"If there are 5 homes and they all show different square footage, how do you compare apples to apples for price per square foot?"

Maybe cause after 40 years I (and many others) have still never purchased a house by the square foot?

While there have been some attempts to standardize how square footage is computed, the most common method for tax purposes seems to remain by simple exterior measurement (most tax collectors do not have interior access).

I'm not sure I understand the question totally, but I'll give it a go. You know for a fact that all the homes are 3510 square feet per builder's specs. So you use that number for average cost per square foot. If you're wondering how a prospective buyer will determine the average cost per square foot, they're going to go with whatever number the realtor gives them as square footage for the property. In our area the listing will have a disclaimer of sorts, 3500 sq ft per survey, per seller, per tax assessments etc. and that all square footages are approximate. So if your realtor says your home is 3569 and the exact home down the street the realtor says is 3510, that's the numbers the buyer will use to compare. But if they're like most buyers that number in both cases will be rounded to 3500 square feet.

My home is under reported on the tax records by 400 square feet, Zillow.com also has it under reported. I think that's a common mistake and people realize that the final survey/appraisal of the property will give the accurate square footage.

Brickeyee - maybe where you are located houses are not listed w/square footage, just number of rooms. I have seen listings in the midwest like this.

Cordovamom - maybe this will explain my question a little better.
House #1 3510 sq ft 176.35 per foot per builder
House #2 3510 sq ft 152.68 per foot per builder
House #3 3509 sq ft 168.00 per foot per builder would be 167.95
House #4 3466 sq ft 170.20 per foot per builder would be 170.20
House #5 3590 sq ft 178.00 per foot per builder would be 182.05
House #6 3360 sq ft 208.04 per foot per builder would be 199.15

You can see that the sq footage is all over the place and these are the exact same homes. This then causes the price per foot to have such a wide range as well. Again, these are all the same model. Buyers in this area are looking for the best value per sq foot in addition to price.

jgirl, I think I know what you're saying. The first thing I look at in a listing is square footage. I've been buying homes for 30 years and I kinda have an idea of how much square footage will do for my family. If a home doesn't have the square footage I need, then I knock it off the list. Maybe other areas of the country don't do this, but to me it is important.

In your examples all the homes but number 6 are going to be rounded to 3500 sq feet. That's the way buyers look at square footage in general, approximately. So the first 5 homes are comparable in square footage. There is a significant difference in square footage in the last home to make a buyer think it may not be comparable. Regardless, price per square foot is only an average. Home 2 has the same square footage as home #1 but is listed for more. Maybe they have an upgraded kitchen, fenced back yard, pool, finished basement etc. Maybe house #1 needs the carpeting replaced, painted throughout, new appliances etc. Remember it's just an average and the actual price per individual home per square foot will certainly vary. Savvy buyers realize this and some are willing to pay that extra little for the fenced backyard or the upgraded kitchen, some are not.

I wouldn't round the square footages for my calculations --
But I also wouldn't really make a decision based on a relatively small difference in $/SqFt either.

But - Houses in my area ARE OFTEN compared to each other in terms of price per square foot. There's a range - which happens to be pretty wide - between the high and low for our neighborhood. But for the quality of the particular location, the age and finish level of the house, the $/SqFt is often used to price a house.

For that reason, if you're selling, I'd get the tax data corrected. It may cost you $1,000 or so more for one year, but net you $10,000 or so when you sell.

I'm glad someone is looking at the square footage thing.
I noticed on the MLS that there is some sort of price per square foot. Prices vary quite a bit and I am wondering how to use this number as some sort of tool as a potential buyer.
In looking at a FSBO his price/sq' was way higher than other houses in the neighborhood. But he has updated some of the plumbing/electrical too and I don't know the shape of the other houses.

Also - in looking at houses (different state different city) the same style and age as the home I owned previous to this one I noticed that they are listed at about the same square footage but seem much smaller. I sold my 1132' house in Michigan and comparing to the ones I'm looking in OH I'd say it must have been closer to 1250 or 1300'. Do they have different rulers in OH? :)

Last comment: I built my house in 2005 (not in a development, totally custom) and I think the county assessor has the sq footage wrong. Can't they get it from the permits the builder applied for as opposed to stumbling around the outside of the house in the dirt?

Cost per square foot is not commonly used here... And it does not make sense to ME to use it.

2 3000 sq ft houses can vary widely with the materials inside... formica vs granite... hardwood vs carpet... etc.

TOTAL sq foot matters to me though!

And if you use square footage in this manner, you may not be taking into account different lot sizes.

About 5 of the 18 homes, including mine, listed in my neighborhood are the same model. Per the builder, this model has 3510 square feet. Public records has square footage all over the place. They show mine about 250 ft less than what it is. I am not about to have them correct it because taxes will then increase. My agent used my last appraisal sq footage because it came in at 3569. Others have the info from the builder and some have info from public records.

We went through this when we listed my dad's old house, but it was his lot size that was wrong. About 5 years ago when his town got computerized, someone entered the number wrong. We had old tax bills that were right along with the 1st one that was wrong. We were told to leave it, the survey would correct it.

