Another question that we get asked often is “How much does it cost to build a log home?”

Wow, talk about a loaded question. There’s so many answers to that one question, and there’s also just one simple answer. My answer would be “It all depends on who you talk to.”

If you talk to a contractor in beautiful Gatlinburg, Tennessee, they’ll tell you that the going rate is 185 dollars per square foot, not including foundation, decks, or porch costs. That’s just RIDICULOUS!!!

If you google “How much does it cost to build a log home?”, you’ll be told that in most instances, you can expect to pay between 125 to 175 dollars a square foot

I still believe those numbers can be high, however, that’s taking in mind that you don’t participate in any of the building whatsoever. I really don’t know anybody that would want nothing to do with the building process. Log home enthusiasts are a special kind of person, they want to be “hands on” on the day to day operations of building their log home.

Here’s what I tell our customers when they ask how much it’ll cost to build their new dream home……

“For what you can build a good quality frame home, you can build a good quality log home!!!”

There, I said it, but let me explain for my reason why……

  • No matter what kind of house you’ll be building, you’ll still have excavation costs
  • No matter what kind of house you’ll be building, you’ll still need utilities run into your home
  • No matter what kind of house you’ll be building, you’ll still need a foundation
  • No matter what kind of house you’ll be building, you’ll still need plumbing and lighting fixtures
  • No matter what kind of house you’ll be building, you’ll still need flooring

Guess you see where I’m going with this, you’ll still need all these things. And because you’re building a log home, it shouldn’t mean its going to cost extra

Here’s another thing to keep in mind. When you (or your contractor crew) stacks your logs, they’re actually saving you the materials and labor cost on the following:

  • 2×4/2×6 exterior frame walls
  • Outside sheathing
  • Outside siding, brick, stucco, etc
  • Interior sheetrock

As the old saying goes “The more you do, the more you save” couldn’t be more true. So save yourself some serious money, as well as time, by doing the shopping yourself!!!

Also, get quotes from log home builders, as well as references. Don’t settle on the first one that comes around, shop around. The contractor crew that we recommend charges around 30,000 dollars for a 26 x 36 with loft dry-in.

Building a log home shouldn’t cost more, they just want you to pay more…