cost of construction vs. rehab -- Tampa

[Amy Davidson]

Hi all,

I'm looking at a massive rehab, and adding on a fair number of square feet to my lovely little Old Seminole Heights house.

One engineer came out and as a ballpark estimate told me that the cost of new construction in Tampa is between $90 and $110 per sf. Then the GC came out and told me to expect $110 -- $180 per sf for new construction, without plumbing, built to a basic standard, with an estimate of $65-$85 per sf for the remodel.

With the wide range of estimates between two experts in the field I am a bit bewildered. I'd love to hear from others who did either full rehabs or new builds in Tampa, to a standard for rental to upper middle class professional people -- what was your actual cost per sf. And was this close to the original quotes you were given?