Rising prices have made the American
dream of homeownership increasingly
elusive. For growing numbers of
people, cost cutting is a prerequisite to
a decent place to live. Over the past
four years, my wife and I have tested
several cost-cutting techniques on a
very small scale, by building or renovating
six single-family homes—five
affordable rentals plus our own house.
Total costs for each, including site
acquisition, labor, and materials, have
ranged from $35,000 to $75,000. By
comparison, the average sales price for
a house in our county, in northern Vermont,
is over $100,000.
Other have studied and reported on
these issues on a much larger scale.
There are two reports that I find particularly
useful. One is The Cost