Construction Cost per Square Foot for Hotels, Motels and Apartments
Hospitality and multifamily design have many common factors and we have worked on many projects in both sectors. This post is specifically focused on the construction Cost per Square Foot for Hotels, Motels and Apartment Buildings across several regions in the United States.
So, how much does it cost to build a hotel, motel or apartment building by square foot? While this will depend heavily on the design of the building, and its location, there is some guidance based on data collected nationally and analyzed by RSMeans, the industry leader in construction cost estimating and analysis. Local economy is a very important factor in construction cost as well as the type of construction you intend to build. Note, that not all types of construction cost the same per square foot, and even more importantly, the cost of construction per square foot varies significantly with location.
Below are three different types of hospitality and multifamily construction and the varying cost per square foot to expect for each in different regions. All graph images are courtesy of RSMeans Construction Cost Data. Data source: Reed Construction Data – RSMeans/Charts: Reed Construction Data – CanaData
Construction Cost per Square Foot of 2-3 Story Motel
As you can see from the range of cost per square foot, location alone can represent as much as 70% of the cost driver for a 2-3 Story Motel. The median for this type of construction is between $170 and $180 per square foot. Not surprisingly, New York tops the charts for most expensive city to build in at over $234 per square foot. Winston-Salem consistently ranks as the most inexpensive city to build in at $134 per square foot for motels.
Construction Cost per Square Foot for 4-7 Story Hotel
Building vertical always provides an economy of scale for larger structures, and that is noted with taller hotel construction. As these costs are spread out over greater square footage, we see a median cost in the mid $160 range with $217 on the high end and $124 on the low end.
Construction Cost per Square Foot 4-7 Story Apartment Building
At the lowest end of the cost spectrum is the 4-7 story apartment building. Similar to the Hotels, taking advantage of the vertical construction, apartment buildings also are not required to have the variety of functions that are necessary in a hotel. While amenities will be very specific to projects, on average, apartment buildings median cost are in the low $160's per square foot with a range of $121 on the low end to $212 on the high end.
It is increasingly important to understand the cost drivers for any commercial project and how building type, construction type and location can all be huge variables that will drive your cost per square foot. These are always a part of the initial programming discussions and the Architect will play a huge role in helping to define the ranges of cost to expect for the project.
- Cost per Square Foot of Commercial Construction by Region
- Price Per Square Foot Construction Cost for Medical Office Buildings
- Construction Cost per Square Foot of Community Centers in Major US Cities
- Construction Cost per Square Foot for a Post Office
- Cost per Square Foot of Construction for Institutional Buildings
- Cost Per Square Foot of Educational Facilities by Region
- Construction Cost Per Square Foot for Recreation Facilities
- Cost per Square Foot of College Building Types by Region
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Hi Dean
Which development components are included (and excluded) from these statistics? I understand that land and financing costs are not included. What about about FF&E?
Some background - I am trying to figure out whether an NYC development site will have a drastically different budget (full development budget, through project opening) if developed as office vs. hotel. I looked at a 2011 office construction post, and it appears that hotels are about $2 PSF more expensive than office to construct. However if these figures do not include FF&E and other "finishing" costs, the difference should be much more.
Thanks
Loretta, thanks four your inquiry. These numbers are strictly building costs. They do not include FF&E, nor land costs, site infrastructure, soft costs or financing costs. You are correct - it would be a very different picture between those project types if FF&E we're included in these numbers. I hope that helps! When you get to a point where you need to get into site feasibility and could use some help with site planning or conceptual design, please keep us in mind - we would be happy to help. Thanks!
Use the search bar and you can search thousands of articles that we've posted on any subject. Also, be sure to go to EVstudio.com and search that blog as it has well over double the content. If you would like to discuss anything specifically related to your project, please email us or just give us a call - we'd be happy to talk to you!
Robin,
I was out over the holidays but I believe one of our guys got back with you directly. If not, let me know (by commenting here or sending us an email at design@evstudio.com) and I'd be happy to discuss your project. Thanks!
The data suggests a ballpark range of $140-$160 per square foot. To get finer grained than that, we would have to discuss the program, amenities, etc.. Do you have anybody that you're working with on a feasibility study or conceptual plan yet? We would be happy to discuss your project with you in further depth - Thanks!
I am a resident of a 35 unit coop on Bay harbor Islands Miami fl.33154 . with 300 ft waterfont on the bay. In 2008 we were offered 16,million for the property .We could not reach a majority to sell .
at this time we have several offers . around 12 million .
our board of directors think that is all the building is worth . I disagree .we have 55,000sq ft. with 30 foot set backs .There is a hight limitation of 7 stories from the flood plain level about 8 ft. The old five story building will need to come down.
the builder will need foundation piles .I am trying to demonstrate to the board that a deveoper can build a 7 story ,high end condo building with an acquistion cost of 16million and still make a profit..
Please tell me what the cost of construction will be per sq ft.and What are average soft costs ? And what is the average retail price for sq ft to sell new units .
And if you know what an average profit margin a developer looks to make I can see if an asking price for our property of 16 million is viable.
I know this is a strech to ask for this kind of help but if you have answers for me I would be most appreciative. Thank you jeff
Jeff,
I can help on the construction cost questions, but not so much on the real estate valuation without a lot of localized market research. The hard costs for construction will be approximately $150-$160 per square foot (see http://evstudio.com/construction-cost-per-square-foot-for-multifamily-apartments-2012/). The soft costs will be approximately 10%. So of you know your footprint and number of stories, or unit mix and count, you can arrive at a total square footage for good place to start. Valuation of the land or finished units has everything to do with local markets and does not often correlate to construction costs, so I suggest you find some comparable sized units in similar sized buildings with similar finish and amenities. We would love to speak with you about providing the architecture and engineering for this project should you convince your board to move forward with it. Best of luck!