Determining construction costs for a cabin build is not a complicated endeavor. However, we think various kinds of costs go overlooked when simply aggregating bids. The Pretty Good House lays out several things to consider. We’ve highlighted and expanded on those below that we think are most relevant to cabins and rural homes.

Construction Costs – “Embodied” vs. “Operational”

The “cost” of both the monetary and carbon can be grouped into two categories. There’s what it costs upfront (embodied) – and there’s what it costs to keep it going every month (operational).

As an example, there are two categories of cost for the size of the building you’re planning to construct. There’s a greater embodied and operational cost (monetary and carbon) as the square footage increases. A bigger building requires more materials, and more labor, and demands more energy every month after construction to maintain.

If there were “dials” at our disposal to control these two categories of costs – they’d be size and quality.

Build as Small as Possible

The fastest way to maximize your budget and reduce both your carbon and monetary embodied and operational costs is to construct a smaller building. Build as small as possible and not a bit more. Especially for a cabin where you may not live full-time or have a very different lifestyle than in an urban setting; there are many considerations that make a significant impact on the physical and monetary impact of your project.

• Basements are often more a liability than they are anything else. Depending on your building site, they may be prone to leak. They’re often left unfinished – and thus unused except for storage. And what ends up stored down there is often at the determent of the occupant’s health (solvents, chemicals, etc.).
• Formal spaces have no place in a cabin. Forgo things like dining rooms that are rarely or never used.
• Bedrooms are often only used for sleeping and changing. Make them as small as possible.
• Guest rooms that are rarely or never used should be eliminated. Or find a way to make them an excellent flex space. In a previous home, we had a murphy bed desk – so our guest room was a gym, home office, and spare room all-in-one.
• The most expensive phases of a project are the foundation and the roof. You can reduce the cost of both by building up instead of out. A two-story home versus a one-story home of the same square footage will be significantly cheaper.

So what’s the right size? The Pretty Good House offers the following square footage guidelines to shoot for:

• 1,000 square feet for 1 person
• 1,500 square fee for 2 people
• 1,750 square fee for 3 people
• 1,875 square fee for 4 people

Build as Well as Possible

The Pretty Good House is a building standard – a benchmark. “Building to code” is not a benchmark. We want to build to a higher grade than code in some areas (where the costs make sense) and to the same grade as code in others (where exceeding code the costs do not make sense). And in both cases – we’re looking for excellent quality.

Things that are ripe for renovation and changes are things like kitchens and bathrooms. It’s also likely that in the life of a home, the interior layout may change along with utilities. What’s incredibly unlikely to change over the life of the building is the shell. Having renovated several hundred-plus-year-old homes myself – I can vouch for this being true. All that to say if there’s one area to not skimp – it’s the building shell.

For that reason – and the fact that a building shell is likely to carry some of the greatest embodied and operational carbon cost responsibilities – The Pretty Good House steers us towards deciding on an energy goal, the assemblies to achieve it, and making our compromises elsewhere in the project.

• Deciding to build an energy-efficient home can mean more upfront costs. However, lenders recognize that this means the building will have lower operating costs – and thus can easily be a wash financially. Because of that, you may want to consider Energy Efficient Mortgage vehicles to finance your project.
• Your build should be solar-ready – if not planned to have solar from the get-go. We cover building sites with solar in mind in our location buying guide. You can use this free tool to get an idea of what kind of impact solar can have on your power needs and location.
• Use energy reports (like REScheck) to design a building envelope that meets or exceeds code. Insulation makes a huge impact up until a point – at which adding more does hardly anything. Adjusting which orientation your glazing is, how much glazing you have, the u-factor of the glazing, and the wall and roof assemblies that reduce or eliminate thermal bridges will make a huge impact on the efficiency of your building regardless of your R-values.
• Work with your contractor and designer to establish wall assemblies and air seal details for your walls, windows, doors, roof, and exterior cladding (rain screen). These should be considered non-negotiable budget-wise and help inform the rest of your build and budget.
• Simple shapes are easier and cheaper to build; and far easier to air seal and insulate properly. As our roofing guideline preaches – forgo dormers and complex roof facets in favor of simplicity.
• Air source heat pumps are the best option available right now to heat and cool a home – especially if you’ve invested in your building envelope. See more in our HVAC guidelines.
• There’s a direct correlation between comfort and performance. The higher the performance of the home – the more comfortable it’s going to be.

Embodied Carbon Costs

Some materials are far better for climate change than others. While the bullets above largely preach performance (and thus operational carbon) – there are some highlights to consider to avoid having so much embodied carbon in your project that the operational performance will never pay for itself.

• Use wood and wood-derived materials that are sustainably harvested; locally if possible. Steel and aluminum are recyclable – but have three-to-six times the embodied carbon as lumber.
• Avoid tropical hardwoods altogether due to their ties to massive deforestation, slow-growth, and general corruption of the market.
• Avoid or limit your use of concrete (one of the “big three” contributors to climate change) by looking at helical piers, insulated concrete forms (ICFs), frost-protected shallow foundations, and other alternatives.
• Foam as a category has a horrible track record for the environment. Limiting its use to below grade or just to seal your air barrier above grade is a best practice. If you do use it, look for spray foam that uses HFO blowing agents or rigid that’s polyiso or EPS over XPS (worst option).
• Avoid fossil fuel-burning appliances (propane, natural gas). They’re bad for the indoor air quality in addition to being bad for the planet.
• Wood stoves aren’t recommended – but if they are used – be sure they’re EPA-certified with fresh air intake and appropriate make-up air in the home to avoid backdrafts. See our guide on wood stoves.
• Avoid PFAs or highly fluorinated chemicals (think non-stick, stain resistant, waterproof) which have a long history of horrible health effects – both to manufacture and once installed.
• Choose low or zero-VOC solvents, caulks, and paints that are better for you and the planet.
• Many fiberglass insulation products contain formaldehyde – which should be avoided.

TL;DR Construction Budget Commandments

• Build as small as possible.
• Never compromise on the building envelope. Steer your value engineering (VE) and cost savings to other aspects of the build (interior finishes, building and room size, appliance grade, etc.).
• Never compromise on anything that impacts the durability (think environment, weather, natural disasters, etc.), structural integrity, or occupant health and safety.
• Consider both your embodied and operational costs. Both financially and in regards to the carbon footprint.