chatinent:
I personally feel parapet is a waste of money. Shit is very expensive.

DaniellaDokubo:
Over time I came to realize these are some of the way to reduce or manage building cost. See them stated briefly below.

Please feel free to critic or contribute.

1. Purchase most of your building materials upfront if possible. Especially the ones that can not be stolen easily.
2. Prefer minimalistic designs. But wider exterior with lots of greenery. You will thank me forever on this...haha
3. Avoid unnecessary shoot outs, corners etc. Yes it adds to its modern look but has no added functional purpose.
4. Compromise on materials that are easily replaceable ...lol. This is a hard swallow but I said what I said. Things like wall and floor tiles, paint quality etc. But never on manpower or structural items like columns, beams, cement mix, building level, wood for roof etc.
5. During design stage group toilets and other utilities close to each and let them share the same wall. This will reduce the number of pipes flying everywhere. It has post construction benefits for maintenance reasons too.
6. If possible, allow for cross ventilated spaces and wider or multiple windows or entrance. it permits smaller spaces to be comfortable or habitable especially meeting the cooling load.
7. By extension of No. 6 use bright coloured paint coatings to reduce heat adsorption on the exterior as it also gives an impression of space.

Bonus Point
8. If your land size is wide and erosion is not an issue, use carpet grasses and some horticultural plants to cover the open spaces rather than flooring entirely.

Namaste...

okoloto:
Na contractors dey make building very expensive. If you can build yourself hiring workers directly, you will be surprise the amount of money that you will save.

Temmzz:
Thanks. You've raised great and highly useful points. I've been thinking about using mud/clay instead of the conventional 9 & 11 inches block. There's a friend's place I visited recently and I figured how cool his room is. He told me later on that the entire building is built with red mud/clay.

I'm unsure if this brick/clay is accessible in large quantities today. But I'll definitely make research and inquiries when the need for it arises.

seborrhic:

Not 1,not one practical idea in this write-up.
Just a essay on theoretical,impractical,if not outrightly pedestrian ideas on how to reduce cost
I could dissect and throw out each one of them,but will just prolong this post.
But for 1 for eg, so you buy cement and keep fearing that the price will go up in future?
8,you use carpet grasses and horticultural plants.So these things maintain themselves,they don't need maintenance?
Let me just stop here before I lose my temper again after that lost during the elections.

DaniellaDokubo:


Yes and logistics is the main consideration. Please prove me wrong again.