How to split a house build budget
Most self-build budgets split into land, hard construction and soft costs. Land is often twenty to thirty percent of the all-in number in high-cost markets and zero when you already own the plot. Use a simple calculator before quotes arrive, then compare contractor files on the same buckets.
What are the three buckets?
- Land or plot purchase and statutory connections
- Hard construction: structure, envelope, services and fixed finishes
- Soft costs: design, permits, professional fees, finance and contingency
How do you use the split with quotes?
When a builder sends one total, turn the PDF into a table on the free digitise page. Check whether preliminaries, external works and provisional sums sit where you expect before you compare another quote.
What is not in the split?
Furniture, landscaping beyond the contract, and appliances you buy yourself usually sit outside the builder's quote. Keep them in a separate personal budget line so the hard-cost figure stays comparable.
Questions on this
Should contingency sit inside soft costs?
Yes on this model. Hold five to fifteen percent of the build cost until scope is fixed, then release it as lines firm up.
Does renovation change the split?
Land share is often zero. Hard costs may include demolition, temporary support and making good before new work starts.
Can I compare my split to a quote?
Only loosely until the quote is tabled. The paid reading lists headings and cost per m² on the file, not whether your budget was right.
Read one before you buy one
The specimen shows the whole structure: status, what each payment was meant to buy, the forecast with its range, the photographic record and the limits of what was checked.