Cost

Cost is a major consideration for anyone considering building a house. A traditional Japanese house, which is in essence completely handmade, is an expensive structure to build. However, over the past several years East Wind has developed design and construction options which create fine homes at costs comparable to conventional custom projects. While East Wind continues to design and build completely traditional Japanese houses accommodating Western expectations of comfort, a selective hybridization of Japanese carpentry and conventional construction has permitted us to reduce the cost per square foot for clients with more modest budgets.

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Across interior garden to guest bedroom.	Checkboard ceiling and deck support.	Looking from gate to entry.

COST EQUALS THE NUMBER OF SQUARE FEET TIMES THE COST PER SQUARE FOOT.

Manipulation of size, alterations in design detail, and the quality of materials have an effect on the cost of a house. Ordinarily, smaller houses cost less than big ones, although the cost per square foot of a small house is usually greater per square foot than that of a larger house of the same quality. Even so, limiting size is a sure way to reduce the total cost, and East Wind is enthusiastic about smaller houses. East Wind designers and clients consider clients' budgets while selecting the number, purpose, and size of rooms to contain costs.

Design details determine the total cost of a home. For some of our clients, the aesthetic payoff of certain details in Japanese houses is not worth their cost. For example, infill walls are time-consuming and expensive to build. There are much less costly methods to create the classical Japanese proportions which yield such pleasing emotional responses. On the other hand, a Japanese suspended wooden ceiling, which produces a feeling of warmth by subtly altering light, is not as expensive as one might think and well-worth the investment in traditional woodworking. By selectively integrating classic details with conventional construction methods, East Wind can offer houses which are affordable to more people.

Bedroom in Bay Area.

More western master bath.

Roof from inside.

East Wind works with clients to determine which traditional elements deserve the biggest investment; structural elements, and rooms which are aesthetically less important to the client can be designed and constructed with conventional methods. Children's rooms, laundries, storage areas, or utility rooms don't always deserve the design attention that an entry, living room, or a kitchen might.

The chart below suggests how the design process can emphasize certain features over others to balance the competing interests of beautiful buildings with moderation in cost. Clients can pick and choose elements that are important to them by finding the approximate costs and then tailoring their Japanese house to fit their needs, their aesthetic expectations, and their budgets.