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40×60 Barndominium Shell Cost in Raleigh, NC (2026)

A 40×60 barndominium shell in Raleigh, NC has a dried-in shell estimate of about $115,185 in 2026 ($47.99 per sq. ft.). Here's the itemized breakdown of materials, site prep and labor, using local crew rates. A 40×60 barndominium shell (2,400 square feet) gives room for a family home or a home plus shop on acreage around the Triangle.

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40×60 ft, 14 ft walls (2,400 sq. ft.)

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What does the $9.99 spec sheet add? ↓

Shell Materials Kit

$49,151

Frame, trusses, steel, windows, doors & spray foam

= Rows 3–8 below, materials only

Slab, Plumbing Sleeves & Site Prep

$20,924

Grading, under-slab plumbing sleeves & reinforced slab

= Rows 1–2 below, installed price

Dried-in Shell Estimate

$115,185

$47.99 per sq. ft.

Dried-in shell built by a local licensed crew

= All rows below, installed price

Prices updated Oct 2026

A fair bid from a local builder in Raleigh, NC should land between $97,907 and $138,222, about 15% below to 20% above this estimate. Quotes for the same building can vary widely, so get 3 quotes on the same spec. If one is outside this range, ask what it includes or leaves out.

Reference wind speed for this area: 115 mph (local building-department figure, not a design value). Wind values here are reference figures for pricing. Confirm the design wind speed with your local building department or engineer.

Estimate only. Actual prices vary. No guarantee or warranty. Use as a guide only. Read the full disclaimer

Itemized cost breakdown

#	Item	Quantity	Materials	Labor	Installed
1	Site grading & building padLaser-leveled pad 2 ft past the walls, compacted fill	2,816 sq ft	$1,250	$1,803	$3,664
2	4" standard concrete slab + plumbing sleeves3,500 PSI ready-mix, #4 rebar 18" grid, vapor barrier, forms	31.7 cu yd	$8,152	$6,231	$17,260
3	6×6 treated posts, girts & framing lumber26 posts × 18 ft (.60 CCA ground-contact), 2×6 girts at 2 ft incl. gable girts, 2×8 treated skirt board	26 posts + 1,496 lf	$7,761	$9,603	$20,837
4	40' engineered roof trusses & purlins31 trusses at 2 ft on center, standard wind allowance, 2×4 purlins at 2 ft (24 rows)	31 trusses + 1,488 lf	$13,280	$5,762	$22,850
5	29-ga metal roof & wall panels + trimPainted steel panels, ridge cap, corner/door/base trim, closures	56.3 squares	$7,542	$3,457	$13,199
6	Doors & windowsDetails in the spec sheet	🔒 Included in $9.99 spec sheet	—	—	🔒
7	Closed-cell spray foam (roof & walls)Details in the spec sheet	🔒 Included in $9.99 spec sheet	—	—	🔒
8	Screws, hardware & condensation barrierDetails in the spec sheet	🔒 Included in $9.99 spec sheet	—	—	🔒
9	Permit, stamped drawings & deliveryDetails in the spec sheet	🔒 Included in $9.99 spec sheet	—	—	🔒
	Dried-in shell estimate		$62,095	$33,893	$115,185

The totals above already include every row, including the 🔒 rows. The $9.99 spec sheet lists them item by item with quantities.

What do these terms mean?

29-ga metal: the steel panel thickness (a lower gauge number is thicker).
.60 CCA posts: treated posts rated to go in the ground.
Purlins and girts: boards across the roof and walls that the metal panels screw into.
PSI: a concrete strength rating.
#4 rebar: ½-inch steel bar laid in a grid inside the concrete.
Vapor barrier: plastic sheeting under the slab that keeps ground moisture out.

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Prices use 2026 material costs and typical local crew rates. Site work, custom options and material price swings can move your final price.

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A sheet for comparing 3 builder bids line by line, and a builder-ready spec so every builder prices the same building.

Every line item on this page, including the 🔒 rows, in an editable Excel file and a PDF (spec, quantity, materials, labor and installed price)
A permit and site-prep checklist
A full itemized takeoff: panel cut lengths, trim, a fastener schedule, lumber counts and concrete yards, with the spacing rule and source for each line

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Planning a 40×60 barndominium shell in the Raleigh area

A 40×60 shell gives 2,400 square feet, room for a family home with a shop. It suits acreage in Franklin County, where farms averaged about 208 acres in 2022, or Johnston County, which had about 964 farms. Rural sites may need a well, septic and a long driveway, so get those priced alongside the shell.

