Home Design & Drafting Costs in Utah
Real rates and project examples to help you plan.
We help you explore layouts, work through design decisions, and develop clear drawings for your project. The examples below show design and drafting fees for a range of projects, along with what was included. We’ll review your project and provide an estimate before work begins.
Custom Home Plans
Custom home pricing is based on above-grade living area and the amount of design work in the basement.
Above-grade living space – our standard rate is $2.25/sq. ft.
Basement living space - $0.50/sq. ft. - $1.00/sq. ft.
Unfinished basement with basic electrical – $0.50/sq. ft.
Mostly open finished basement – typically $0.75/sq. ft.
Fully finished basement or a detailed layout with multiple rooms – typically $1.00/sq. ft.
A custom-home example
A home with 3,000 sq. ft. above grade and a 1,500 sq. ft. unfinished basement would have a $7,500 design fee. With a fully finished basement layout at $1.00/sq. ft., the same home would have an $8,250 design fee.
Custom-home pricing includes a site plan for a straightforward lot and incorporating the engineer’s details into our drawings. Structural engineering fees, REScheck, and 3D views are additional.
Stock Plans
$0.55 per square foot of above-grade living space.
Basement and garage areas are excluded from the price calculation. The purchase covers one construction of the home.
For example, a plan with 1,800 square feet of above-grade living space costs $990, before modifications and project-specific services.
Changes are billed at $100 per hour. Site plans, REScheck, incorporating the engineer’s details, and 3D views are additional.
An example with modifications
One recent 1,800-square-foot stock-plan project included changes to the entry, primary bathroom and closet, and several rounds of exterior design revisions:
Stock-plan purchase: $990
Design modifications: $1,445
Incorporating engineering details: $100
Site plan and subsequent site-plan updates: $250
REScheck: $175
Total TechniGraphics fees: $2,960
This example involved several rounds of design exploration. A plan that already fits your needs may require considerably less modification work. The engineer’s own fee is separate from the cost of incorporating their details.
Additions, Remodels & Basement Plans
See what similar projects involved and what the design and drafting cost. We provide an estimate for your project before work begins.
The examples below show design and drafting fees for a range of TechniGraphics projects. Structural engineering fees, when needed, are additional and are identified separately in your project estimate.
Select a project below to see what was included
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Plans for a two-story addition with a garage and workshop below and living space above, connected to the existing home. Includes layout development and several rounds of design revisions, a site plan, foundation plans, floor and electrical plans, exterior elevations, floor and roof-framing plans, building and stair sections, and incorporating the engineer’s details.
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Plans for a larger kitchen and upper-floor changes, including existing-house documentation, floor plans, elevations, foundation and framing plans, sections, a site plan, and incorporating engineering details. The fee included a later redesign using attic trusses over the garage.
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Plans for an addition above and behind an existing addition, with kitchen and living space on the main floor and bedrooms, bathrooms, and laundry upstairs. Included existing-house documentation, floor plans, elevations, foundation and framing plans, electrical plans, sections, a site plan, and incorporating engineering details.
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Plans to convert an existing carport into a primary bedroom suite and relocate the laundry. Included layout development, existing and demolition plans, proposed floor and electrical plans, exterior elevations, a footing/foundation plan, and incorporating the engineer’s details. Existing house drawings were available, and the existing roof was retained.
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Plans for finishing approximately 900 square feet of basement space, including a bathroom, stair reframing, and new beams. Included documenting existing conditions, exploring layout options, existing and demolition plans, proposed floor and electrical plans, a floor-framing plan, a stair section, and incorporating the engineer’s details.
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Plans for finishing a basement. Included exploring layout options, proposed floor and electrical plans, and incorporating the engineer’s details. The builder supplied measurements for preparing the drawings.
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Plans to open up a kitchen by removing a nonbearing, partial-height wall. Included existing and demolition plans, a proposed floor plan, and an electrical plan. A supplied Matterport scan provided the existing-condition information, so no site visit was needed.
These project examples are a guide to our design and drafting fees; your proposal will define your project’s scope and pricing.
