What foundation type do most new homes have?

Nationally, 75% of new single-family homes completed in 2025 were built on a slab, 16% had a full or partial basement, and 9% had a crawl space. This varies sharply by region — basements are common in the Northeast (53%) and Midwest (50%), while the South builds almost exclusively on slabs (88%).

Do most new homes have central air conditioning?

Yes — 98% of new single-family homes completed in 2025 had air-conditioning installed, and it was effectively universal in the South (100%). Heat pumps have also become nearly as common as forced-air furnaces nationally (48% vs. 49%), and dominate in the South (63%).

What does it actually cost per square foot to build a new home, according to the Census Bureau?

The U.S. Census Bureau reports a median contract price of $171.57 per square foot (average $198.33) for new contractor-built single-family houses started in 2025 — a figure that excludes the value of the land. That falls between this site's own basic ($139/sq ft) and mid-range ($188/sq ft) modeled estimates, and well under the premium tier ($256/sq ft). Separately, the median total sale price of a new house sold (which includes land) was $417,400.

Data

What New American Homes Look Like: 2025 Census Data

Name: Characteristics of New Single-Family Houses Completed, 2025
Creator: HouseBuildCalc
Published: 2026-08-22
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

New single-family houses completed in the U.S. in 2025 had a median size of 2,142 sq ft (2,378 sq ft average), and were most commonly built on a slab or other types (75% of homes). The Census Bureau puts the median contract price to build at $171.57/sq ft (average $198.33/sq ft) for contractor-built homes, excluding land — and the median total sale price of a new house (including land) was $417,400. Nearly all new homes (98%) now include central air-conditioning, and heat pumps (48%) have caught up to forced-air furnaces (49%) as a national heating source — according to the U.S. Census Bureau's Survey of Construction.

Median Size

2,142 sq ft

2,378 sq ft average

Contract Price/Sq Ft

$171.57

Median, excludes land

Median Sale Price

$417,400

Includes land

With Central A/C

98%

100% in the South

What New Homes Actually Cost, Per the Census Bureau

Two different federal price measures, covering two different universes of new homes. Neither one is "the" national construction cost — read the caveats below each table before comparing.

Contract Price per Square Foot (excludes land)

Median and average contract price per square foot of new contractor-built single-family houses started, national and by region, 2025
Measure	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
Median	$171.57/sq ft	$179.3/sq ft	$194.09/sq ft	$157.3/sq ft	$176.87/sq ft
Average	$198.33/sq ft	$246.26/sq ft	$202.13/sq ft	$179.96/sq ft	$213.85/sq ft

Universe: new contractor-built single-family houses started in 2025 — homes built for an owner under contract on the owner's own lot. Excludes spec/built-for-sale homes. Per the Census Bureau's own table note, "contract price excludes value of improved lot" — i.e. this is a construction-cost figure, not a total price.

Total Sale Price (includes land)

Median and average sales price of new single-family houses sold, national and by region, 2025
Measure	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
Median	$417,400	$750,800	$387,400	$372,800	$541,900
Average	$523,800	$1,061,300	$449,700	$458,800	$649,300

Universe: new single-family houses sold (spec/built-for-sale homes) in 2025 — a different universe from the contract-price table above. Per the Census Bureau's own table note, "sales price includes value of improved lot," so this total mixes land cost, builder profit, and finishes with construction cost — it is not comparable to a $/sq ft build-cost estimate without knowing the lot value. The Northeast average ($1,061,300) has a wide margin of error in the Census data due to a small sample of very high-value sales in that region.

How this compares to HouseBuildCalc's own estimates

This calculator models national base rates of $139/sq ft (basic), $188/sq ft (mid-range), and $256/sq ft (premium). The Census Bureau's median contract price of $171.57/sq ft falls between our basic and mid-range tiers, and its average of $198.33/sq ft sits just above our mid-range tier — both are well below our premium tier. In plain terms: the federal government's own price data for contractor-built homes lines up closest to a basic-to-mid-range build, not a premium one, and neither Census figure approaches our top tier. We are not changing our modeled rates based on this single comparison — regional cost variation, lot conditions, and finish level all move the number — but we think you should see the government's own figure next to ours rather than take our estimate on faith.

Square Footage

Median and average square feet of new single-family houses completed, national and by region, 2025
Measure	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
Median	2,142 sq ft	2,459 sq ft	1,969 sq ft	2,162 sq ft	2,090 sq ft
Average	2,378 sq ft	2,644 sq ft	2,240 sq ft	2,396 sq ft	2,336 sq ft

Wondering what a home this size costs to build? See our 2,000 sq ft cost breakdown →

Foundation Type

Foundation Type — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
Full or partial basement	16%	53%	50%	4%	16%
Slab or other types	75%	40%	43%	88%	70%
Crawl space	9%	7%	7%	8%	14%

Bedrooms

Bedrooms — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
2 bedrooms or less	12%	26%	19%	8%	13%
3 bedrooms	46%	39%	48%	48%	43%
4 bedrooms or more	42%	35%	33%	44%	43%

Bathrooms

Bathrooms — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
1.5 baths or less	4%	8%	9%	3%	5%
2 baths	33%	22%	36%	36%	26%
2.5 baths	30%	32%	31%	29%	34%
3 baths or more	32%	37%	23%	32%	35%

Heating System

Heating System — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
Forced-air furnace	49%	77%	88%	36%	51%
Heat pump (all types)	48%	14%	7%	63%	42%
Heat pump — air-source	48%	11%	6%	63%	42%
Heat pump — ground-source	1%	3%	1%	—	—
Hot water or steam	1%	4%	2%	—	—
Other types or none	3%	5%	3%	1%	6%

Air-Conditioning

Air-Conditioning — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
With air-conditioning	98%	92%	96%	100%	96%
Without air-conditioning	2%	8%	4%	—	4%

Primary Exterior Wall Material

Primary Exterior Wall Material — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
Brick	16%	8%	4%	26%	1%
Wood	6%	11%	16%	3%	7%
Stucco	26%	1%	—	23%	55%
Vinyl siding	26%	70%	64%	21%	5%
Fiber cement	23%	8%	12%	24%	31%
Other	2%	2%	3%	3%	1%

Number of Stories

Number of Stories — national and by Census region, 2025
Category	National	Northeast	Midwest	South	West
1 story	48%	27%	54%	51%	46%
2 stories	46%	58%	45%	45%	46%
3 stories or more	5%	15%	2%	4%	8%

Curious what a home with these specs costs to build in your area? Use the cost calculator → or see how material and labor costs have moved on our construction cost trends page.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Survey of Construction — Characteristics of New Housing, 2025 data, published July 1, 2026. Physical characteristics (size, foundation, bedrooms, bathrooms, HVAC, exterior, stories) cover new single-family houses completed (built for sale, contractor-built, and owner-built combined). The contract-price-per-square-foot figure covers a narrower universe — contractor-built houses started, excluding land — and the sale-price figure covers a different universe still — built-for-sale houses sold, including land. Percentages are computed from unrounded figures and may not sum to exactly 100 due to rounding; some near-zero regional cells are withheld by the Census Bureau and shown as —.

Retrieved 2026-08-23 · Raw data: /data/new-home-characteristics.json · Methodology