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Les Lang and Sherri Acres built a 2,100-square-foot custom home in Chilliwack, B.C., despite high construction costs and a weak real estate market. The couple chose a sustainable Norwegian dogtrot design over a less expensive spec home, accepting that building exactly to their preferences may not provide an immediate return on their investment.
Les Lang knew building a custom house in today’s market would be more of a labour of love than an equity-building proposition. Custom houses are a luxury that most people cannot afford, especially with high construction costs and a real estate market that’s in a downturn.
The initial outlay may take years to recover, if ever. Mr. Lang and wife, Sherri Acres, who moved from Calgary to build their home on 2.8 acres in Chilliwack, B.C. , had to think hard about spending a premium to build over buying a spec house in a subdivision.
“If you’re buying a new build in a subdivision, then that’s a different story,” said Mr. Lang, a former consultant in the mining industry. “But if you’re going custom, you have to forget about that. And that was really where we kind of stalled in our planning process. Because we were looking at what it was projected to cost versus what we could get off the market for that same amount.
But then when you got looking at it, you couldn’t have this and you couldn’t have that. And so, the lure of being able to build something custom exactly the way that we wanted drew us back in.
“But it was with eyes wide open that we knew this wasn’t all about the cheapest way to build. ” The couple moved into their home this past spring after waiting less than a year for completion, while living out of Mr. Lang’s parents’ Chilliwack basement suite. Their 2,100-square-foot home is a simple, linear Norwegian dogtrot design, two separate structures connected by the same roof and a covered outdoor breezeway at the midpoint.
The sustainable design is open concept and minimal, situated on Chilliwack Mountain with Hillkeep Regional Park to the rear. They had purchased the vacant lot in 2016 and waited until 2023 to get started on the planning and design. It was the first house for the couple, who’d downsized from their homes in Calgary.
While living in a basement suite, living out of suitcases, they realized that they didn’t need as much stuff as they originally thought, so their vision became more streamlined and considered. They focused less on square footage and more on design and finishings.
“We were looking at what thought we wanted to build, but it became clear that we couldn’t afford it,” said Mr. Lang. “We felt that we could live happier in a simpler home that was more jewel-box-like with nicer features rather than trying to invest the same dollars in square footage. Also, we were thinking forward about aging in place, with curbless showers, no stairs, things like that.
” The cost to build was around $1.9-million, said Mr. Lang, but including soft costs such as planning and design, the budget came in closer to $2.3-million. He paid an additional $300,000 for the lot.
“It’s not the biggest house or the most expensive house or any of that, but it’s one of the most unique homes I’ve ever built,” said builder Chris Klaassen, co-owner of Alair Homes. Adding a green roof covered in six inches of soil and sedums meant beefing up the structural load by about 50 per cent, he said. Green roofs, which are becoming more common on residential buildings, offer insulation for heating and cooling, and works as a fire retardant.
Mr. Klaassen said the design also added to the cost because it was three separate structures, including a 1,650-square-foot main living area, a 450-square-foot studio connected under the same roof, and a detached three-car garage. The design features natural wood inside and out, solid wood beams, extensive glazing, integrated lighting and a high-performance envelope. Finishings include copper wall panels, plaster walls and a steam shower.
“I would not call it an economical build by any stretch, and that’s because it has three distinct structures. There’s a high percentage of exterior wall surface, things like that relative to the square footage, including a fully detached garage,” Mr. Klaassen said.
“So instead of everything being under one roof, it’s under three connected roofs. And the quality of finishing inside is very high end. So, there was lots of lots of detail in there that increase the cost. ” As for the market for custom homes, he said the market is healthy compared to the spec home industry, in which houses are prebuilt in subdivisions and designed for mass market tastes.
As a result, he’s seeing more competition from spec builders who are moving into the custom house space.
“What I call market housing or spec housing is definitely really slow right now,” said Mr. Klaassen, whose company builds houses in the Fraser Valley and throughout Metro Vancouver. “There are a combination of factors, but I would argue probably it’s largely affordability. The higher end renovation and even custom home space, which is not market housing, it’s a totally different demographic and the market is still relatively strong.
” He said his clients tend to be “high net worth individuals” who aren’t impacted by a sluggish economy.
“They’re a little more cautious for sure than they were, but some of them are still going ahead and spending money and getting that dream home they’ve always wanted. “A lot of my clients have luxury cars, and I say, ‘Okay, so you go out and buy a car for $300,000. Is it three times better than the Honda? Probably not.
But it’s pretty cool, and it puts a smile on your face every time you get into the driver’s seat. You buy it because you can, and it’s kind of the same thing with the houses we build. ’ They’re bespoke, and it’s more of an emotional thing. There’s an investment component for sure – nobody wants to be foolish with their money.
But it’s also like, ‘well if it takes me five to 10 years for this to be a really good investment, I’m okay with that trade-off. ’”
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