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Reported by homeowners

What custom homes really cost here

Real numbers from people who built, or got a quote for, a custom home in Northern Virginia and Montgomery County. Not builder marketing, not national averages.

  • Anonymous
  • Shown only as groups of 5+
  • Takes about a minute

Anonymous · about a minute

Share what your custom home cost

Built in the last few years, or holding a builder’s quote? Your numbers help the next family plan a realistic budget.

1 Your home

The lot

2 The number

That figure covers

It is

3 A little context (helps us compare like with like)

Contract type

No name or email needed. We store a one-way hash of your network address only to stop duplicate reports. Your builder choice is used for counting, never shown.

How to read these numbers

Cost per square foot is the total you report divided by finished square feet. A knockdown rebuild adds demolition and usually more site work, so we show those separately, and we split figures by what they cover. Quotes are counted the same way as final costs: cost-plus quotes often end up lower than the final bill, and fixed-price jobs can grow with change orders.

For the prices builders publish up front, see the cost guide or try the estimator.

Frequently asked questions

What does a custom home cost per square foot in Northern Virginia?
Builders that publish prices range from about $250 to $800+ per sq ft for the house. Homeowner reports on this page show what people actually paid, once there are enough of them.
Are individual reports shown?
No. We only show medians and ranges for groups with at least 5 reports, and we never show which builder someone used.
Should I include the land?
No. Report everything except the land, and tell us what your figure covers so we can compare like with like.

What county permits say, by town

Every new house needs a building permit, and the applicant declares a construction value. These are the typical (median) numbers for new houses permitted in the last 24 months. Treat them as a floor: declared values usually leave out design, site work and finishes, so real costs run well above them. Homeowner reports above are closer to the truth.

TownNew homesTypical declared valueTypical sq ft on the permit
McLean235not publishednot published
Great Falls62not publishednot published
Vienna217not publishednot published
Oakton28not publishednot published
Arlington318$500Knot published
Falls Church166not publishednot published
Alexandria150not publishednot published
Fairfax94not publishednot published
Reston96not publishednot published
Annandale40not publishednot published
Clifton18not publishednot published
Bethesda293$500K6,829
Potomac33$1M10,255
Chevy Chase40$668K6,484

Arlington County and Montgomery County publish values; Montgomery also publishes square feet. Fairfax County publishes neither. Checked November 7, 2026. Arlington County Data API was used for this purpose, but it is not endorsed or certified by Arlington County. See every permit on the teardown map.

Prices builders publish

  • AZA Builders: three tiers, about $275 to $350, $375 to $500 and $550 to $800+ per sq ft. Profile
  • New Urban Homes: from about $250 to $275 per sq ft including soft costs, permits and construction. Profile
  • Horizon Building: custom homes about $1.2M to $5M+. Profile

Plug your own size into the cost estimator.