Cost comparisons per square foot in select metro markets
Elementary school
Junior high school
High school
Vocational school
'01
'00
% chg.
'01
'00
% chg.
'01
'00
% chg.
'01
'00
% chg.
Atlanta
77.25
74.09
4.3
86.83
83.84
3.6
82.06
78.19
5.0
83.22
80.81
3.0
Baltimore
79.16
75.33
5.1
88.97
85.25
4.4
84.09
79.50
5.8
85.27
82.17
3.8
Boston
99.71
96.95
2.8
112.07
109.72
2.1
105.92
102.32
3.5
107.41
105.76
1.6
Chicago
96.32
91.80
4.9
108.27
103.89
4.2
102.32
96.88
5.6
103.77
100.13
3.6
Cleveland
89.21
84.81
5.2
100.28
95.98
4.5
94.77
89.51
5.9
96.11
92.51
3.9
Dallas
73.61
71.84
2.5
82.74
81.30
1.8
78.19
75.82
3.1
79.30
78.36
1.2
Denver
82.54
78.16
5.6
92.77
88.45
4.9
87.68
82.49
6.3
88.92
85.26
4.3
Detroit
91.73
87.64
4.7
103.10
99.18
4.0
97.44
92.49
5.4
98.82
95.60
3.4
Houston
76.04
74.17
2.5
85.46
83.94
1.8
80.77
78.27
3.2
81.91
80.90
1.2
Kansas City
86.35
81.82
5.5
97.06
92.59
4.8
91.73
86.35
6.2
93.03
89.25
4.2
Los Angeles
93.90
90.88
3.3
105.54
102.85
2.6
99.74
95.91
4.0
101.15
99.14
2.0
Miami
74.22
71.18
4.3
83.42
80.55
3.6
78.84
75.11
5.0
79.95
77.64
3.0
Minneapolis
96.58
91.71
5.3
108.56
103.79
4.6
102.60
96.79
6.0
104.05
100.04
4.0
New Orleans
74.13
70.93
4.5
83.32
80.27
3.8
78.75
74.85
5.2
79.86
77.37
3.2
New York City
116.61
111.25
4.8
131.07
125.91
4.1
123.87
117.41
5.5
125.62
121.36
3.5
Philadelphia
96.58
92.46
4.5
108.56
104.64
3.7
102.60
97.58
5.1
104.05
100.86
3.2
Phoenix
77.34
74.42
3.9
86.93
84.22
3.2
82.15
78.54
4.6
83.31
81.18
2.6
Pittsburgh
87.91
84.56
4.0
98.81
95.70
3.3
93.39
89.24
4.6
94.71
92.24
2.7
Portland
92.51
88.14
5.0
103.98
99.75
4.2
98.27
93.02
5.7
99.66
96.14
3.7
St. Louis
88.95
85.56
4.0
99.98
96.83
3.3
94.49
90.29
4.7
95.83
93.33
2.7
San Diego
91.99
88.64
3.8
103.39
100.31
3.1
97.72
93.54
4.5
99.10
96.69
2.5
San Francisco
106.29
102.77
3.4
119.47
116.31
2.7
112.91
108.46
4.1
114.51
112.11
2.1
Seattle
90.51
87.14
3.9
101.74
98.62
3.2
96.15
91.96
4.6
97.51
95.05
2.6
Washington, D.C.
82.19
79.57
3.3
92.38
90.05
2.6
87.31
83.98
4.0
88.54
86.80
2.0
Winston/Salem
65.46
63.69
2.8
73.57
72.08
2.1
69.54
67.22
3.5
70.52
69.48
1.5
NOTE: Costs are for the basic building and do not include sitework, land, development, specialty finishes or equipment. Square foot costs vary significantly from project to project because of quality, complexity and economic climate. For a detailed list of building components included in these figures, see Means Square Foot Costs. R.S. Means Co., P.O. Box 800, Kingston, MA 02364, (781) 585-7880, (800) 448-8182 For more data, visit R.S. Means on the Web at www.rsmeans.com. To use an interactive tool that helps estimate costs, visit www.buildingteam.com.
