construction costs(house building)

[JW]

Never have been much use with the old keyboard!

[carmiebee]

Hi John,
My husband and I have asked some builder to prepare the drawings of our new house just recently. According to him, construction cost per sqm for reasonably good building materials is 10,000 to 11,000 baht. It really depends on what roof tiles, floor tiles, inner fixtures, windows, doors, and other building materials that you choose to include. We are waiting for him to quote us the cost of building this house. We are still waiting for their quote on the new house.
Do make sure that you know exactly what are included in the building costs at the very beginning. Apparently, they can vary a lot. Things that you think will be included probably aren't.
I am sure that it won't be easy for foreigners to have their own property built in Thailand. Finding a good builder will at least make it easier. Good luck to you.
Cheers,
Carman

[norm]

I have been looking for a architect that can convert a plan from the US to work in Hua Hin. I need one that speaks english and is familiar with the needs of farangs. They seem to be as scarce as hens teeth. Any info would be appreciated.

[Nomad]

Norm. I know a guy who is doing that for me. Not much English though. PM me your phone number and I will try to link you up.

[lockwood74]

Hi,
I can give you access to A Thai Architect, that works for the Hua Hin Municipality (government).

She was great, ended up with over 30 pages of detailed drawings, all the structural drawings etc for 45,000 baht

Work was completed in 6 weeks. Also no problem submitting plans and getting certificates for approval as all this was in the fee.

I can also give you details of the construction company I am using and you are welcome to view my build as they are now putting the roof on.

regards john

[norm]

We have been doing some research on builders in the Hua Hin area and have found their are some you want to stay away from and the price per a square metre seems to go from 11,000B to 20,000B. It is a tough job finding the right one.

The Thai builders seem to be the most reasonable in price but their time frame in completing the job can be much longer than projected. If your Thai language skills aren't reasonable you will need someone to interpet for you, hopefully someone with knowledge of construction.

Keep in mind I am new to Hua Hin and these are just my impressions from talking to people who have been through the process. It appears that it can be a very stressfull process.

Norm

[cole]

It is not easy to define; if you want a Mercedes then that is what you pay for; a Ford, the same answer and you will have to live with what you do not like.

The prices quoted to prospective customers are rarely clear - does the price include a kitchen, fittings, landscape, garden walls, air conditioning, fans,,,,the list of variables is extensive. ...Are the foundations piled or pad footings and so it goes on. Doors, bathroom fittings, floor finishes, insulation; any idea of what is being supplied?

People think that because there are houses everywhere they are easy to build - but this is not so. If you have an architect does he / she really know what you want; do you know how many times we see toilets in the kitchen areas.

There are so many disappointed souls who have contracted to have a house built, only to show up a year later with their bags ready to move in, to find a roofless shell, often without any tiltle deeds, that it is a wonder most of the property agents and builders in Hua Hin are not incarcerated, (I believe some of them cannot distinguish a well built house from a sand castle).

Frequently prices quoted are for an unfinished shell - maybe without bathrooms or floor finishes - no big deal, but if that is not what you expected......

You can build for less than 15k per m2, but it is a shell, although maybe of good quality and add 5 to 10k per m2 for a fully finished house.

Often a house looks good when the owner moves in, however the faults appear slowly and after 2 years there is a strong probability that the owner will be moving into the demolition business. I cannot name names, but there are plenty of houses with cracks in the walls that are so bad that the house will eventually collapse.

P;anning and scheduling, a novel concept for most small builders, and not only in Thailand; this is a universal problem.
I could write a book, as they say.

[norm]

Cole

We have recently been talking to a Thai builder. His English skills are less than my Thai and my Thai is near non-existant. He has a interpeter who is OK if you stick with small words and sentences.

They are interested in building for us at Palm Hills. Have looked at some of his work at Stuart Park and Hua Hin Horizon. It looked better than the average. Anyone have any knowledge on those developments regarding the construction not the developer.

He said he will build for 11,000B per sq metre. After several meetings we are narrowing down what is and is not provided. And the allowance per sq metre for tile both roofing and floor. We still have a lot more points to cover before we have the big picture. A list of some of the points we covered.

The builder provides;

All windows and doors made from old teak the exterior Windows and doors to be 5CM thick. Many of the doors both interior and exterior are arched.

300B per sq m on roof tile.

250B per sq m on floor tile

Teak skirting size to be defined

Paint interior and exterior primer + 3 coats (4 season) more B for better

Glass thickness in windows 6mm more B for thicker

Permanent meter to be provided 45/100 amp

Water and power bill to be paid by builder prior to final payment

150 Litre central hot water heater to be provided including 55psi pump and 20mm copper pipe insulated. To all hot water taps

Property to be cleaned and leveled and all trash removed. Not dumped on empty block next to us.

