with a bathroom. Build cost starts from $30k. With home owner providing most labor, it starts from $16k.

In or near city, land prices would be high and likely increasing over time. Our plans are designed to allow easy addition of 2nd and 3rd stories, as well as addition to the side.

B200G

This home plan of 200 ft² floor area with a bathroom has a 200 ft² garage added. Build cost starts from $44k. With home owner providing most labor, it starts from $20k.

B600G

This home plan has 400 ft² second story added, to total 600 ft² conditioned area. Build cost starts from $97k. With home owner providing most labor, it starts from $45k.

B1000G

Our standard starter home plan is 1000 ft² floor area with a garage, adding a 3rd floor to the 2-story 600 ft² plan to become a 3-story 1000 ft² plan in this case. It is up to the homeowner to design how the rooms are divided up and for what purposes. Build cost starts from $150k. With home owner providing most labor, it starts from $70k. There is additional cost if more than 3 bathrooms.

B1000GS

The 1000 ft² starter home plan can also be a 2-story plan, covering 600 ft² of land instead of 400 in the 3-story plan.

Our 1000 ft² starter home plan would typically not be designed as a duplex unless there is enough land and parking. Shared ownership for two owners for such home could be structured with joint tenancy in common, with a Co-Living Agreement specifying who owns which room and how the rest would be shared. Other typical clauses may include right of first refusal and minimum time period (like 12 month) before a co-owner is allowed to sell.

G2400G2

A 2400 ft² home would be typical home size, close to median size in the US. A B2400G2 plan would have 2400 ft² living area with two garages, and can be designed as a duplex. Division of the units in such duplex may be 1200:1200 ft², 1600:800 ft², or 2000:400 ft². Build cost starts from $335k. With home owner providing most labor, it starts from $156k.