{
  "meta": {
    "source": "U.S. Census Bureau, Survey of Construction 2022 public use microdata",
    "sourceUrl": "https://www.census.gov/construction/chars/microdata.html",
    "description": "Analysis of 2,706 individual contractor-built single-family house records from the Census Bureau's 2022 Survey of Construction public use microdata. Contract price excludes the lot. Reports how contract price per square foot varies by house size, by census division, and how wide the spread is both market-wide and for a like-for-like build. Survey weights applied throughout; Census-imputed price and floor-area records excluded.",
    "surveyYear": 2022,
    "universe": "Contractor-built single-family houses (SOC category 2); contract price excludes land",
    "recordsUsed": 2706,
    "recordsImputedDropped": 183,
    "observedSqFtRange": [
      740,
      8400
    ],
    "weighting": "All percentiles weighted by the SOC WEIGHT field",
    "minimumCellSize": 25,
    "retrieved": "2026-08-24",
    "vintageNote": "2022 is the most recent SOC microdata Census has published. Use this file for structural relationships (how cost varies with size, how wide the spread is) rather than for current price levels."
  },
  "overall": {
    "n": 2706,
    "p10": 83.85,
    "p25": 110.34,
    "median": 147.22,
    "p75": 197.5,
    "p90": 262.86,
    "p25VsMedianPct": -25,
    "p75VsMedianPct": 34.2
  },
  "bySize": {
    "under1000": {
      "label": "Under 1,000 sq ft",
      "minSqFt": 0,
      "maxSqFt": 999,
      "n": 53,
      "p10": 76.53,
      "p25": 113.64,
      "median": 151.16,
      "p75": 232.56,
      "p90": 446.67,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -24.8,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 53.8,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 1.03
    },
    "from1000to1399": {
      "label": "1,000–1,399 sq ft",
      "minSqFt": 1000,
      "maxSqFt": 1399,
      "n": 159,
      "p10": 88.46,
      "p25": 105.83,
      "median": 150,
      "p75": 211.54,
      "p90": 307.69,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -29.4,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 41,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 1.02
    },
    "from1400to1799": {
      "label": "1,400–1,799 sq ft",
      "minSqFt": 1400,
      "maxSqFt": 1799,
      "n": 299,
      "p10": 85.63,
      "p25": 114.29,
      "median": 150,
      "p75": 187.5,
      "p90": 247.06,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -23.8,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 25,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 1.02
    },
    "from1800to2399": {
      "label": "1,800–2,399 sq ft",
      "minSqFt": 1800,
      "maxSqFt": 2399,
      "n": 603,
      "p10": 81.05,
      "p25": 109.55,
      "median": 152.17,
      "p75": 197.22,
      "p90": 238.1,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -28,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 29.6,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 1.03
    },
    "from2400to2999": {
      "label": "2,400–2,999 sq ft",
      "minSqFt": 2400,
      "maxSqFt": 2999,
      "n": 524,
      "p10": 90.83,
      "p25": 119.66,
      "median": 150,
      "p75": 195.77,
      "p90": 264,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -20.2,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 30.5,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 1.02
    },
    "from3000to3999": {
      "label": "3,000–3,999 sq ft",
      "minSqFt": 3000,
      "maxSqFt": 3999,
      "n": 553,
      "p10": 81.94,
      "p25": 106.06,
      "median": 141.18,
      "p75": 205.13,
      "p90": 263.16,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -24.9,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 45.3,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 0.96
    },
    "from4000up": {
      "label": "4,000 sq ft or more",
      "minSqFt": 4000,
      "maxSqFt": null,
      "n": 515,
      "p10": 79.55,
      "p25": 103.26,
      "median": 145,
      "p75": 196.72,
      "p90": 290.48,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -28.8,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 35.7,
      "ratioToOverallMedian": 0.98
    }
  },
  "sizeFinding": {
    "spreadAcrossBracketsPct": 7,
    "smallestBracket": {
      "label": "Under 1,000 sq ft",
      "median": 151.16,
      "ratio": 1.03
    },
    "largestBracket": {
      "label": "4,000 sq ft or more",
      "median": 145,
      "ratio": 0.98
    },
    "conclusion": "Contract price per square foot varies by only 7 percentage points of the overall median across every measured size bracket, with no consistent direction. Small houses do not cost measurably more per square foot than large ones in this data, so a flat rate per square foot is a defensible model across the observed range."
  },
  "byDivision": {
    "New England": {
      "n": 146,
      "p10": 104.35,
      "p25": 148.15,
      "median": 192.25,
      "p75": 283.33,
      "p90": 378.38,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -22.9,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 47.4
    },
    "Middle Atlantic": {
      "n": 250,
      "p10": 86.84,
      "p25": 112.5,
      "median": 154.09,
      "p75": 237.37,
      "p90": 372.09,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -27,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 54
    },
    "East North Central": {
      "n": 610,
      "p10": 105.26,
      "p25": 131.58,
      "median": 172.31,
      "p75": 214.09,
      "p90": 259.26,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -23.6,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 24.2
    },
    "West North Central": {
      "n": 245,
      "p10": 93.33,
      "p25": 118.75,
      "median": 157.89,
      "p75": 197.73,
      "p90": 240,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -24.8,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 25.2
    },
    "South Atlantic": {
      "n": 557,
      "p10": 76.19,
      "p25": 93.48,
      "median": 125,
      "p75": 174.42,
      "p90": 222.22,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -25.2,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 39.5
    },
    "East South Central": {
      "n": 208,
      "p10": 91.82,
      "p25": 117.86,
      "median": 144.74,
      "p75": 177.78,
      "p90": 208.33,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -18.6,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 22.8
    },
    "West South Central": {
      "n": 331,
      "p10": 67.65,
      "p25": 96.67,
      "median": 129.29,
      "p75": 169.17,
      "p90": 202,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -25.2,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 30.8
    },
    "Mountain": {
      "n": 170,
      "p10": 90.56,
      "p25": 122.22,
      "median": 153.33,
      "p75": 206.33,
      "p90": 271.18,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -20.3,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 34.6
    },
    "Pacific": {
      "n": 189,
      "p10": 96.77,
      "p25": 123.85,
      "median": 146.88,
      "p75": 244.62,
      "p90": 361.11,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -15.7,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 66.5
    }
  },
  "withinQualityBand": {
    "q1": {
      "n": 580,
      "p10": 56.25,
      "p25": 75.63,
      "median": 89.26,
      "p75": 100,
      "p90": 106.54,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -15.3,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 12
    },
    "q2": {
      "n": 675,
      "p10": 114.58,
      "p25": 120.22,
      "median": 128.92,
      "p75": 137.5,
      "p90": 142.86,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -6.7,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 6.7
    },
    "q3": {
      "n": 728,
      "p10": 152.31,
      "p25": 159.09,
      "median": 171.88,
      "p75": 182.76,
      "p90": 190.91,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -7.4,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 6.3
    },
    "q4": {
      "n": 723,
      "p10": 204.55,
      "p25": 216.67,
      "median": 247.06,
      "p75": 307.69,
      "p90": 392.86,
      "p25VsMedianPct": -12.3,
      "p75VsMedianPct": 24.5
    }
  },
  "likeForLike": {
    "cellCount": 30,
    "minCellSize": 30,
    "medianP25BelowPct": -8,
    "medianP75AbovePct": 8.7,
    "description": "Median interquartile spread across price-quartile x census-division cells — the spread that remains once quality band and geography are held constant, which is what a per-tier estimate range represents."
  }
}