Building your first villa in Bali? Starting from choosing the land, the designers, and the contractors, we know it’s a LOT of work. Worry not, here’s our guide on how we budget for our project.
We also talked about this on our podcast, if you want to give it a listen.
First thing first, differentiate between what you want and what you need. List down several things you’d like to have in your villa, then prioritize.
It would help too if you can ask yourself several questions, just to get to know how your lifestyle is. It can look like something like this.
There’s a lot of design style in the world, and there’s no “one suits all” in design. Thank God for Pinterest, now you can search and save which design style you like the most. If you love that photo, go look for the architect or the interior designer of that space. Go on Instagram and look at similar accounts that have the same vibes. That way, you can be more organized about what you want to achieve.
To pinterest or not to pinterest?
Yes, Pinterest helps a lot in gathering your mood boards. However, do not steal the design just like that.
Here’s how you can make it to a good use.
1. Find the design you like.
2. Find out who the designer is.
3. Work together with them.
To calculate the building cost, the equation is simple.
The quality that we’re talking about here is about the material specifications. There’s a wide range of products in the industry, so you gotta do your proper research on which is suitable for you.
What usually is forgotten
The cost stated is only for the architectural construction cost (only the building). You also gotta take account for the interior and decoration part to make your villa more aesthetically pleasing. This usually costs around IDR 1.500.000 – 3.000.000 per sqm.
There is an additional cost for boundary wall that costs IDR 1.000.000 per meter. Boundary wall is the wall that surrounds your property and acts as a boundary between your property to other.
For example: If your land is 20 x 30 m, let’s just say the boundary wall is 100 meter long.
So the cost for boundary wall will be 100 m x IDR 1.000.000 = IDR 100.000.000 (around USD 70.000)
It’s not a villa in Bali, if it doesn’t come with private pool. Pool construction cost is IDR 5.000.000 per m3.
So, if you have a 5 x 10 m pool, with 1.2 m depth, it will cost you around IDR 300.000.000 (around USD 20.000)
Calculation: 5 x 10 x 1.2 x IDR 5.000.000 = IDR 300.000.000
What you need to do first is to compromise on material specifications. You can switch from material Grade A to material Grade B. This way, you can lower your cost per sqm.
What if I already lower the material specs, but it’s not enough?
Then you have to lower your floor area. It means you gotta say goodbye to some rooms and extra space.
The process sometimes can be a little overwhelming. Our best tip is just to leave it to the expert, and let them help you by giving some advice from their point of view. Architects and designers are there to help figure out what the options are, and which option is the best for you. Sometimes, compromise needs to be done, but that’s how it is. The design should fit all three: function, aesthetic, and last but not least, the budget.
Good luck on budgeting your project!
