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The cheapest way to build a home is to design a simple box. Sticking to a square or rectangular floor plan makes the building and design simple. Generally speaking, building up is cheaper than building a sprawling one-story home, so you may want to consider planning for a multiple-story home if you need more space.

rocketmortgage.com - Cheapest Ways To Build A House: 10 Tips - Rocket Mortgage

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Different types of building materials will have different costs. Choosing cost-effective materials can help keep the project affordable. Here are a few to consider.

Reclaimed Materials

While using reclaimed materials like old barn doors or wood in your home build is trendy, there’s a practical reason it’s so popular: it saves money. Look for reclaimed doors, wood floors, windows and decorative items. Not sure where to find reclaimed materials? Check Craigslist, Planet Reuse or a salvage store. You can even find a home that is currently being torn down and see if you can salvage any of its old materials.

Prefab Panels

Prefabricated panels are wall panels that are custom-built inside a factory and shipped to the build site. By having the walls built indoors and shipped to the site ready to install, they can cut down on construction and reduce the time spent on framing and drywalling. This can help you save money because you aren’t paying for the extra labor to build and frame the walls.

Precast Concrete

Just like prefab panels, precast concrete is concrete that’s poured into a reusable mold, cured indoors, then shipped to the build site. On average, precast concrete costs less than on-site pouring because it cuts down on on-site labor and can help prevent delays due to weather.

Shipping Containers

This alternative housing idea uses old shipping containers for the structure of the home. Since the structure is already intact, this type of housing can help you save money on construction costs. Of course, you’ll need to consider the modifications you’ll need to make to the container to turn it into a usable living space, and costs go up if you use more than one container.

Cob

Cob is a mixture of straw, clay and subsoil. This earthen material is so thick that it provides energy-efficient, thermal benefits. And since most of the ingredients for cob can be found on-site for free, you can save a good amount of money on material costs. Cob is also known to last hundreds of years and only requires a new layer when it eventually needs to be fixed, making it a great building material for a cheap house.