When I'm shopping for a house, so far square foot means nothing to me. I look to see:
1. lot size
2. the number of bedrooms
3. Basement
4. garage
5. room size if listed

If those add up, I then look at the photos.

Watching a show on HGTV last night, one couple was looking at 3 bedroom houses. There was one room that was as big as a walk in closet, that would fit a crib and possibly a small dresser. While the rest of the house looked large, this one room was a waste.

I would make sure to have the room sizes listed. Hopefully this will set you apart from the other few identical houses.

I have a list similar to roselvr's only mine also but my first or second is location. I am always looking for something with a little extra privacy, so listings that mention a wooded lot next door, no neighbors behind etc. catch my eye. One of the first things I do is google earth the address.
That little room would turn off most buyers but for someone like me it might make a good computer room which is what I use the third bedroom for anyway.

So - there is no reason that MLS lists the price per sq foot? It seems like it could sort of be used as a unprecise way to get some gouge on what's "normal" for a neighborhood.

"...maybe where you are located houses are not listed w/square footage, just number of rooms. I have seen listings in the midwest like this."

No, the room by room size is listed on MLS, and the overall appraised square footage is online in most of Northern Virginia.

What I said is "...I (and many others) have still never purchased a house by the square foot."
It is simply not a very useful metric.

If you know these houses are "the same model" why would you even be asking how to compare them?
If they are different models just go and look at them and decide if the layout and room sizes are to your liking.

The square footage for tax appraisal in most places has very little effect unless the numbers are very different.

There are no enforced satndards for how square footage is measured and calculated.
Most tax appraisal use the outside measurements of the house, then deduct for garages (but not all). I have seen places that deduct an unheated garage, but include a heated one.
Closets count in some places and not others.
Stairwells often are counted twice if the outside measurement is used, along with the floor occupied by interior walls and even the exterior wall thickness.

It is simply not a very useful metric.
A horrible layout can make the largest house into a chopped up nightmare, while a much smaller house with a good layout can appear to be spacious and flow well.

Builders want it to look large, owners may want it to look small for taxes, and there are no real standards.

People are right when the say that sq ft and quality don't go hand in hard. Or that sq footage and actual liveability in home don't mean much, either.
Would definitely rather have a 3 bed-3bath 2700 sq foot home than a 5 bed-3 bath----more rooms but smaller would not make comfortable living to me...liveability is all in design--not just size

I use sq ft comparison when I check MLS listings all the time...if you know the market, it tells you if home in particular area is going at discount -- maybe because of pre-forclosure issues, maybe because it has been listed for long time--maybe there are design issues---pool vs no pool

In the DFW area P/S/F is used to market and is what the TAD--local tax authority--uses most of the time to evaluate homes--sq footage--how many garages--if there is a pool--and neighborhood/lot prices...ar what they list on each property valuation sheet

they rarely (if ever) do an on-site walk-through inspection so the finish out has little to do with what the appraisal is...they go by neighborhood values. Mainly increase in valuations can happen by neighborhood, not individual homes ...

When a subdivision goes in the builder turns in development plans/lots are sized, amenities like community pool is there is one are calculated, so lots/land have valuation set.

The homes are built--they know what sq ft the builders are doing because those plans have to be turned in to city and they see them for valuation. If the builder builds a spec and completes w/o a contract, title company notifies TAD.
Builder is paying the first year prorated tax, depending on whether he gets contract. When it sells, people are not required to turn the selling price over to TAD--that info is protected in TX--so the builder's valuation is what the new home owners have...because the tax base is set to only increase certain amount from year to year,,,the valuation can be pretty low the first two years...after that usually gets closer to market value...

People have to get permits for things like adding a pool or remodeling to add rooms---so TAD can keep up w/upgrades like that usually...so an individual home might have increased appraisal with improvements/extra sq ft after the initial appraisal.

The hinky part comes when builders turn in one set of plans and then people contract to have attic space built out or maybe a 3rd-car garage added ...that sq footage almost always does NOT go into the TAD records...a pool is almost impossible to not have valuated to increase taxes...

MLS sq ft descriptions around here often say "Total sq footage does not reflect TAD info" or "Sq footage based on currant appraisal"--which means a physical walk-through and measurement of rooms was done by home appraiser, usually from the bank or mortgage co buyers are using...

Some times the people at TAD actually read the MLS listings and if they see mention of that, send you a nice letter---I have heard of that happening twice...I also saw a house on new MLS listing with a pool and when I checked TAD to see who the builder was, TAD info did not show a pool...so there are some delinquent taxes there for current original owners...

O course Sq footage is only one factor in evaluating a home's true value and if you want a home or if it is worth the price the sellers have put on it...but around here if you compared having a heat pump over having more sq footage--most people would value the sq footage...having trees and privacy on a smaller lot is usually more valuable to buyers than a larger, open-to-everyone's eyes-lot--yet home valuation comes only from lot size not intangibles like trees/views...

in certain price ranges, wood floors are mandatory and included when you see sq ft...in others if you get real wood floors you are getting a deal...it just means you have to know your market...