I'm currently building a custom home in central Kentucky ( just outside of Lexington, but built within Lexington 3 years ago) and can say that in my experience you'll see a rage of between $110-$130 for custom in the Lexington area. You can get down to $100 per square foot in Lexington if you go the semi custom route with a large builder.

We are on track to finish at about $115/sq foot with nicer (hardi plank siding, custom stained hard wood floors, quartz in kitchen and master bath, etc. ) finishes. We are also putting in a unfinished walkout basement ( it was necessary due to the way our land lies).

I do know that Louisville home prices tend to be higher than Lexington, but i can't speak to building costs there. Let me know if you have any questions!

Edited to add--

We own our land outright so my costs do not include the purchase of land.

Contact a local GC, who knows costs, in real time. Somebody who has been to your lot/site, and can see all/any challenges you might face. Somebody who knows permit costs and on and on.

I never understand the Hail Mary questions. A good idea is only that, until you get into nuts and bolts. From somebody who knows, not random on a chat thread.

Using square foot as the measurement of potential cost is an exercise in frustration filled with errors, omissions and pitfalls. I suggest you start by consulting with local GC's. That should prove to be a more effective effort on your part.

I do want to point out that the open porch part of the dog trot connector will prove to be as expensive as the two separate structures. You will still be paying for foundation, frame, roofing and finish. Porches are as expensive as finished heated and air-conditioned spaces.

Building costs anywhere vary tremendously as what some people think of as "standard" finishes, others consider costly upgrades.

House values in Louisville are also all over the place, with location being the dominant factor. My own house (build in 1948) appraised for $100 @ sq ft i 1984 due to its location. Today, it would probably appraise for closer to $200 @ sq ft. It would appraise for far more if the back yard were not a fall-away, with the first floor being up a flight of stairs, making any addition far more costly to build.

The best advice anyone can give anyone building or remodeling in Louisville is to be sure one does not overbuild ones neighborhood. "Outside Louisville" can mean Oldham County, Bullitt County - even southern Indiana. These areas have vastly different housing values.

I have rented a house with a similar floor plan to yours for multiple summers in the past. It was not great even in the summer - cannot imagine having to go across a screened porch in the winter to get to the bedrooms.

Smaller homes cost way more per square foot than larger ones. They have all of the expensive kitchens and baths that a larger home does, and less of the fluff space like the 5th bedroom and an extra 200 sf in the greatroom. The larger the home, the less the square footage price will be, even if two homes are constructed with identical specs.

Which makes thinking about cost to build a home based on square footage as useful as buying a car by the pound. A light sports car like a Corvette ZR1 will cost more than a Silverado truck. But an Cadillac Escalade costs more than a base Vette, But they are all Chevrolet’s.

Go tour the factory at Bowling Green when they finish retooling it. The museum’s cool too. And it has nothing to do with building a home. Other than to think if you want a ZR1, or a Silverado, or an Escalade. Where you fall on the trim level will have a great deal to do with your eventual build cost.

"...really interested in building a dog trot style home..."

Well...will it be a Poppa Bear dog trot? Or a Momma Bear dog trot? Or possibly a Baby Bear dog trot?

Size and configuration matter--it's why architectural design is discussed a lot--a lot--on this forum.

And here's some other considerations:

--The specific land and site preparation requirements have a big impact on the wallet;

--Local jurisdictional permits and fees have a big impact on the wallet;

--The type of construction contract--competitively bid or negotiated bid has a big impact on the wallet;

--Further, the type of construction contract--fixed fee, time and materials or cost plus something have a big impact on the wallet;

--More further, the language of the construction contract, and how risk management is handled, has a big impact on the wallet;

--How allowances and change orders are handled have a big impact on the wallet (Hint: don't allow any allowances; specify everything).

Good luck on your project!

Cute houses!

In case you have not gathered...it is near impossible to make any guess as to what it might cost. You need to narrow this down with a lot in mind, and a builder. And also, keep in mind what kind of finishes you are looking for.

Cost per square foot is pretty useless (as some have pointed out, smaller does not automatically turn into less per square foot - you still will have a kitchen, that floor plan you posted has THREE full bathrooms = $$$, etc) and also HIGHLY variable. It amazes me what some can get for $115 sq foot in some places - where I am you would likely end up with maybe a dry-walled (but unpainted) box.

WITH are you building a screen porch in the 'middle' of the house?? I've never heard of a 'dog trot style' house. Is this what it is? If so.....makes 'NO' sense.

A "dog trot style" house is quite popular in certain regions, and here is a link.

WITH are you building a screen porch in the 'middle' of the house?? I've never heard of a 'dog trot style' house. Is this what it is? If so.....makes 'NO' sense.

Actually it makes a lot of sense. They were built to allow breezes throughout the house when windows and doors were opened. In effect they were some of the earliest examples of passive cooling.

Instead of constantly coming on with your opinions based on no factual knowledge, you might try google before posting.

Never assume that another region's vernacular architecture "makes NO sense."

Robin supposedly lives in the South, but seems to have zero knowledge of it or it’s vernacular architecture. Just exactly like the supposed 3 degrees and intimate knowledge of contractors....

I had a great, great uncle who lived in a dog trot. He bred and raised hunting dogs. It had a dirt floor. The story I was told was the dogs lived better than the people.

Robin...the reason that there is regional vernacular architecture is that its stood the test of time and proven to be suited and durable for a particular region...