Updated June 2, 2023
Whether you’re considering tearing down and rebuilding your house, or you’re insurance shopping and need to know your home’s replacement value, it’s good to know how much it would cost to rebuild your house.
Your home’s replacement cost is the amount of money it would take to rebuild it using similar materials should it ever become damaged or destroyed. A home’s replacement cost should not be confused with its market value, which is what your home could sell for in its existing condition. In this guide, we'll go over determining your home's demolition cost and how much it would cost to rebuild it.
Jump to:
- Determining Your Home Demolition Cost
- Determining Your Home Replacement Cost
- Determining the Total Cost to Rebuild Your Home
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Calculate How Much It Costs to Demolish Your House
The first step to determining how much it will cost to rebuild a home is to find out how much it costs to tear down the home.
The cost of demolishing a house is much less than rebuilding it (and is often less than people realize). The average cost to demolish a house is just under $9,000. However, your cost may vary based on your specific location, the size of your home, and other factors.
Keep reading:
- The Homeowner's Guide to Demolishing a House
- 3 Tips to Lower the Cost of Demolishing a House
- Simple House Demolition Cost Calculator
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Calculate How Much It Costs to Rebuild Your House
A home's replacement cost is synonymous with its rebuild cost: It’s the cost to repair or rebuild your home at current prices to be the same quality.
Rebuild cost and market value are not always equal. In fact, a house may sell for $300,000, while the cost to rebuild it is only $250,000. This is because your home’s market value also includes the value of the land it’s on, so the cost to rebuild on the existing land is often much less than it would be to sell the current home and the land that it sits on. With that said, it is just as possible that your home’s rebuild costs are higher than its market value, which is often the case with older houses.
When shopping for insurance, you want to be sure you have an accurate replacement cost for your home because it’s closely tied to how much dwelling coverage you will purchase. If you don’t get enough coverage, you can be at risk of being underinsured.
There are multiple factors that can affect the cost to rebuild a house. For example, older homes, or homes with features that are difficult or expensive to replace (i.e., custom molding, plasterwork, outdated electrical/plumbing), will likely have a higher replacement cost than market value. To find out exactly how much your home will cost to rebuild, we recommend hiring an independent professional to come to your home and inspect it thoroughly.
How a Professional Estimates Your Home's Replacement Cost
They will take photos/videos for documentation purposes and closely examine the following:
- Roof (condition and materials)
- Foundation/Footings
- Structural framing and materials
- Exterior walls
- Interior walls
- Interior finishes, like doors, cabinetry, built-ins, etc.
- Ceiling
- Plumbing and electrical fixtures and systems
- Heating and cooling equipment
Once they have an idea of what your home is made of, the appraiser will research market rates in your area—for materials, labor, etc.—and produce a replacement value report for your home. The cost to obtain a home replacement value report can vary quite a bit from one city/state to the next, but you can expect to pay at least a few hundred dollars to have your home professionally appraised.
How You Can Estimate Your Home’s Replacement Cost
If you’re insurance shopping, your insurance agent will most likely calculate your home’s replacement value for you. We also recommend hiring a professional to handle your home's appraisal even if it's not for insurance. However, if, for some reason, you disagree with their amount, or you want to get a second opinion, you are more than welcome to do a rough estimation yourself.
- Find your city's average cost of construction per square foot. (A local contractor or construction company can help you with this.)
- Multiply that number by your home’s square footage.
- Take any additions into account:
- Replacing your roof: Depending on the type of roof you have and how old it is, rebuilding a roof can be a major expense. Have a local roofing contractor give you an estimate.
- Exterior features: If your home has stonework or luxury windows, be sure to include the cost of these things in your estimate. The same goes for any other sort of exterior feature, like a large deck or wraparound porch.
- Flooring: If you have hardwood or custom floors, find out how much it would cost to replace it. Local flooring installers will know the average cost to replace your flooring in your area.
- Cabinets, fixtures, and appliances: If your kitchen is outdated, rebuilding a new one will be costly. Take the price of cabinets, fixtures, and appliances into account get an idea of what a new kitchen would cost.
- Personal possessions: Your personal possessions can account for a large portion of your claim as well. Keeping a detailed inventory of your possessions is recommended to ensure that you are reimbursed for all your furnishings and personal items.
Calculate How Much It Costs to Demolish and Rebuild Your Home
The average cost to build a home in America is $90-$150 per square foot. So for a 2,500 square foot house, it would cost approximately $375,000 to build. However, keep in mind that this is just an estimate, not a guarantee for what your rebuild project will cost.
Average Demolition and Rebuild Costs for Different Size Homes in the U.S.
| House Size | Demolition Cost | Rebuild Cost | Total Cost |
| 1,000 sq ft | $4,000-$15,000 | $40,000-$175,000 | $44,000-$190,000 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $8,000-$30,000 | $70,000-$350,000 | $78,000-$380,000 |
| 3,000 sq ft | $12,000-$45,000 | $120,000-$525,000 | $132,000-$570,000 |
However, there are a number of factors that affect the cost to demolish and rebuild a home, like:
- Where the home is located
- How big the existing home is
- How big the new build home will be
- How old the existing home is
- Materials used to build the existing home
- Materials used to build the new home
- Finishing touches used to build the new home
- Who you hire to do the work
The best way to get an accurate estimate for how much it will cost to demolish and rebuild your home is to reach out to local experts. Hometown makes it easy to find local house demolition contractors. In addition to making it easy to get up to three quotes from local demolition experts with the click of a button, we also simplify the entire process, from reading customer reviews to getting answers to your biggest questions in one place.
Learn more:
- Should I Demolish and Rebuild or Renovate My House?
- Update Your House on a Budget This Season
- Create a Home Remodeling Plan in 10 Simple Steps