The average ÚS bathroom remodel--without moving around walls and plumbing---is 16K. Upscale is 51K. Since you are moving stuff, you will be much closer to the second number than the first. Canadian projects cost even more. 10% i.e., 5K, for design fees is standard to low, depending on if you are using a design/build or independent designer. Design build tend to absorb some of the design costs in higher build prices. If you get more design services than just floor plans, like decorative finish selections, then 5K is WAY low for the design portion of the budget. Try 3x that ballpark. 15-20% (10K) will go to the GC for supervision and project control. Of the 70% of the budget left, maybe 30% (15K) goes to materials, and the rest (20K) is job labor. It's a labor intensive project to start moving plumbing, electrical, and HVAC, and doing tile. Here is a link that might be useful: Cost vs. Value

CRHBobby - We were originally going to go that route but I wanted the flexibility to have the drawings bid out.. We ended up paying about 1000 more then you did but the plans are ours.. Your builder should be receptive to minor changes in the contract, as long as they are reasonable. The way I look at the contract is that you can't have it all, nor should the builder.. The contract should create a level playing field.... On a side note.. If you have the layout you can just take it to another architect and you could have it done in about 2-3 weeks.. When we went to do our house drawings we had about 3 or 4 plans that had layouts and features we liked.. The architect then took these and came up with a custom layout..Having those drawings saved us a lot of time.. Some people go in blind and have no idea what they want.. But if you already have the layout the architect will be able to get the drawings faster and should do it pretty cheap since he doesn't have to draw it from scratch.. You paid 2500 for drawings.. They should be yours..

Here's why I don't like liquidated damages in contracts: Firstly, Liquidated Damages means that from day one you start dickering about every delay day and whether it's an exension of the scheduled completion date (not subject to liquidated damages), or if it's a delay caused by the Contractor. SO, instead of actually working on your project, the Contractor is spending time coming up with reasons why the delay isn't his fault and shouldn't be subject to a measely $100 a day liquidated damages payment. Stuff happens, delays happen,enough said. Do you want them spending time getting written confirmation from a supplier that the trucking companies are backed up and can't deliver their lumber, etc.? or do you want them spending that time coming up with a solution? Contractors don't make money on projects that aren't complete, it's in their interest as much as yours that delays not happen (unless they're a bad contractor). Make sure you get a good contractor with good references and don't waste their time and yours with excuse making and arguments. Secondly, if you require liquidated damages, you'll simply get an inflated schedule so they can cover their ass (same as above). SO, you haven't really achieved anything IMO.

A build isn’t like locking in a mortgage rate. You can’t lock in pricing on lumber now for next August. All contracts will have a clause about materials price increasing. Among other allowance amounts. Allowances are just cost plus amounts inside a fixed price. To eliminate any of that in any contract, you’d need to add to a price SUBSTANTIALLY. If you want zero risk of the price moving, you’re shifting that risk to the builder. That requires much more additional compensation to assume that risk. That’s a quick way to make a 500K house into a 650K house. You can’t contract risk away without paying a lot more for that privilege. Contingency amounts are not factored into a builders budget either. That’s your responsibility to do so, in your budget, as part of your due diligence in building, and financing that build. Why would you even risk buying a home so close to your budget limit that you don’t have a contingency in it for cost increases? You need to move down a couple of 100K the next time you start down this road. For a used home? Buy at half the cost of what you want your end cost to be. Remodeling is more expensive per square foot than new building.