Raleigh averages about 5 inches of snow a year (NOAA 1991–2020). Ask for the roof's snow and wind design in writing and compare it with the ASCE Hazard Tool lookup for your address.
Plan grading so water moves away from the slab.

Raleigh versus the North Carolina statewide estimate

For a 40×60 barndominium shell, the Raleigh estimate runs about 2% above the North Carolina statewide figure (both are estimates; bids set the real price). Raleigh construction and extraction wages averaged about 88% of the U.S. mean in May 2025 (BLS OEWS), and Raleigh goods prices sat near 97% of the U.S. level in 2024 (BEA RPP). That Raleigh area factor applies fully to crew labor and partly to materials; the North Carolina statewide page uses an internal planning allowance instead.

Building in Wake, Johnston and Franklin counties

The Raleigh–Cary metro area is Wake, Johnston and Franklin counties. Wake County had about 1.23 million residents in July 2024, Johnston about 250,000 and Franklin about 80,000. Johnston and Franklin grew fastest, by about 16 percent each since 2020. Within these counties, Raleigh had about 498,000 residents and Cary about 179,000, followed by Apex, Wake Forest, Holly Springs, Fuquay-Varina, Garner and Morrisville.

Wake County authorized about 8,390 new single-unit homes in 2025, and Johnston about 2,630. Farmland remains on the edges. The 2022 Census of Agriculture counted 964 farms in Johnston, 664 in Wake and 518 in Franklin. Franklin averaged about 208 acres per farm, and Franklin and Johnston ranked 5th and 8th in North Carolina for nursery and greenhouse sales.

Raleigh-Durham International Airport averages about 18 January nights at freezing or below and about 19 days at 90°F or hotter in July. Snow is occasional, about 2.6 inches in a normal January. Rain is spread through the year, from about 2.8 inches in February to 5.2 inches in September.

Several mid-sized towns grew much faster than Raleigh's 7 percent and Cary's 4 percent between April 2020 and July 2024: Fuquay-Varina grew about 35 percent, Garner about 25 percent, Clayton about 21 percent and Apex, Wake Forest and Holly Springs about 18 percent each. Johnston County farms were mainly cropland, about 117,100 acres in 2022, and 270 of its farms were 50 to 179 acres.

Raleigh-Durham International Airport averages about 5.2 inches of snow in a normal year, with January the snowiest month. Normal January lows sit just below freezing, about 31.8°F, and the station averages about 65 nights a year at 32°F or colder, spread from October through April.

Local building offices

Contact the office for your address to confirm what applies to your project.

Wake County Permits and Inspections (unincorporated Wake County and some Wake towns)
City of Raleigh Planning and Development – residential permits (the City of Raleigh)

If your address is in another Wake town or in Johnston or Franklin County, contact that town or county.

Statewide reference: NC Office of State Fire Marshal: codes

Site references to look up for your Raleigh address

The Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area (Census CBSA 39580) covers a lot of ground, so look up the exact parcel rather than the city.

ASCE Hazard Tool: wind, snow and other site loads for the Raleigh-area parcel
USDA NRCS Web Soil Survey: the soil map units under your Raleigh site, including shrink-swell ratings
FEMA Flood Map Service Center: the flood zone for your Raleigh address
NOAA Storm Prediction Center: severe-weather background for the Triangle

General planning reference from ASCE, USDA NRCS, FEMA and NOAA, retrieved October 26, 2026. Not a design value. Your engineer, builder and local authority set actual requirements.

Raleigh climate at a glance

Raleigh-Durham International Airport (NOAA station USW00013722) averages 61.2°F over the year, with about 46.07 inches of precipitation, about 5.2 inches of snow, about 52 days at 90°F or hotter and about 65 nights at 32°F or colder.

General planning reference from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, retrieved October 26, 2026. Not a design value. Your engineer, builder and local authority set actual requirements. NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals (1991–2020)

Raleigh month by month

Month	High °F	Low °F	Rain, in	Days ≥0.5 in	Days ≥90°F	Nights ≤32°F	Snow, in
Jan	51.9	31.8	3.4	2.3	0	18	2.6
Feb	55.8	34.2	2.8	1.8	0	13.8	1.4
Mar	63.3	40.3	4.1	3	0	7.8	0.3
Apr	72.7	48.9	3.5	2.4	0.3	1.1	0
May	80	57.7	3.4	2.4	2.8	0	0
Jun	87.4	66	3.9	2.5	12.1	0	0
Jul	90.8	70.2	5	3.5	18.6	0	0
Aug	88.7	68.9	4.7	2.8	13.8	0	0
Sep	82.5	62.7	5.2	3.2	4.5	0	0
Oct	73	50.3	3.4	1.8	0.4	0.7	0
Nov	63	40	3.3	2.4	0	7.8	0.1
Dec	54.7	34.4	3.4	2.3	0	15.4	0.8

