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Cost of Building in Baja
While with the current economic situation there have been many changes in construction and developments in Baja and Mexico in general , but building continues to happen. There are still many properties that are being purchased and remodeled as well as new properties and new homes being built in most people that have decided to retire here in Mexico. This new article on building in Baja has to do with offering the newest prices for construction materials to give you some idea of what the cost are in building.
While you may look at these materials you may also need to make sure that you realize are additional cost. Due to permits are required for building. Depending on where your home is going to be built in what you're doing as far as a remodeling will determine as to what kind permits are required. You may for example, if you have a coastal property have to deal with the environment all agencies of SERMANAT and PROFEPA. In this building in Baja article the costs that we have obtained at this point are from Baja Sur for the month of November 2008. While the cost of cement and steel rebar (known as Varillia) as has gone up greatly. If your are paying with dollars the conversion rate from dollar to peso is so much lower the price it really is very close to what it used to be just a few years ago. Price per square foot can vary dramtically, just as it does in the U.S. but basic construction can be estimated at about $75/sf and more luxurious construction runs as much as $130/sf
Estimated Building cost in Pesos |
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Material Suppliers |
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Maderas Pichonchas |
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1/2" |
3/4" |
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Triplay Pino |
$280 |
$400 |
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8 feet |
10 feet |
12 feet |
16 feet |
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Polines pino 4"x4" |
$75 |
$100 |
$120 |
$155 |
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Barrote Pino |
$40 |
$56 |
$67 |
$98 |
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Panel W 3" |
$620 |
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M/M Construccion |
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Cemento Cemex (bag) |
$149 |
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Varilla (re-bar) 1/2" |
$198 |
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Varilla 3/8 |
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$105 |
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Triplay Pino 1/2" |
$299 |
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8 feet |
10 feet |
16 feet |
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Polines Pino 4"x4" |
$105 |
$132 |
$240 |
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Barrote (studs) Pino 2"x4" |
$53 |
$66 |
$106 |
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PROCONCASA |
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Panel W |
1/2" |
3" |
4" |
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$480 |
$550 |
$660 |
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We also have included the cost for foam panels that are used in construction, commonly known as Pannell W; there are also other Panel systems available but not priced. They you may consider and you may want to get bids from many different businesses. It is always wise to get multiple bids or pricing from different companies considering that not all of them convert their prices as quickly as others do the peso, as well as some do greater volume and you can receive better prices. You might also inquire as to when buying cement for example, the you can purchase a hundred bags of cement and only have 10 or 20 delivered at a time so that you are not having to store as much cement to make sure it stays fresh product to use.
Another way to ensure to keep rebuilding costs down if you are acting as the contractor their own project or working with another contractor by purchasing the product yourself is to make sure the make your purchase is well in advance. Check out this Building in Baja article that might help you avoid problems in the future.It is very common here in Baja for them to be out a certain product that you may need; one or two more bags of cement, adhesive, or some tile or some bathroom pictures for example. This additional time, may require your contractor and/or workers do not have the materials they need in order to finish the job on time.
Also, be sure, as always in construction or you're making sure that the Social Security payments are being made correctly. This is required by IMSS and you are required as the land owner to make sure that these payments are made. Here is a link to a past Building in Baja article that explains much more of the responsibility of the landowner/ developer. Also, be sure to save all receipts during her construction cost as many of these costs may help you reduce your capital gains at the time of sale.
Building in Baja may be less of a hassle with good planning, and even if you're working with a reputable contractor. You want to double check and make sure that they are aware of your plans or desires and you have someone that oversees the actual project. .Many times building in Baja requires reconstructing or remodeling something that should have been built correctly the first time at due to the lack of communication errors were made. I will try and continue to update every few months, the cost of building materials and if you have any materials he would like us to find prices for in general. We will try and do so. Because so much of the construction in Baja is done with cement it is important to include all cost for making concrete. You will also need pricing on gravel and sand, which is a part of the mixture to make concrete. These prices for sand and gravel vary greatly depending on where you are located and therefore our little difficult for us to include.
We hope that this information is of some help for your building planning but be aware that these prices are subject to change at any time and are here to give you a general idea of building material costs. While building in Baja and Mexico can be challenging there are many people that have had great success without any major problems because they plan ahead and did their homework which of course encourage all to do so before breaking ground.
Mucho Suerte (Good luck); with good planning you should not need it but please let us know if there is anything else we can help you with.
James Glover
Baja Real Estate and Consulting Contact Info
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