The amount of drawing work depends on how much of the home is affected and how the new construction connects to what’s already there. Projects involving multiple floors, basements, crawl spaces, or changes to foundations and framing may require drawings beyond the rooms being remodeled. For example, a main-floor addition may also require documenting the foundation below and the floor or roof structure above. Complex layouts, changes in floor level, and intersecting rooflines take more time to work through and draw.
Usable existing plans, accurate measurements, or a Matterport scan can reduce the time needed to document the home. We review the information you already have, the existing construction, and your proposed changes to identify the drawings needed and prepare your estimate.
ADU Plans
ADU design starts with a workable layout for the kitchen, bathroom, living and sleeping areas, and storage. We then develop the drawings for the building and its placement on the property. An attached ADU also requires documenting the existing home and showing how the new foundation, walls, and roof connect to it.
Attached two-bedroom ADU in West Jordan – $2,300
Design and drafting for an approximately 800-square-foot ADU attached to an existing home, with two bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, open living space, laundry, and a crawl-space foundation.
Included in this example: Layout development, a site plan, floor and electrical plans, exterior elevations, foundation and roof-framing plans, and building sections showing the addition and its connection to the home.
Detached two-bedroom ADU in Holladay – $2,000
Design and drafting for an approximately 1,150-square-foot ADU with two bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, open living space, laundry, and a covered patio.
Included in this example: Layout development and site-layout planning, floor and electrical plans, exterior elevations, foundation and roof-framing plans, and a building section.
These examples show TechniGraphics design and drafting fees. Structural engineering fees are additional. Your proposal will identify the drawings and supporting services included.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Before we begin, we explain the work included and how your fee will be calculated. Custom homes and stock plans use the square-foot pricing outlined above. Remodels, additions, and plan modifications are generally billed at $100 per hour, with an estimated project range provided upfront.
If we expect to exceed that range, we’ll discuss the additional cost with you before proceeding.
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For new clients, the minimum project fee is $500. Existing clients can request smaller services, such as REScheck reports, site plans, or plan revisions, for a fee below that minimum.
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For custom homes, our standard $2.25-per-square-foot rate applies to above-grade living space. Basement space within a custom-home plan package is priced separately at $0.50–$1.00 per square foot, based on how much layout and finish detail is needed.
Stock-plan purchases are calculated using above-grade living space only. Basement and garage areas are excluded from that calculation, but the full plan package is included.
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The prices on this page cover TechniGraphics design and drafting services. When structural engineering is needed, the engineer’s fee is additional. Incorporating the engineer’s details into our drawings is included in custom-home pricing; for stock plans and other projects, your proposal will identify how that work is priced.
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A stock plan can be a cost-effective option when its overall layout and exterior are close to what you want. Modifications are billed at $100 per hour in addition to the plan purchase. Extensive changes to the footprint, roof, or room arrangement can reduce the savings, so we can help you compare the two approaches before you choose.
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Yes. Usable existing plans, accurate measurements, or a Matterport scan can reduce the time needed to document your home before designing changes. We’ll review what you have and identify any missing information. Even older plans can be helpful, although they may need to be checked against the home’s current layout.
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On hourly projects, design changes and revisions are billed at our regular $100 hourly rate. Changes made later in the process can affect several drawings – moving a wall, for example, may also require updates to electrical plans, elevations, or framing. We’ll discuss additional fees when requested changes go beyond the agreed scope.
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We request a deposit to begin. Larger projects generally have a progress payment when the drawings are ready for engineering, with the remaining balance due upon completion. Your proposal will outline the payment schedule.
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No. You can start with the problems you want to solve, the spaces you need, and a few ideas or reference images. Helping you explore layouts and work through alternatives is part of our design service. That design time is included in the scope we consider when preparing your estimate.
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Send the property location, a brief description of what you want to build or change, and any plans, sketches, photos, or measurements you already have. For an addition or remodel, tell us which floors and areas of the home will be affected. You don’t need a finished design – we’ll follow up about any details needed to define the work.
What Would Your Project Cost?
Send us the property location, a brief description of the project, and any plans, sketches, measurements, or photos you already have. We’ll review the scope and provide an estimate before work begins.
Let’s talk about your project.