With so many options to choose from, it is increasingly becoming a challenge for homeowners to choose the right materials when building or remodeling a house project. However, it is less challenging to choose the right material for your project provided that you have some knowledge of home construction and the type of material needed. Think about your budget and how you would want the house design to look like. When it comes to construction materials, below are some of the key determinants that you should take into consideration when choosing home construction materials.


The first key determinants when selecting the right materials for your construction project is cost. However, cost is a relative term. Just like normal common purchases, it is a basic assumption that the cheaper the material, the shorter its lifespan. Despite the fact that there are some exceptions to this ideology, there is every likelihood that you will have to repair or replace cheap materials used in home construction. Unless you are operating on a very lean budget, it is always a good idea to overlook cost in home construction materials.

Using cost as a key determinant against the life cycle of construction materials is described as life-cycle cost method of analysis. In home construction, the life-cycle cost refers to the actual cost of purchasing the materials weighed against the period of time that these materials are effective or don’t require repairs. For example, assuming that icf blocks A cost half the price of icf blocks B but blocs B have twice the life of blocks A, it means that the B blocks will actually be cheaper in the long run considering that they have a higher life. If you are in the process of building your dream home, you might want to take this approach as opposed to operating on a fixed budget as the latter could cost you more in future in repairs and maintenance.


Apart from cost, it is also important to also focus on the aesthetics of building materials and components. It is important to put value on everything used in home construction. When building your home, there are some features that you want your house to have. You could be aiming for an energy efficient home which ultimately means that you need to use green building materials. You can also opt to use light construction materials that suit your overall home design. Since you are not limited with respect to your options, looking at the bigger picture since home construction is a one-time event. To give your house that solid look, stone masonry is the way to go. But, this is probably one of the most expensive ways of constructing a house or a commercial building. And since masonry requires time and is labor intensive, ask yourself whether it is the best design for your house and whether it is worth the cost.

Whichever reason influences the building materials selected for a construction project, cost, aesthetics and whether you are likely to bring out the character in the finished project should guide the process. Once you get to the initial selection process for the basic materials, look for areas that you can cut on cost. Some of the most common areas could be floor and tiling materials, house paint, door and window hardware, deck materials, kitchen cabinets and driveway pavers. You can find recommendations and approximation of best designs for your home and the cost of possible materials used in home electrical, home lighting, kitchen design, interior design and heating and air conditioning.