One of the reasons many Nigerians today are yet to build a house for themselves is because they are afraid of having abandoned projects. They dread the unstable cost of building materials and other activity of land grabbers.

Well, if you already have a land you want to build on or you want to get a land, then this article is for you, if you are not interested in getting a land anytime soon, or you own an estate, this article is for you as well.

6 Proactive Things that Will Reduce Your Cost of Building by 50%

In this article, we will share with you 6 things you can do to reduce your cost of building a house.

• Land survey

A land survey is an act that is hugely underestimated in building projects, it seems as though it’s not necessary to a layman, but it is VERY important if you plan to be effective in your spending. From a land survey, you will know what kind of land is it you want to build on. It answers the question of legal boundaries, wind direction and other technical facts, am sure you don’t want to build on a flood-prone land. Before laying the first foundation do well to ensure a proper survey is carried out, or you buy a land that has been surveyed.

• Design a Building Plan

If you like to reduce the cost of building your home, do well to employ the services of an architect. A recent survey carried out amongst Lagos landlord showed that house owners wish they had built their houses differently, some complain about its size, space, structure and location. An architect would help design building based on your budget, Yes! (an architect can predict how much it will cost you to build a house they have designed).

• Proximity of Labour

The closeness of labourers at your site is another thing you should consider if you want to reduce cost. This is best achieved with your building contractor or bricklayer. When you have a good contractor or bricklayer to interpret the architects drawing, it makes thing better. The cost of transportation is a huge factor when building you should do well to reduce it.

• Get a Local Supplier

It’s time to get over the notion of buying from a big merchant, your local dealers can do the job, though prices of building materials might differ, the cost of transportation will compensate for the marginal difference in cost of building materials. It’s more convenient to negotiate with a local supplier than a big dealer because the price of the building materials is usually fixed.

• Design a Contractual Agreement

Like every other contract, word of mouth is never enough to serve as agreement, some house owner has been left disappointed by house contractors/bricklayers over promises that have been made about the time of project completion. In these case, more money is requested to complete the task, even after you had made payment for the said project.

In other to prevent these, ensure that your contractor signs an agreement to legalize the new arrangement or promises. That way he or she can be held responsible, and it will also serve as a deterrent, no one wants to pay for damages! With an agreement, you manage time and money.

• Drill a Bole Hole

Water is an essential need for a building project, you would practically use water at every stage of the building project except for roofing. Much has been said about the latest technology of borehole drilling. But really there is more cost-effective borehole you can drill and for less than N300,000. When you have the borehole drilled you don’t need to buy water, you already have it. There is also the option of selling water to other contractors around you, especially if the site is just developing.

A Quick Glance Again

6 proactive things have been highlighted as the possible ways of reducing the cost of a building project; we mentioned land survey, the closeness of labour, availability of borehole, architectural building, legal document and the patronage of local building materials supplier as ways to reduce cost.

If you already have a building please share with us, how you reduced cost or perhaps what made you spend more than you budgeted for, we love to hear from you.  We trust these acts would help you in reducing the cost of building by half.