Area Conversion Reference
- 1 acre = 43,560 square feet
- 1 square yard = 9 square feet
- 1 square meter ≈ 10.76 square feet
- 1 square inch ≈ 0.00694 square feet
Calculating Cost Per Square Foot
When painting a house, installing flooring, or building a home, the square footage of the property is often used to determine the cost or materials to be used.
Painting a House
Professional house painters often base price quotations on the square footage of a property. Alternatively, even if a person plans to paint their house themselves, measuring square footage can yield accurate estimates of the amount of paint required.
Total cost encompasses more factors than just the amount of paint required, including the cost of materials such as brushes, turpentine, and any materials necessary for preparing, mixing, applying, and cleaning up paint. These considerations are typically included in a quote from a professional painter, in addition to labor costs. Accordingly, the larger the size of a property or area, the higher the cost required to paint it.
Depending on the surface being painted, primer may be used to help the paint adhere more effectively. While coverage depends heavily on the method of application, primer generally covers less area than paint, and estimated coverage amounts can range from anywhere between 200-400 square feet per gallon.
Flooring Installation
There are a number of materials commonly used for flooring, including wood, laminate, and tile. Flooring costs can vary significantly depending on the quality and choice of materials.
- Hardwood flooring is highly durable, easy to clean, and versatile in terms of interior design, but does require maintenance such as sanding and refinishing over time.
- Engineered wood flooring is made from several layers of wood, with a thin outermost layer of hardwood and inner layers like plywood. It has higher heat and moisture resistance than solid hardwoods and is generally cheaper to purchase and install.
- Laminate flooring is typically made with plywood or fiberboard with a plastic laminate top layer. It is less costly, highly durable, and requires little maintenance. It can even be installed over existing flooring, which saves time and demolition costs. However, it cannot be refinished or stained.
- Tile flooring includes concrete, ceramic, glass, and natural stone. Prices range wildly from 60 cents per square foot to hundreds of dollars. Tile is easy to maintain and suitable for all locations, but installation is difficult and labor costs can exceed material costs.
Building a Home
The cost of building a home varies largely based on a number of factors, including materials, the type of foundation, the pitch of the roof, and many other characteristics that are not necessarily directly related to the size of the house. Unlike the cost per square foot of installing flooring, the multitude of factors involved in building a house makes it difficult to estimate a flat cost per square foot.
It is often more helpful to get an estimate from a builder based on specific plans, and divide that estimate by the number of square feet to find your true cost per square foot. There are also a number of costs outside of building the house that should be considered, such as fees to local authorities, labor, building codes, and insurance.