There are several situations in which you may need a construction calculation. You will have to deal with this when you are going to build your house. Construction calculations are always necessary if you are going to build a building for which a permit is required. However, even if no permit is required, it is important to have a construction drawing made. This will improve the quality of the renovation and make it safer, which will save you costs for repairs in the future. The risk of construction defects will be reduced and the entire construction process will be streamlined and will have improved transparency for all parties involved. You can find the costs involved here.
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Costs of construction calculations
The costs
To make a construction calculation you use a constructor. He or she will calculate how much load the supporting parts of your construction will have to bear. Based on these calculations, the type of material for these load-bearing parts is selected in order to calculate how thick it should be. The costs you pay for the drawing primarily depend on the type of renovation you are working on. They also differ per constructor. In the following table you will find the average prices for making a construction calculation in different situations. If your project is not listed here, you can count on an average of 1 to 2 percent of the total costs of your renovation.
Type of construction calculation Average price
Extension $220 – $545
Balcony $65 – $435
Carport $165 – $545
Dormer $130 – $545
Patio $220 -$600
Solar panels $110 – $220
Roof terrace $65 – $435
Hourly wage constructor $80 – $160
House on strip foundation $1100 – $1635
Construction on foundation piles $435 – $815
The cheapest option: the cheapest option you have is not to make a construction calculation at all. If you don’t need a permit, you won’t need a construction calculation either. However, the costs of having a construction drawing made are considerably lower than the costs of repairing construction faults. Safety is not something you want to cut back on either. For this reason, it is always highly recommended to have a construction calculation made for each renovation project.
Minor renovations: the construction calculations for minor renovations, such as having a balcony, dormer window, carport, bay window, roof terrace or solar panels installed, can be done for about $110.
Larger building projects: if you are building a garden house or another type of building that needs a foundation, the construction drawings will become considerably more expensive. You can easily pay $1100 for a house on a strip foundation and $450 for the construction calculations for a structure on foundation piles. However, these are large and expensive projects that may require a permit. Compared to the total costs, the costs for the construction calculations take up a small percentage.
The price structure
The hourly rate of a constructor is between $65 and $130. This may sound like a lot, but these professionals are highly educated, use expensive software and this software has to be run on expensive laptops. That’s why 55 percent of the price structure of your construction calculation consists of labor costs and 40 percent of software and equipment. If the constructor incurs call-out costs, they will, on average, account for 5 percent of the final price. So the best way to save is to do proper market research and compare the prices of different manufacturers. The following diagram shows this price structure once again.
Choices that affect the price
During the planning process of the constructor, you will be faced with some choices that will influence the calculation price.
The constructor’s experience: a certified constructor with years of experience in the field and a high level of training will obviously cost you more than a constructor who is just starting out. Take a critical look at your construction project and choose your constructor accordingly.
The type of project: in general, the rule is that you pay an amount of 1 to 2 percent of the total costs of your project for your construction drawings. This means that the larger the project, the more expensive the drawings will be. The ratio remains the same.
Interesting savings tips
Even though having construction calculations made is always cheaper than repairing construction faults, it’s still something you have to pay for. Here are two tips to help you check the costs.
Choose a regional constructor: if there are call-out costs, you can avoid them in this way.
A big job: if you have more than one job for the constructor, it is best to offer them in one big job. This is cheaper, because the constructor can work more effectively.
Compare quotations
The best way to save money is to request quotations from different constructors and compare them with each other. You don’t have to do this yourself, because our non-binding comparison tool does this for you. You’ll simply fill in your details and you’ll receive a number of quotations from constructors in your region shortly. This allows you to make the best choice regarding the right constructor to suit your specific job.
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