• About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Unsubscribe
No Result
View All Result
Live and Invest Overseas
FREE REPORT
BEST PLACES TO RETIRE
*No spam: We will NEVER give your email address to anyone else.
  • HOME
  • COUNTRIES
    • Top Destinations
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • France
      • Colombia
      • Dominican Republic
      • Thailand
      • Mexico
      • Spain
      • Argentina
    • Browse All Countries
    • Best For
      • Retire Overseas Index
      • Health Care
      • Cost of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Editor’s Picks For Retirement
      • Establishing Residency
      • Starting an Online Business
      • Single Women
      • Playing Golf
  • BUDGETS
    • Super Cheap ($)
      • Cuenca, Ecuador
      • Chiang Mai, Thailand
      • The Philippines
      • Las Tablas, Panama
      • Granada, Nicaragua
    • Cheap ($$)
      • Algarve, Portugal
      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Carcassone, France
      • Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Affordable ($$$)
      • Abruzzo, Italy
      • Barcelona, Spain
      • Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic
      • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
      • Costa de Oro, Uruguay
    • Luxury On A Budget ($$$$)
      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Paris, France
      • Panama City Beach Area
  • Real Estate
  • ARCHIVES
    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore Diversification
    • Our Latest On Coronavirus ⚠️
  • Making Money
    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing
  • CONFERENCES
  • BOOKSTORE
Live and Invest Overseas
  • HOME
  • COUNTRIES
    • Top Destinations
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • France
      • Colombia
      • Dominican Republic
      • Thailand
      • Mexico
      • Spain
      • Argentina
    • Browse All Countries
    • Best For
      • Retire Overseas Index
      • Health Care
      • Cost of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Editor’s Picks For Retirement
      • Establishing Residency
      • Starting an Online Business
      • Single Women
      • Playing Golf
  • BUDGETS
    • Super Cheap ($)
      • Cuenca, Ecuador
      • Chiang Mai, Thailand
      • The Philippines
      • Las Tablas, Panama
      • Granada, Nicaragua
    • Cheap ($$)
      • Algarve, Portugal
      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Carcassone, France
      • Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Affordable ($$$)
      • Abruzzo, Italy
      • Barcelona, Spain
      • Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic
      • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
      • Costa de Oro, Uruguay
    • Luxury On A Budget ($$$$)
      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Paris, France
      • Panama City Beach Area
  • Real Estate
  • ARCHIVES
    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore Diversification
    • Our Latest On Coronavirus ⚠️
  • Making Money
    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing
  • CONFERENCES
  • BOOKSTORE
No Result
View All Result
Live and Invest Overseas
No Result
View All Result
Home Real Estate

How To Figure The Cost Of Construction When Building Overseas

Lief Simon by Lief Simon
May 16, 2014
in Real Estate
0
Construction and building overseas come most of the time much cheaper than inland.
217
SHARES
3.1k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

How Much To Build Your Dream Home Overseas?

How much does it cost to build a house overseas?

As my wife, Kathleen Peddicord, likes to say when people ask her how much it costs to live overseas, “I have no idea…and neither does anyone else.”

It depends where and what you’re building. Not only in what country but where in that country. And not only whether you’re building big or small but also how you’re finishing, fitting out, etc.

A friend is building a small house in the interior of Panama. He is acting as the general contractor and hiring local laborers. He can do this because he has years of experience building in this part of this country.

It’s a small house, so he’s buying materials retail. And it’s basic. Nothing fancy.

His cost for this small guesthouse, once it’s completed, will be US$45 to US$50 per square foot, including the cost of the enclosed space and the covered exterior space.

That’s an appealing number; US$45 per square foot is absolutely (as opposed to relatively) cheap.

So, if someone were to ask me what it costs to build a house in Panama, I could reply, “About US$45 per square foot.”

And I’d be telling the truth. I could provide the invoices to back it up (with my friend’s help).

But I wouldn’t be giving the full story.

Local housing

At that price, you’re building what I refer to as “local housing.” A simple structure that serves the basic purposes. There’s a basic bathroom, a basic kitchen, a small bedroom, maybe a small sitting area. No fancy fixtures, no high-end tiling (maybe no tiling at all), no closets, no laundry room, etc. This kind of “local house” can be comfortable and certainly livable, but it is not the quality of construction and finishes you would expect to find in a middle-class U.S. neighborhood, for example. And it probably doesn’t meet the expectations of the typical retiree considering building a home in another country.