Termite protection lines completely around inside of all structures

Carport to be 9500B per sq m including 150 Cm concrete and sandwash. Storage along one wall 1.5m deep with teak access doors.

Some of the house specs include
3.5mtr ceilings on ground floor 3.0 to 3.2 on 2nd floor
Roof slope to be 35degrees Thai style roof vented at each end. There are several.

Pilings to be 11 mtrs into ground under all structures and pool.

WE have to provide he will install in most cases.
All bathroom fixtures and tiling. There are 4 of them
All air conditioning and ceiling fans.
All light switches, fan switches, power points, TV connections, light fixtures and stereo surround sound cable and connectors. He provides the wire 1.5mm for lights and 2.5mm for power points square copper rated 600-1000 volts. And he provides necessary conduit (all cable and wire to be in conduit). All power points to be grounded through proper copper coated ground rod driven into ground as close as possible to fuse box.

Drive to be 150CM thick and sandwashed. 900B sq mtr

Two 5mtr gates and one personnel gate to be installed. We provide.

Fence we pay type to be determined.

Pool infinity 5mtr X 12mtr with spa covered with sala and water fall.Pool 1.2 to 1.8 mtr deep. Price 1.1 millionB to include necessary pumps all tile and concrete around pool sandwashed finish.
We provide kitchen

We pay for pumphouse.
we pay for landscaping
Those are the items we have covered so far. Items to be discussed include;

Footpath price
Septic and graywater tanks
Gutters and downspouts
Water storage tanks and pumps
Safety breakers
Remote controlled gates
Personnel gate and gatehouse
Security

And many items I haven't thought of yet.

.

[Guess]

And many items I haven't thought of yet.

.

Spare us please.

[malcolminthemiddle]

It sounds as if you are putting the horse in front of the cart.

Before finding a builder you need an architect who develops the drawings and specification based on your requirements.

The builder then prices the drawings and specifications prepared by the architect which subsequently become an integral part of the construction agreement which clearly lists such things as the budget price for tiles and materials/work excluded.

Self build for the novice is not recommended.

[cole]

Whilst an architect is not prerequisite to building a home a decent set of drawings will go a long way to achieving your goal. Otherwise it is like sending a young child out to shop for dinner without a "shopping list", you will get what they deem important or convenient.

Building here is no different from anywhere else in the world; if you do not tell the builder precisely what you want you will get something else and if it is not on the drawings you wont get it. You are dealing with contractors not clairvoyants.

Ther are many good quality Thai builders, however sometimes their thinking is diametrically opposite to our expectations; after all they were not raised in UK or Oz or USA, which is probably the reason why many farangs stay here.

Sq. M. rates are a contractor's licence to print money and you will never know how much you have been taken for.

Many residents of Hua Hin live with the dream that they can build a palace here for a fraction of the cost they would pay in Europe or the USA. This maybe true if you want to build a "tract housing style starter home", but that is not where most people are coming from; certainly not on Palm Hills.

Even if you have drawings and Specs., there is no guarantee that you will get what you expect and it is very hard to get a builder to remove the incorrect work and rebuild; the usual contractor's solution is to leave the scene of the crime with the owners wringing there hands and wailing "woe is me".

As an earlier reply suggested - think carefully before you entrust your hopes and money to a contractor - whatever their nationality.

[malcolminthemiddle]

Whilst an architect is not prerequisite to building a home a decent set of drawings will go a long way to achieving your goal.

So who draws up the drawings - the milkman?

[Jockey]

Whilst an architect is not prerequisite to building a home a decent set of drawings will go a long way to achieving your goal.

So who draws up the drawings - the milkman?

you can buy ready made drawings off-the-shelf so to speak. There are 10,s of thousands for them. An architect will study a chosen 'drawing' and tailor it to your needs. If your lucky an architect will be a good designer also. Some architects know how structures are created but are not so good on design and good finishing.

[malcolminthemiddle]

[quote="Jockey
you can buy ready made drawings off-the-shelf so to speak. ...................[/quote]

Yes, but will these drawings provide you with a footprint showing the orientation of your house on the plot, space for the pool, parking, pathways and driveways, proximity to neighbours, incoming and outgoing utilities such as drainage, an internal layout to suit your requirements and other information needed by the Thai authorities who issue the building permit?

[Burger]

malcolminthemiddle wrote:

Yes, but will these drawings provide you with a footprint showing the orientation of your house on the plot, space for the pool, parking, pathways and driveways, proximity to neighbours, incoming and outgoing utilities such as drainage, an internal layout to suit your requirements and other information needed by the Thai authorities who issue the building permit?

Malcolm, in Hua Hin there are architects working for the building department at the Tessabahn who will actually do the above/finish your drawings off for you (for a fee) and then obtain the building permit as a formality.
You should get yourself familiarised with the local working practices here before coming on here with your sarcy 'milkman' comments and the like.

Burger