Is building cheaper than buying?

On average, building a home is cheaper than buying. The cost of construction includes the purchase of land and represents a concession for the owner of the first home with stamp rights, when appropriate. Once again, these are extremely rough estimates. Cost shouldn't be the only factor you consider when deciding whether to build or buy.

An established home beats a newly built home when it comes to landscaping. The land on which the house sits is usually larger. Setting up a lush landscape generally requires some accessories to set up and become the desired view at a low cost compared to a newly built home. Part of the customization aspect of building a home means that you can choose the materials, lighting and cooling used throughout the house.

Therefore, using our very rough estimates, we can get an idea of how much it would cost to build a house in Australia by adding up the average cost of the lot, stamp duty and the low cost of construction. Regardless of costs, there are a number of advantages that come with building a home compared to buying one. Building your own home or renovating it can be life-changing, but there can be many common mistakes when choosing a builder. It's an innate personal decision, as some people dream of building their perfect home all their lives, while others simply want a place they can move to quickly and that suits their needs.

Depending on where you choose to build, the average price you'll pay for vacant land varies by region of Australia. It will also depend on whether you have patience, since building a house from scratch takes time. Building your own home can be exciting, but it can also be confusing when you're trying to align the construction stages with your advance payments. There are many different opinions about whether building a home or buying one is the way to go, but for most people, the most important deciding factor in any decision boils down to money.

There are many variable factors to consider in order to know if building a home or buying one is the right choice for you. Of course, this is hypothetical and things are rarely that easy, but compared to building a house, buying one is usually a much more simplified process. While it's relatively easy to calculate the cost of land, the exact cost of building a home can vary greatly. If it rains for three straight weeks at your construction site, construction will stop, extending the time needed to build your home and costing you money.

Unless you have signed up for a “Block” type series, in which your house will be built in less than a week, it is likely that your construction will take time and a lot. As can be seen in the following table, Sydney ranks marginally as the most expensive city to build a home, followed closely by Canberra.

Matilda Nguyen
Matilda Nguyen

I'm a writer experienced in writing about current events and improving home building plans, interior design, custom home building, home improvement advice in Alexandria NSW 2015.