Middle-class local housing

Jump up to the next price level—to say US$75 to US$80 per square foot—and you’re building what I call middle-class local housing. This is probably closer to the kinds of structures you’d expect to find in a middle-class neighborhood in the States—except for the finishes. Still, these won’t be what you’re used to. Windows, faucets, door hardware, and lighting fixtures, for example, will be what you’d likely consider very low-end.

High-quality housing

Go up to US$100 per square foot, and you’re in the ballpark for high-quality construction and finishes. You can spend as much as you want when it comes to finishes, and this is where the cost of construction can really increase. In the US$100-per-square-foot range, you’re buying very good quality stuff.

So, again, how much does it cost to build a house in Panama? As much as you want it to cost, within a very broad range (US$45 per square foot to US$100 per square foot or more), depending on the kind of house you want to build.

This is the case almost everywhere. In some countries, you can’t build at the really super cheap end of the range, because of construction regulations. This is the case in much of Europe. Still, even in Europe, for example, you can spend as little or as much as you want on finishes.

I was reminded of all this by a reader who wrote yesterday to say that he believes he could build a house cheaper in the States than in either Costa Rica or Panama. I guess that could be true—some places in the States, for some kinds of construction—though, frankly, I find it hard to believe. Not when you compare apples to apples—comparable kinds of construction and comparable levels of finishing.

Lief Simon

Continue reading: Cost Of Living In Costa Rica Versus Cost Of Living In Nicaragua

Tags: Building Costs In PanamaCost Of Construction Overseas
Share87Tweet54
Previous Post

Help Living And Retiring In Bahia, Ecuador

Next Post

Cost Of Living In Costa Rica Versus Cost Of Living In Nicaragua

Lief Simon

Lief Simon

Lief Simon has lived and worked on five continents and traveled to more than 60 countries. In his long career as a global property investor, Lief has also managed multimillion-dollar portfolios of rental properties, for others and for himself. He offers advice on international diversification in his twice-weekly Offshore Living Letter and monthly Simon Letter dispatches.

Related Posts

Porto, Portugal
Argentina

Where (And Why) Should You Buy Property Overseas In 2022?

by Live And Invest Overseas
June 15, 2022
0

Most people think that purchasing real estate overseas is about having a second home to go to when you want...

Read more
Quaint colorful houses of the Alsatian city of Colmar, France

How To Tell If You’ve Found Your Ideal Home Overseas

June 14, 2022
Serene street in Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

8 Things You Need To Know About Bank Financing Overseas

June 13, 2022
View of Ponta Verde in Maceio, Alagoas, Northeast of Brazil

Investing In International Real Estate

June 12, 2022
General view of apartments for rent in Portimao, Algarve, Portugal

The Best Property Deals To Expand Your Portfolio Offshore

June 10, 2022
Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The Top Countries With Favorable Exchange Rates

June 7, 2022
Malaga, Spain

The 2 Rules To Minimize Risk When Buying Real Estate

May 31, 2022
Next Post
Arenal Volcano Costa Rica

Cost Of Living In Costa Rica Versus Cost Of Living In Nicaragua

Start Your New Life Today, Overseas

A world full of fun, adventure, and profit awaits! Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we’ll send you a FREE report on the 10 Best Places To Retire In Style Overseas Today.







LIOS Resources


  • New To LIOS
  • Ask An Expert
  • Media Center
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs

Quick Links


  • Best Places To Live
  • Best Places To Retire
  • Finding A Job Overseas
  • Real Estate

Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and get your FREE report: The 10 Best Places To Retire Overseas In 2022

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Unsubscribe

© 2008-2021 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Countries
  • Budgets
  • Archives
  • News
  • Events
  • Bookstore
  • Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Members Area
  • Contact Us

© 2008-2021 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

Sign up for FREE and learn how to live the good life on a modest budget, find bargain property, and more. Plus, check out our free report on the 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE.

RETIRE OVERSEAS AND LIVE LIKE ROYALTY

The World’s Best Places To Be In 2022?

Discover Them Here…