I am often asked by those seeking to own or build a special Santa Fe home, why it costs just a bit more for your Santa Fe dream home. Once you hear the reasons, you'll know that Santa Fe is well worth the extra. Having designed and built many Santa Fe homes for over thirty years, I give careful guidance in achieving a fine home with all of the special qualities that our city's rare architecture can offer.
Numero uno among reasons why you just may experience a moment of gentle heart failure when you learn what home's fetch in Santa Fe is the fact that almost any home that meets the criteria of being your dream home is sure to be built almost entirely by hand. Our architecture is based upon handcrafted elements from doors to ceilings to the walls themselves. Some of the most prized features of a Santa Fe home require the work of master craftsmen and artisans. In most other parts of the country the money goes into "decorating" dry wall boxes. In Santa Fe the money goes into exposed vigas, cozy corner fireplaces, and thick adobe walls. Of course, it costs more to build this way. So if you love those thick walls you need to consider what goes into their construction and you should consider exploring ways to make it happen for your particular project.
Traditionally, Santa Fe homes were built out of adobe and could be up to 2' thick. This provided deep window and door openings as well as a feeling of muffled sound and consistent temperature. To build an adobe home today with 2' thick walls would be extraordinarily expensive. The concrete for the footing and foundations alone would be astronomical. However, everyone still wants the wonderful feeling of those thick walls and there are several ways to get them. The least expensive is to use double framing on the walls that have windows and doors opening. For those who still hanker for a masonry home, insulated concrete forms provide the aesthetically pleasing thick walls and excellent insulation. Whether building thick walls out of frame, insulated forms, or adobe, the cost is considerably higher than building with 2X6's.
The earliest pueblo homes used peeled logs called vigas to support the roof. Exposed viga and beamed ceilings are one of Santa Fe's prized architectural features and most everyone wants them in every room. I am often asked if the vigas are for decoration or are they actually holding up the ceiling. Yes, the vigas and beams are most definitely structural and cost more that 2X10 joists covered in sheet rock. Not only is the cost of the material and labor more expensive but another roof must be built on top of the vigas for insulation and drainage so that those famous flat roofs actually shed water to the canales. The slope and insulation can also be created with the roofing material itself.
The material in between the vigas is called decking. There are many choices. The most expensive is coved plaster (arched plaster between the vigas) or latillas (small aspen logs) and the least expensive is rough sawn 1X6's.
In addition, wiring and lighting becomes more difficult and expensive. If you want vigas and need to cut costs, I would suggest keeping them in the public areas of the house and the master bedroom. It can be a significant cost savings if entire areas of the house such as the garage, laundry, and guest wing have flat drywall or plastered ceilings.
Tune in next month for lots more info on the cost of building in Santa Fe.
