Portland 4Plex/Townhome Build Cost and Contractor Recommendations

[Brian Armstrong]

Hi all - I am looking at buying a property in Portland that consists of 2 lots with a SFR on one of them. My partner and I are weighing the best use of the land and considering building townhomes or duplexes on either or both lots. I walked the property with the contractor who was very helpful, but he mostly does residential and wasn't able to estimate the going rates for constructing multifamily or townhouses. His advise to me was to get comps, subtract the land value, then divide by the sq ft to get a ballpark estimate of the cost/sq ft to build new.

Using his method with comps my realtor sent me, my estimates for new construction for a fourplex = $144-$154/sq ft and for a townhouse = $155-$197/sq ft. I am looking for a mid-to-slightly-above-mid quality finish. Do these numbers sound realistic to all of you? If so, should I also calculate additional costs for getting the land build-ready and permitting, or would that be baked into those costs? Those who have built these types of dwellings, what was your price/sq ft?

My plan tomorrow is to search for builders who specialize in multifamily and/or townhouses and see if they can give me a ballpark for what I should expect to pay as well. Do any of you have recommendations for who I should contact?

I appreciate any and all responses!

Brian