Grey structure, finishing, or turnkey from foundation to handover. We are a PEC Category C-3 licensed contractor with our own concrete, steel, joinery and electrical crews — so the trades that finish your house are the ones we employ, not a chain of subcontractors you never meet.
Almost every quotation in Islamabad and Rawalpindi is built from covered area, not plot area — and the two are different numbers. Getting this right is the difference between comparing quotes properly and being surprised later.
| Plot size | Plot area | Typical covered area, ground + first | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 marla | 1,125 sq ft | Roughly 1,800 – 2,100 sq ft | Double storey, after setbacks |
| 10 marla | 2,250 sq ft | Roughly 3,600 – 4,200 sq ft | Most common Islamabad plot |
| 1 kanal | 4,500 sq ft | Roughly 7,000 – 8,500 sq ft | Varies widely with layout |
One marla is taken as 225 sq ft under the standard used in Islamabad and Punjab. An older measure of 272.25 sq ft still appears in some legacy documents and in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — if a quotation looks unusually cheap per square foot, check which marla it was built on. Covered area also normally counts stairs, porches and servant quarters at full or part rate depending on the contract, which is why two quotes for the same house can differ by hundreds of square feet before a single rate is compared.
We do not publish a fixed rate per square foot, and we would treat any contractor who does with caution — steel and cement prices move, and a rate quoted without seeing your drawings is a number that will change. These are the variables that decide your figure.
The two largest material lines, and the two most volatile. A quotation should state whether rates are fixed or subject to escalation, and over what period.
Span, storey count, basement, cantilevers and soil bearing capacity change the concrete and steel quantity before any finish is chosen. A basement or raft foundation is a step change, not a percentage.
The widest single band. Tile, sanitary ware, kitchen, joinery, glazing and electrical fittings can double the finishing budget between a modest and a premium specification on the identical structure.
Narrow access, distance from the batching source, dewatering needs, and whether electricity, gas, water and sewerage connections exist at the boundary.
CDA, DHA or the relevant authority's building control, plus completion certificates. Timelines here are outside any contractor's control and should sit in the programme honestly.
Compressed programmes cost more because they need larger crews and overtime. A realistic date is usually cheaper than an optimistic one that slips.
Structure complete, ready for finishes.
For a structure already standing.
One contract, foundation to keys.
Whichever route you choose, the price comes from a bill of quantities against your drawings — measured items, stated rates, stated specification. That is what makes a quotation checkable, and what lets you compare us against another contractor line by line rather than on a single headline number.
Send your drawings for a priced BOQMost residential work in Pakistan is done by unlicensed builders, and for a simple structure that often ends acceptably. The difference shows up when something goes wrong. A Pakistan Engineering Council licence means the company is a registered legal entity with an audited finance function, a documented safety policy, PEC-registered engineers on staff, and a licence that can be suspended — which is to say, something to lose.
Our directors include a founding member qualified in civil engineering with over forty years managing construction contracts, an ICMA-qualified finance director, and a technical director qualified in quantity surveying and Revit architecture, so take-offs and cost estimates are model-based rather than approximate.
There is no honest single answer, because the figure depends on steel and cement prices at the time of construction, your structural design and above all your finishing specification. What we can commit to is a priced bill of quantities against your drawings, with each item measured and each rate stated, so you can see exactly what you are paying for and compare it fairly with another contractor's offer.
A 10 marla plot is 2,250 sq ft at 225 sq ft per marla. A double-storey house on it typically gives roughly 3,600 to 4,200 sq ft of covered area after setbacks, depending on the layout and whether porches, stairs and a servant quarter are counted at full rate. Always confirm how a quotation counts these before comparing rates.
Grey structure means the building is structurally complete and plastered, with conduiting in place, but with no finishes: no flooring, joinery, fittings or paint. Turnkey means we hand you a finished house. Many clients take grey structure from a contractor and then manage finishing themselves; that can save money if you have the time to run it, and cost more if you do not.
For a typical double-storey house in Islamabad, grey structure is usually a matter of months rather than weeks, and turnkey considerably longer once finishing trades are sequenced. We give a programme with the quotation rather than a general estimate, because the honest answer depends on your design, approvals and how quickly finishing selections are made.
We can coordinate with the relevant building control authority and prepare the drawings and documents required, but approval timelines are set by the authority. We put those dates in the programme as a dependency rather than a promise.
Yes. We are enlisted with CDA, DHA Islamabad, Peshawar Development Authority and Communication & Works, and have completed works in Rawalpindi, Peshawar and wider Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Send the drawings, BOQ or a description of the scope. You will get a written response from the people who will actually run the job — usually within 24 hours.
Head office
H #292, Street 59/B, F-10/3, Islamabad, Pakistan
0310 022 2288 ·
0335 413 2288
info@straitcontractors.com