Raleigh wettest: Sep (5.2 in). Raleigh driest: Feb (2.8 in). Jun, Jul and Aug: 10+ days at 90°F each. Jan, Feb, Mar, Nov and Dec: 5+ freezing nights each. Jun–Sep deliver 18.8 of Raleigh's 46.1 inches (41%). Raleigh lows bottom out near 31.8°F in Jan; highs peak near 90.8°F in Jul. Roughly 12 Raleigh days a year bring 1 inch or more. For snow load, check your parcel in the ASCE Hazard Tool.

NOAA normals, USW00013722, Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

Counties, cities and towns in the Raleigh metro area

The Raleigh-Cary, NC metro area had about 1,562,009 residents in July 2024, across 3 counties. The price on this page is one figure for the whole metro area, so use the calculator if your site is far from the core.

Raleigh places (29 incorporated, July 2024 residents within these counties): Raleigh 498,179 (+6.8%); Cary 178,637 (+4.4%); Apex 75,946 (+18.1%); Wake Forest 56,764 (+18.2%); Holly Springs 48,674 (+18%); Fuquay-Varina 46,317 (+35.2%); Garner 39,345 (+25.4%); Morrisville 32,380 (+9.5%); Clayton 31,732 (+20.6%); Knightdale 21,829 (+12.1%); Wendell 16,845 (+71.2%); Smithfield 12,806 (+13.3%); 17 more.

County	2024 pop.	Since 2020	1-unit homes authorized, 2025	Farms, 2022	Avg. farm acres
Wake County, NC	1,232,444	+9.1%	8,392	664	94
Johnston County, NC	249,794	+15.6%	2,633	964	181
Franklin County, NC	79,771	+16.2%	735	518	208

Raleigh counties authorized 11,760 single-unit homes in 2025, led by Wake County (8,392) and Johnston County (2,633). Franklin County grew fastest from April 2020 to July 2024 (+16.2%); the lowest was Wake County (+9.1%). Among Raleigh towns of 1,000+ people, Wendell grew fastest (9,837 to 16,845, +71.2%). The 2022 farm census counted 2,146 farms in Raleigh's 3 counties; 1,187 of them (55%) had under 50 acres, and Johnston County had the most (964, averaging 181 acres). By use, Raleigh farmland broke down as 196,782 acres of cropland, 28,010 of pasture and 92,697 of woodland, so cropland led.

Census city and town estimates; Census Building Permits Survey; USDA NASS county profiles; Census county estimates. Retrieved October 26, 2026.

Material suppliers near Raleigh

Listed for reference, not an endorsement.

Mueller – Raleigh: metal roofing and building panels
Mid-Atlantic Roofing Supply – Raleigh: building products
Raleigh Roofing Supply: building products (New Market Way, Raleigh, per its website)
SRS Building Products – Raleigh: building products

Office and supplier links checked October 26, 2026.

Common questions

How much does a 40×60 Barndominium Shell cost in Raleigh, NC?

About $115,185 for a dried-in shell (structure, roof, walls and doors), built by a local crew. Interior finish, utilities and site work are not included. Roughly $49,151 for the materials kit alone. Most fair bids land between $97,907 and $138,222.

What drives the price up or down?

Site prep (slope, soil, driveway access), floor choice, doors and insulation, and local labor rates. Lumber and steel prices also move a few percent a year.

Do I need a permit?

Permit requirements vary by county and city. Check with your county or city building office before you build.

How do I make sure I'm getting a fair quote?

Get at least 3 itemized bids for the same spec. Compare them line by line against this breakdown and ask about anything far above or below it.

Is a 40×60 barndo shell near Raleigh a good size for a family?

At 2,400 square feet it can fit three or four bedrooms, or a smaller home plus a garage. The shell price here doesn't include interior finish.

Where can I buy barndominium steel near Raleigh?

Mueller's Raleigh store, Mid-Atlantic Roofing Supply's Raleigh branch, Raleigh Roofing Supply and SRS Building Products in Raleigh are listed below for reference, not as an endorsement. Ask each for the same panel and trim list.