Garden Suite Cost Calculator
Introduction to Garden suite costs
There is a massive learning curve for home owners, real estate investors, multi-generational families, and anyone else trying to evaluate if they can build a garden suite (or laneway suite) on their property. We have gone ahead and created a cost calculator that captures the key costing variables that cause fluctuations in the costs of building a garden suite.
Note that we do ask for your contact information at the end of the calculator, but that is only to send you an email with the information gathered. We will not contact you unless you contact us first.
Get a Free zoning analysis of your property before using the garden suite cost calculator
You will notice that the first question in the garden suite cost calculator is if you have completed a zoning/property analysis to confirm that you can build a garden suite on your property. If the answer is no that is not a problem! BVM Contracting can provide a complimentary assessment of your property’s suitability for a garden suite or laneway suite so you aren’t wasting your time on a project that might not work!
Reach out below to schedule your free assessment!
How to build a cost-effective Garden suite
We have compiled a few ideas to reduce the costs of building a garden suite, so be sure to check out that article. We also offer pre-fabricated garden suite floor plans and costs that help keep the overall costs of garden suite construction more affordable.
What are the key variables that affect the cost of garden suites?
If you step through the cost calculator you will see what variables we are trying to gather to get a better idea of overall costs for your project, but for those of you interested in reading more about them see below.
Square Footage of your Garden Suite affects the cost
This won’t come as a surprise but what may seem counter-intuitive is the fact that as you make your garden suite smaller, the cost per square foot gets higher. Before you scratch your head you can check out our garden suite page that gives an example of why this is the case. So if you are planning to build a bachelor unit you can expect to see a higher cost per square foot versus doing a 1000 square foot 2-level garden suite in Toronto.
Amount of conditioned space versus unconditioned space
The amount of space that needs to be conditioned (i.e. livable space) versus unconditioned (i.e. garage) will affect the total cost of your garden suite or laneway suite. Since there is usually no plumbing, HVAC, very little electrical, and even fewer finishes in an unconditioned space the cost per square foot of finishing a garage ends up being a lot less compared to the rest of the livable garden suite.
Existing Utility Upgrades
Depending on the size of your existing utilities you may need to upgrade them. This is especially true for properties that have a 100-amp electrical service and panel and 1/2 inch water supply. If you want to separately meter the garden suite, that will add additional costs as well. It is helpful to know how much utility upgrade is necessary as that is going to affect the overall cost of your garden suite or laneway suite’s construction.
Distance from Front Wall of Main home to Garden Suite
How far away your garden suite is from the front wall of your house will affect the overall cost of building the garden suite because the cost is going to increase the further away the garden suite is. Since plumbing and electrical costing is hugely dependent on the length of material needed this is something to consider in order to understand if your garden suite will be more or less costly.
Garden suite Kitchen Budget
The least expensive kitchen that we have ever installed came in at just around $10,000, and that is because we installed everything ourselves and it was for one of our own personal projects. Now if you want to give yourself some buffer you will want to budget for at least $15,000-$20,000 for a discount kitchen installation.
Interior Finishes
You will notice that we gave an allocation for a flooring budget. The reason why is because there is a huge difference in cost between doing supply and install of luxury vinyl flooring ($5-7 per square foot) versus all tile ($15-$30 per square foot) flooring so make sure you you set your expectations accordingly.
Nice to haves that will make your garden suite more expensive
We have a section at the end of the calculator that highlights some additional add-ons that will increase your overall project budget, some of which we have highlighted below:
Running a gas line out to the garden suite will add additional costs to the overall utility costs for the project. It is a third utility (after water and electrical) that will need to be run out so make certain that you understand the overall costs of this line item before committing to it. It is entirely possible to set-up a garden suite with no gas by setting up a cold-climate heat pump and doing all-electric fixtures.
Adding skylights and sun tunnels will add to the overall cost. You can expect each unit to be between $1,000-$2,000 per unit for supply and install.
In-floor heating is possible but will be more of a nice-to-have for a garden suite project. You will also need to run a gas line out to make this possible, since you will need to set-up a gas boiler system to support the heating system.
Setting up a generator for your garden suite is possible but will be costly to set-up.
Solar panels are a great idea to be less dependent on the electrical grid but come at a hefty price tag so you will want a healthier budget to make that system work.
Setting up separate electrical service direct to your garden suite or laneway suite will be more expensive than sharing an electrical panel with your main home but might be worth it to separate the utility costs.
Important Things to Note about our garden suite cost calculator
This calculator should only be used for calculating garden suite and laneway suite construction costs
This calculator is exclusively for calculating garden suites and laneway suites. We have created a new home building cost calculator if you are interested in building a new home in Toronto and are planning on coming out with a home addition cost calculator and home renovation cost calculator very soon, so stay tuned! You can also utilize one of our real-life human beings to help you get representative pricing for your project, so don’t hesitate to reach out (we don’t bite, scout’s honour).
Email Collection and Data Processing
The submission will ask you for your email to send you the estimation and make changes to your submission. We will not contact you if you do not reach out to us. Check out our service area page to find out if we complete new home building projects in your area. If you are just outside our service area shown we may still be able to help you get started, even if we are not able to take on the project.
Garbage in equals garbage out
The accuracy of this calculator is entirely based on your input, so please be sure to enter answers that make sense to what you want to achieve. For example, you aren’t going to build a 2-level garden suite at 200 square feet per floor. Be smart about your answers so you can get the best idea of costs.
The garden suite costs created are not a final quote for your project
The garden suite cost calculator is meant to give you a RELATIVE idea of the costs to build a garden suite given your provided answers (+/- 10-20%), but it is not meant to be finalized pricing in any way shape, or form. If you would like to get a more accurate gauge of costs you will have to complete a consultation with BVM Contracting to finalize your scope and garden suite project pricing in a more comprehensive way. We have a database of recently completed garden suite and laneway suite projects that will help give you a clearer picture of what the scope of work will look like for your project
Your feedback is welcomed
Just like anything worth using this calculator is a work in progress. We plan to iterate to make it more accurate as we move along. If you find that the cost you have been given is unrealistic please let us know so we can troubleshoot the issue.
About BVM COntracting
BVM Contracting is a full-service General Contractor or Home Builder located in Toronto. We provide home renovation and building services for major home renovations (kitchen renovations, bathroom renovations, basement renovations, full interior renovations, home additions, lot severances, and new home construction). Our goal is to help guide our clients through the process of renovating their home, from concept to completion.
Further than providing General Contracting and Project Management for major home renovations, we also offer value-added services such as renovation financing, renovation rebate consultations and services, building permit and design services, smart home installation services, and real estate investor services.
To learn more about our offering by visiting our services page.