Product is a typically more, labor is considerably more. Other than that tough to tell as you have really given us nothing more to go off of.

It sounds pretty accurate and probably a pretty good deal if that price is for all 4 sides. We looked at Hardie for our ranch and it was at least 3x the cost of vinyl if I recall correctly. Plus, I believe the installer has to be Hardie trained or certified for the warranty to be honored.

This is the price to upgrade from vinyl for all 4 sides. Not total cost, just the difference in vinyl and hardie. still sound reasonable??

Yes but the only way to be sure is to get someone else to give you a quote as it can vary considerably by region and availability of skilled, trained installers as noted by others. There are MANY posts on here about erroneous installation of Hardie, etc., a qualified installer is pretty important.

Factor in long term costs such as repainting, washing, repairing along with aesthetics.

Hardie board and batten for my entire house didn’t even cost $17k so yes, that’s a really expensive upgrade, imho.

Our house is similarly sized.

Was that 17K with labor too? Where are you located? We are in NC.

@shead

I'd have to ask my builder what the final numbers came out to because he had originally bid LP SmartSide for the b&b but couldn't get it in smooth so we switched to Hardie Board. I know the Hardie was significantly less expensive than the LP Smartside ($42 per 10' sheet vs $65ish per 10' sheet). The LP was less than $17K I believe so I know the Hardie was. I'll see if I can get those numbers.

Are you in a high labor cost area? They had my Hardie up in a couple of days. I can't imagine labor would have been a significant cost factor.

And FWIW, our battens are spaced 16" OC apart.

My friend used vinyl b&b and I thought it looked very cheap :/

@shead we are building in a pretty rural town in NC so i would think that we are not in a high labor cost area, but not sure. i would love to get more info from you if you can get it! i think part of the labor issue is the painting of the hardie/smartside after it's installed.

You will save a great deal if your home did not have so many jogs. They add considerably to any material you choose. And they make the interior design more funky too. I'd try to eliminate the number of different roof lines and jogs. Your home will be less expensive to build, and easier to live in.

As I’m sure you know, Hardie products can be purchased prepainted. We wanted to choose the color, and opted to paint after installation. I don’t know what the cost difference may have been, but our builder suggested on-site painting as a better option.

I see that posters are suggesting a simplified plan to save costs. What are your thoughts on that?

@flopsycat1 thanks for the response. We’ve heard the prepainted doesn’t look as good as well. Our plan is set so no changes there.

Another factor to consider is how the siding will look over time. My 20-year old Hardie panel was repainted after 15 years, because I wanted to change the color, not because I needed to. It still looks as good as Day One, and will last longer than I will. In my opinion, vinyl siding looks cheaper, is more subject to damage, and doesn't age as well or possibly last as long as fiber cement siding. (And fiber cement is also highly fire resistant.)

That quote sounds on target. I had asked my builder the same question and received a similar quote. I'm also in NC.

Sorry, but absurd. Fiber cement siding only runs about 30-35% more than vinyl in materials and from an installation standpoint it is NOT harder. Only siding contractors who are not accustomed to working with fiber cement siding say it is more labor intensive to install.

In reality, siding teams that are used to doing fiber cement and have the proper tools like power shears etc. at their disposal can knock that stuff out incredibly fast. There's no j-trim to mess around with, its prefinished, and most brands have proprietary flashing at the siding joints that is easier and faster than lapping vinyl and hand cutting weep holes, and the waterproofing and flashing around window and door penetrations is about the same as vinyl. The siding industry has become so dependent on vinyl that a lot of builders give you a giant upcharge on other products because frankly they just don't want to screw around with it.

Vinyl siding is garbage. Do whatever it takes not to have it IMO.

I am building a house right now and priced out Smartside, Hardie and Everlast. The Smartside is manufactured close to home where Everlast is not. Everlast was the most expensive by about $7,000. I have a cousin who is in another state and he found the reverse where he lives. This is for materials only. I am going with the smartside becasue I am already $60,000 overbudget.

Where are you located?? We are in NC @kmartin1971