Here are some of the common ways to economize, estimated savings to the builder, and the issues for the buyer to consider:
- 17-foot double garage saves $5,000 to $8,500. The recommended width is 20 feet. Narrower makes it harder to get in and out of the cars.
- Textured walls and ceilings. $450 on a 3,000-square-foot home. Hard to repaint and repair.
- Smaller central air. $1,000. It takes a long time to cool the home.
- Advanced framing. $10,000. Advanced engineering studies say placing studs at 24-inch intervals rather than 16 doesn’t affect structural integrity. Actually, it leaves more room for insulation, which is a good thing.
- Fixed windows. $200 per window. Not being able to open windows is a huge inconvenience for many people.
