Timber Framers Guild Forums General General Forum Questions cost of TF home

Hello!

I found "Build a Classic Timber-Framed House" by Jack A. Sobon in the bookstore yesterday. I had never thought of it. Lately I have been developing an interest in woodwork, starting with some bookcases and other fairly straightforward projects. But these houses sound great.

I did a search of the forums, but I don't find a single match for "cost". I am wondering, what is the cost of labor + materials of a TF house, say, full basement + 2 stories of hall & parlor building of typical dimensions e.g. 14' + 10' + 14' ?

And more importantly, where does one find twenty people who are capable of raising such a project?

eye_like_wood!

Thanks!

Many timber frame company websites can give you a rough idea of cost. You'll find sites quoting $30 a sf for just the timber frame, to estimating that a timber frame costs 30% more than a stick built house.

I don't price by the square foot. Each frame varies too much. I have never built the same thing twice. Even once you are past the frame there are so many variables, flooring, trim details, insulation et cetera.

e_l_w, is this something you are wanting to build on your own or are you looking for a builder? There is a list of timber in the book, 7129 board feet. Find a local mill, pricing may vary form location to location and builder to builder.

Friends, Family and experience?

Tim

Thanks for the replies!

I think I don't have the friends or family to turn out a crowd of 10-20 people who are competent to raise a bunch of hefty pieces of wood. Also I'm a bit on the small side, and when I do really heavy lifting, my hands hurt somewhat. So I think I'm not going to be able to lift a lot of heavy wood for free.

I guess if there's not a group culture involved, and if the prospective owner is not really up to it, a TF home is not really a financial savings, is it. Personally I'd like a simple interior. I dislike walking into someone's home and finding everything, I don't know, so hotel-like. I like the simpler, older approach. The appeal of the TF is its strength, its age, its less industrialized nature.

Welcome Eye! I would think your last comment would justify any additional costs.

Yes, indeed while not being an expert myself, my gut sense is that a TF home is more sound than a 'stick' home. Still I was hoping that it was actually less expensive. But if it's considerably less expensive, maybe that's because of:

- workshare arrangements
- cases where the owner is able to do quite a lot of TF tasks
- cases where the owner is able to do most of the rest of the work, interior and exterior
- cases where the owner is not looking for a McMansion but an old-fashioned workable home

Absent any of those, and the owner might actually pay more for a TF home, simply on the grounds that it's rare enough that demand outstrips supply in some sense.

Any other thoughts welcome, about issues that affect price structure.

That list could be applied to conventional buildings as well.

A well build timber building has a proven track record of 100's of years. A stick building could possibly reach those numbers if time allowed. Which is going to possibly be the issue. The modern house built today has a life of 50 years.(I read that somewhere) It will be demolished or come to some demise. Where the timbered building will have a sought after appeal, or at least that is my hope.

The first chapter of Sobon's book, the first section he touches on vernacular traditions and "The process of building became as important as the end product". This, for me, brings up the point that a true vernacular building will have an added cost. I spend much more time gaining the local resources needed than the conventional builder who can go the the building supply store and pick up ready to use product and simply apply it. What is the true cost of building? And what is it's worth either way?

Tim

Hi eye, and welcome.

Back in the 19th century, the issue of "cost" is no doubt the foremost reason why TF declined as our most prominent building practice in the first place.

Skilled joiners that built our homes, factories and barns were just that, skilled... Skilled labor is always more costly than some guy who will work for a day's pay. Sadly, that's just what happened when industrialization swept the land in the mid 1800s.

Nails, 2x4s (fruits of industry), and the labor to assemble them were, and still are, more economical than time-honored timbered joinery.

Call me a cynic, but economics oftentimes kills the arts. But this forum is hope that the old ways can return.

I see what you mean.

Sometimes healthier, more traditional choices are also less expensive, and perhaps more labor-intensive. For example, if I grow some of my own food, I might save some money, but, I have to work harder. Same with cooking: if I eat out and buy pre-cooked food, I spend more money and have less quality, whereas if I cook my own food I save money and have better quality, but spend more time. I was hoping that the TF home was something like that.

"Bad money chases out good." I see your point, that the skills involved in building became less involved.

I am encouraged to see the life-span comparison so favorable towards TF houses. That's what I'd like. I'd like to give my future offspring a stable location that they can count on. Very traditional idea. A family seat, etc. Call me an idealist.

The good thing about timberframing is if you have the skill and patience, you can produce a frame yourself. You trade your labor for less cost(than if you paid someone to do the same). You're small? I've seen other small guys and gals doing timberframing. Use leverage and whatever you have to in order to avoid heavy lifting. You have to have some strength to turn timbers and slide them, but worst case, you have have a helper. If you trade your labor for cost, then yes you can build a timberframe cheaper than you can buy one or buy a conventional house. You need time though if it's just you doing the work. You also don't need 20 people for a raising, maybe 5 can do what you are talking about. And hire a crane for the raising to do the heavy lifting.
I choose timberframing because it's a creative outlet for me, I get more home (or workshop) by doing the work myself, I get a higher quality product because I make it so, it goes up fast once the frame is ready.
If you have any serious interest in timberframing or doing it yourself, take one of the 5 or 6 day workshops. There are a number of good ones out there. You don't have to have any carpentry experience (though it doesn't hurt to have some experience and be comfortable with power tools and hand tools). The students in the class I went to were men and women from all walks of life, some haveing woodworking experience, some construction experience, some NO experience. And by the end all had the same timberframe skills and could do what is needed. Many go on to build their own after a workshop like that. You would also learn what to look for if having someone else do the work, learn about design and options. It's good to attend a workshop whether you plan to build or have it built.