2019 Grey Structure Cost

House Construction Cost — December 2019 Grey Structure

A note from the original article: pricing in this breakdown is now outdated — Team Overc's regularly publishes updated grey structure cost figures as material and labor rates change.

It has been almost another year since Team Overc's last published a grey structure house construction cost article and video. The response we got on that piece was overwhelming and encouraging, and it went on to help and guide hundreds of Pakistanis, especially expatriates and overseas Pakistanis planning a home back home. Many other topics were covered over the year too, but the grey structure cost video remained the biggest hit, both on our YouTube channel and in search rankings. Like 2018, 2019 once again proved to be a year of price increases — political and economic shifts had a real impact, resulting in changed prices across the board. Every material required during house construction — bricks, steel, tiles, wood, ceramics, labor — saw an increase in price through the year. Overall house construction cost had gone up 10-12% in 2018 compared to 2017; in 2019, house construction cost (grey structure) went up a further 11.8% compared to 2018.

House construction can generally be carried out through two methods, worth knowing before looking at the cost breakdown below.

Labor contract

A contract in which the owner procures material directly and supervises labor on a self-help basis. A labor contractor is responsible only for arranging the required labor to carry out construction procedures. Final cost of construction is entirely in the hands of the owner, and depends on how well he has managed both material procurement and labor management. The cost breakdown below is based on this method.

Turnkey contract

A method in which the owner hires a professional company on a lump sum or per-square-foot rate for a turnkey solution. The owner does not have to worry about the day-to-day construction cost, since the builder has agreed to deliver all services within a predefined budget. The owner only has to supervise whether the builder is carrying out work as per the agreement. Toward the end of this article we note roughly how much more a professional company charges over the labor-contract cost shown here.

Video guide accompanying this article.

Construction contract type: Labor rate contractConstruction grade: A grade compliance to all technical & engineering specifications

Sample project

10 Marla house construction cost (250 sq.yd)Covered area 3,400 sq.ft, including ground floor, first floor and rooftop mumty.Item wise per square foot cost calculations

Bricks 296 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 296 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 1,006,400 RsBrick price = 11.5 Rs per pieceQuantity = 1006400/11.5 = 87,513 bricks

Crush 67 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 67 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 227,800 RsCrush price = 78 Rs per c.ftQuantity = 227800/78 = 2,920 c.ft

Cement 175 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 175 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 595,000 RsCement price = 540 Rs/50kg bagQuantity = 595000/540 = 1,101 bags

Steel 227 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 227 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 771,800 RsSteel price = 115 Rs/kg (115,000 Rs/ton)Quantity = 771800/115 = 6,711 kg, approx. 6.7 tons

Sand 45 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 45 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 153,000 RsSand price = 32 Rs/c.ftQuantity = 153000/32 = 4,781 c.ft

Labor contractor 325 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 325 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 1,105,000 Rs

Steel fixer 13 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 13 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 44,200 Rs

Plumbing contractor 18 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 18 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 61,200 Rs

Electric contractor 15 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 15 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 51,000 Rs

Other items

Electricity items 35 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 35 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 119,000 Rs

Electric items include the complete uPVC conduit (pipes) required in walls, slabs and underground, as well as the internal switch board boxes and fittings for standard Chinese fittings. Main distribution boxes for ground and first floor are also included in this figure. Electric conduit saw a sharp price increase in 2019 compared to 2018.

Plumbing items 70 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 70 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 238,000 Rs

Plumbing items include the complete PPRC pipes and fittings — elbows, bends, tees — required for water and gas connections, along with the complete uPVC piping for sewerage and drain systems, and a typical 400-gallon plastic overhead water tank with GI steel pipe fittings. Plumbing conduit also saw a sharp price increase in 2019 compared to 2018.

Earth fill / Bharti 26 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 26 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 88,400 Rs

Earthfill considered here is for a normal plot around 2 ft deep from road level, which after completion of foundations up to DPC requires a maximum of 6 ft of earthfill. Where less earthfill is needed, this figure can come down.

Brick tile 12 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 12 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 40,800 Rs

Brick tile is required during water proofing and finishing of roof floors. The rate used here is up to 10 Rs per brick tile.

Guard salary 22 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 22 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 74,800 Rs

Guard salary is based on 15,000 Rs/month for a tenure of up to 5 months.

Brick ballast / Rorhi / Gravel 14 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 14 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 47,600 Rs

Bitumen 5 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 5 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 17,000 Rs

Polythene sheet 4 Rs/sq.ft

Calculation: 4 Rs x 3,400 sq.ft = 13,600 Rs

Mud 4 Rs/sq.ft