As a rule, the supply and erection of the structural shell for a timber frame project should be in the same ballpark as getting to a similar stage with a brick and block build (once you’ve factored in roof structure etc).

However, much depends on your project profile and there’s a huge number of variables. Will you be going for open-panel or closed-panel, for instance, and if the latter what level of prefabrication will you have (in some cases window and door linings and even external finishes can be pre-applied to speed up the site work… but obviously there’s a cost implication)? There’s also questions such as whether you’ll be employing your own contractor to erect the frame or using the manufacturer’s team.

A basic timber frame could start from as little as around £90 per m2. But taking stock of recent homes in the magazine, I’d suggest that for most projects you’re probably looking at more like £150-£250 per m2 once you account for elements such as roof trusses, floor joists, insulation, membranes etc on a fairly standard self build. Obviously this could easily rise further depending on the house spec.

Another way of looking at it is that it would be fairly normal to spend around 15-20% of your total build cost on the timber frame element.