Demonstration project · West Coast, British Columbia
Prepared for Private client · Architect Withheld · Landscape Withheld Date Monday, August 17, 2026
Interactive demonstration · figures illustrative, adapted from a completed BDG cost plan
Part one
Where the money goes
Hard costs of $7.39M carry three markups — a 10% contingency, a 10% contractor fee and 5% GST — to reach the all-in total. The main house is roughly two-thirds of the project.
$7.39M
Hard costs
$9.39M
All-in (incl. fees + GST)
$1,526
Cost / sq ft (incl. landscape)
All-in cost by building
Each building grossed up with its share of contingency, fee and GST
How $7.39M of hard costs becomes $9.39M
The markups add roughly $2.00M on top of construction
Hard cost by division
Before contingency, fee and tax
Cost per square foot, before tax
Living space runs $1,200–$1,350/sf; the accessory garage is the cheap outlier
Part two · interactive
Value engineering worksheet
Flip a switch to apply a reduction. The all-in budget at the top updates instantly — each hard-cost saving also removes its share of contingency, fee and GST (a 1.27× effect). Nearly half the total savings sit in one decision: phasing the coach house and garage.
Potential savings by cost driver
Hard-cost reductions, largest first
Phasing
$0 of $1,639,300 applied
Coach house$0 of $1,454,000
Build the coach house in a later phase
$1,454,000
Accessory building / garage$0 of $185,300
Defer the existing-garage re-build
$185,300
Interior finishes
$0 of $428,150 applied
Main house$0 of $307,600
Delete 1/2" fry-reglet reveal at baseboard & door trim
$35,500
Delete medicine cabinets — Primary Bathroom
$4,200
Delete millwork — stair shelves
Basement
$20,400
Delete millwork — study desk
Basement
$22,100
Delete millwork — study shelves & desk
Basement
$44,200
Delete millwork — pantry east shelves
Main floor
$52,800
Countertops: mid-level quartz in lieu of natural stone
$41,400
Countertops: Silestone in lieu of mid-level quartz
$24,300
Backsplash: mid-level quartz in lieu of natural stone
$25,100
Backsplash: Silestone in lieu of mid-level quartz
$14,900
Hold off on sauna (complete at a later date)
$22,700
Coach house$0 of $43,350
Delete medicine cabinets — Bathroom
$4,200
Countertops: mid-level quartz in lieu of natural stone
$16,500
Countertops: Silestone in lieu of mid-level quartz
$9,650
Backsplash: mid-level quartz in lieu of natural stone
$8,150
Backsplash: Silestone in lieu of mid-level quartz
$4,850
Shared · both buildings$0 of $77,200
Delete bathroom & powder-room tile on floors & walls, except where necessary on shower walls & floors
Decorative light fixtures by client (allowance out)
$63,800
Delete Nu-heat floors
$10,000
Delete generator
$20,800
Coach house$0 of $24,300
Delete Flexa lighting
$12,800
Delete linear lighting
$8,500
Delete Nu-heat floors
$3,000
Exterior finishes
$0 of $139,100 applied
Shared · both buildings$0 of $139,100
Painted metal panel in lieu of zinc panel cladding
$41,900
1x4 vertical stained wood in lieu of painted metal panel
$69,800
Stucco soffit in lieu of wood soffit (flat areas)
$18,900
Delete generator equipment screen
Custom metal
$4,250
Delete heat-pump equipment screen
Custom metal
$4,250
Doors & windows
$0 of $97,100 applied
Main house$0 of $88,800
Fixed glass in lieu of passage door x2
Basement bedrooms
$4,100
8' tall door in lieu of 9' tall door
$2,550
Delete skylight
$55,000
Typical jamb in lieu of full-depth exposed jamb
$7,000
Ball-bearing hinges in lieu of concealed
$8,000
Tubular hardware in lieu of European mortise — supply
$9,350
Tubular hardware in lieu of European mortise — labour
$2,800
Coach house$0 of $8,300
Typical jamb in lieu of full-depth exposed jamb
$1,700
Ball-bearing hinges in lieu of concealed
$2,200
Tubular hardware in lieu of European mortise — supply
$3,400
Tubular hardware in lieu of European mortise — labour
$1,000
Equipment
$0 of $17,000 applied
Main house$0 of $17,000
Miele / Sub-Zero / Wolf in lieu of Gaggenau
$17,000
How to use this. Toggles capture hard-cost reductions only; the budget at the top automatically grosses each one up by contingency, contractor fee and GST. The countertop and backsplash entries are listed as the consultant staged them (mid-level quartz, then a further step to Silestone) — applying both reflects the deepest downgrade. Phasing the coach house and garage is a scope decision, not a finish decision, and also trims about 1,900 sq ft. All figures are illustrative — scaled and rounded from a completed BDG cost plan.
Illustration series commissioned by BDG. The demonstration project is fictional — imagery is illustrative of the west-coast homes BDG budgets.
Export this scenario
Captures your current selections — totals and the reductions you've applied.
