Single Home Costs

Single custom homes, homes with secondary suites, and vacation homes.

See also: Laneway House Costs,‍ ‍Multiplex Costs

Estimated costs based on similar recent projects. Does not include land costs.
Actual costs will vary depending on the site and design. Updated March 2026.

Hard Costs vs Soft Costs

Every construction project has both “hard costs” for the actual built components, and “soft costs” which are usually the design, consultant, and city permit fees. When added together these become the “Total Project Cost”.

Be careful when comparing estimates, because some builder will only quote the Hard Costs (omitting design and permit fees) or they might only quote the cost for the actual building (omitting hazmat, demo, site servicing, landscape etc). They will do this as a sales tool, to make their pricing sound lower, but we prefer to be more transparent and predictable.

As a high level rule of thumb, we recommend estimating lane houses at $600psf Project Cost, and Houses / Plexes at $500psf.

The difference is because smaller homes always cost more psf vs big homes (becuase they have all the expensive parts of the house, but none of the cheaper rooms that dilute the cost of a larger home).

Project Cost = Soft Costs + Hard Costs

Hard Costs

  • Demolition / Deconstruction

  • Asbestos / Lead Abatement

  • Tree Removal / Protection

  • Site Servicing (Sewer, Power, Water)

  • The Building!

  • Landscape (Soil, Plants, Pathways, Fences, Retaining)

  • Taxes (PST and GST in BC)

Soft Costs

  • Site Survey / Arborist

  • Designer / Architect

  • Engineers and Consultants

  • City Permit Fees and Development Fees

  • 3rd Party Fees (Legal, Electricity Service, Insurance)

  • Taxes (GST in BC)

What’s Not Included in our estimate for Project Cost?

  • The interest / fees for the Construction loan are not included. Owners / Developers finance their projects through a range of sources, ranging from cash, to HELOC lines of credit, to Construction Loans or Private Financing.

    Some institutions, like Vancity, provide special financing packages for multiplex homes.

    The cost of this financing is separate from our work as a design and build team.

  • Marketing or other development and sales related costs

Single Home Costs

This is a Total Project Cost.
For a typical 3000sf house or duplex (in Vancouver) it looks like this:

  • ~$75k for Design and Consultants

  • ~$75k for City Permit Fees

  • ~$25k for Site Servicing (Power, Water, Sewer)

  • ~$25k for landscape

  • ~$25k for taxes

So, this is ~$225k not including the building itself.
The lane house building might be around $1.27m.

So, the total project price in this example would be 3000sf x $500psf = $1.5m

This is a typical cost for one of our custom homes, but the actual cost will vary depending on the size, site, features and specs, where the cost could range from $450 to $650psf.

Timing of Costs

For a typical custom lane house, we would work with you for around 1 year to do the design and permitting, and ~1 year for the construction.

So, in the first year the Soft Costs (~$225k) would need to be paid.

In the second year, after the permit is issued, and the construction contract is signed, then the Hard Costs would be payable in instalments over the course of the 1 year build.

Here’s more info on the Design Process and Construction Process

Net Zero / Passive House Density Bonus - Upgrade Cost

A sign reading 'Certified Passive House' with the Passive House Institute logo, positioned on a window sill in front of a parking lot with various parked cars.

In the city of Vancouver there is a ~20% density bonus for zero emissions buildings that certify as a CHBA Net Zero home or PHI Passive House.

These homes are highly efficient, all electric, and sometimes have either thicker walls or solar panels. There is usually some extra design and engineering work involved, as well as certification costs.

For a 3000sf house the density bonus is an extra 600sf and the upgrade cost is roughly $100k.

House or Duplex on a 33x122 Lot:

Base 2800sf house ‘Total Project Cost’ = $1.4m
Net Zero Upgrade = $100k
Additional 600sf of floor area at ~$500psf = $300k
Total Project Cost for a 3400sf Net Zero Home = $1.8m

Here’s more info on the Design Process and Construction Process

What’s Included? How is a Lanefab Home Different?

Every single Lanefab home is built to a higher level of design, quality, comfort and performance compared to many of the ‘builder spec’ homes on the market.

Building Envelope:

Lanefab builds to a level of energy efficiency and comfort equivalent to Step 4 of the BC Energy Step code at a minimum. Many of our projects go above and beyond, but this is our baseline of quality and performance.

This includes 13” thick walls, triple glazed windows, fresh air exchanger, and an air source heat pump for heat and A/C.

Features and Finishes:

Our homes are all custom designed and include features like floor heat, extensive custom millwork, natural materials, unique finishes and careful design by our award winning team.

Upgrades and Air Quality:

Lanefab is one of the few builders offering a HEPA filter upgrade to the central HRV ventilation system. This can provide your family with smoke free air during the months when fire smoke can be a real danger.

We can also design and build a range of custom options, from rainwater tanks, to steam showers, to built in media systems, smart window shades, or custom edible gardens. Just ask!

Here’s more info on the Design Process and Construction Process

Interior view of a home showing wooden stairs with no risers, a vertical wooden slat room divider, a framed artwork on the wall, and a doorway leading to a bathroom with natural light and modern fixtures.