Seacrest Beach - New Construction Costs in 2012

This market update attempts to analyze the price of new home construction in Seacrest Beach. To understand the cost of new construction in Seacrest Beach, we'll begin by figuring out the contribution of the housing lot to the cost of the average new home. According to the latest statistics, the size of the average home in Seacrest Beach is around 2400 square feet. We'll divide the cost of the lot by 2400 to compute the price per square foot that the lot adds to the final construction cost of a new home.

The location of a lot has a strong impact on its market value; other variables, such as the size and shape of the lot, affect the price as well, but for purposes of this analysis we'll focus on the average lot. The lots closer to the front of the Seacrest Beach development typically sell for more than the lots near the back of the development.

Over the past year, the back lots have sold, on average, for $75,000, putting these lots' portion of the final construction cost at $31 per square foot. During the same period, front lots have been sold at an average price of $110,000, or $46 per square foot. The premium lots are located on Highway 30A and near the pool. Within the last year, two lots on Highway 30A have been sold; the first lot sold for $148,500, and the second lot sold for $181,000. The last pool-facing lot was recently sold as well; it sold for $187,000. For simplicity, we'll average the price per square foot for these premium lots at $75 per square foot. After analyzing the cost of building a new home, we'll use these numbers to compute the final cost of construction.

Since January 2012, 14 new homes have been built in Seacrest Beach; another 11 are currently under construction. The average build-out cost for new homes in Seacrest Beach is $145 per square foot. The price can vary drastically depending upon the upgrades, materials and features that builders include; some homes can be built for as little as $120 per square foot while others cost $165 per square foot or even more.

Using these numbers and adding them to our earlier figures for the lots, we can compute the average cost to build a new home in each of the different areas of Seacrest Beach:

• Back lot: $31 for the lot and $145 for the construction. Final cost: $176 per square foot.
• Front lot: $46 for the lot and $145 for the construction. Final cost: $191 per square foot.
• Lot on 30A: $75 for the lot and $145 for the construction. Final cost: $220 per square foot.
• Lot next to the pool: $75 for the lot and $145 for the construction. Final cost: $220 per square foot.

Over the past year, the average price per square foot of a successfully sold home in Seacrest Beach has been $199. Homes that were built on the premium lots sold for significantly more than other homes; the average markup for homes on these lots was between 30 and 40 percent. Homes adjacent to the pool commanded the highest price, with one poolside home selling for $279 per square foot.

Ten of the 14 new homes completed in 2012 have been listed on Seacrest Beach's MLS; the other four homes were personal projects and aren't included in this analysis. Three homes are currently under contract, but their final sale prices haven't been published yet. Two homes have been officially sold. One home sold at $192 per square foot, and the other sold at $205 per square foot. Five listings are still active; the sale prices of these homes range from $216 to $245 per square foot.

Here's the final analysis of the average costs and selling prices per square foot for Seacrest Beach real estate:

• House built on a back lot in Seacrest Beach: $176 to build, $199 resale price.
• House built on a front lot in Seacrest Beach: $191 to build, $199 resale price.
• House built on Highway 30A: $220 to build, $273 resale price.
• House built next to the pool: $220 to build, $279 resale price.

Thanks to a better balance between the cost of construction and home resale prices, we have seen more new homes built this year than we did last year.