Siding, and an honest account of what each material actually costs

The job under the job

Stripping the old cladding exposes the sheathing, the cavity, and every place water has been getting in. That is the opportunity. Blowing dense-pack insulation into an empty cavity while the wall is open costs a fraction of doing it as a standalone job later, and on a pre-1940 house it is usually the single largest comfort improvement available. Housewrap and proper flashing at windows and doors go on at the same time.

The rot is predictable and worth pricing before it is found. It concentrates at the bottom course where the wall meets the foundation, at the corner boards, and under any window with a failed sill. That work is carpentry, not siding, and it belongs in the quote as an allowance with a unit rate.

Materials, with the trade-offs stated honestly

Vinyl runs 4.50 to 8.00 dollars a square foot installed, lasts 25 to 40 years, and needs nothing done to it. It fades in full southern exposure and it cannot be repainted to fix that. It is rarely approved in a historic district. On a postwar ranch or cape it is a perfectly defensible answer and roughly half the installed cost of fiber cement.

Fiber cement at 9.50 to 16.00 lasts 40 to 60 years and holds paint 12 to 15 years even in coastal exposure, which is where vinyl fades fastest. It is heavy, it needs careful cutting, and the installation quality matters more than with vinyl. If you are staying in the house twenty years, the lifetime cost frequently comes out lower than vinyl despite costing twice as much up front.

Cedar shingle at 11.00 to 19.00 is the regional answer on the coast for good reason. It moves with humidity, weathers to grey rather than failing, and handles salt air better than almost anything. It either gets stained every 5 to 8 years or is left alone to weather, and both are legitimate choices. Cedar clapboard at 10.00 to 17.00 needs repainting every 5 to 8 years, which is a real recurring cost to put in the model.

Engineered wood at 7.50 to 12.50 sits between vinyl and fiber cement, lasts 25 to 35 years, and needs repainting every 8 to 12. It handles coastal exposure less well than either cedar or fiber cement.

Because this is a referral service rather than a contractor with a product line to defend, here is the neutral version: vinyl wins on upfront cost, fiber cement usually wins on lifetime cost if you are staying, cedar wins on coastal durability and appearance, and in a historic district the decision is frequently made for you.

What your housing stock changes

A three-decker carries 2,800 to 4,000 square feet of wall across three stories with narrow side yards, which makes staging a genuine cost driver rather than a detail. A cape carries 1,200 to 1,800 square feet with simple geometry and is the least expensive re-side in this housing stock. A farmhouse with a main block and an ell frequently totals 2,200 to 3,200 and meets a stone foundation on an irregular line that needs a proper water table detail.

On a Victorian, the trim is the house. Brackets, frieze boards, window heads, and shingle courses in the gable are what make it read correctly, and covering them is what makes a re-sided Victorian look wrong. Price it as siding plus trim restoration and expect the trim to be a large share of the labour.

On a colonial, match the existing exposure. A four inch clapboard exposure replaced with a seven inch panel reads wrong from the street even when the material is good.

What drives the price

Wall area first, then material, then the condition of what is underneath, then access. A three-story building with eight feet to the neighbour costs more per square foot to stage than a ranch with open yard on all sides. Trim detail and the number of corners, windows, and doors to work around all add labour that square footage alone does not capture.

Coastal exposure adds roughly 6 percent for upgraded fasteners and materials. Within a mile of open water, stainless fasteners are the specification, not an upgrade.

How long it takes

A cape or a ranch is four to seven working days. A colonial or a farmhouse runs seven to twelve. A three-decker is two to four weeks depending on staging and trim. Add insulation work and allow another one to three days, which is time well spent while the wall is open.

Weather matters more here than on a roof, because the wall is exposed for longer and housewrap left open to driving rain is not doing its job. Most contractors sequence a re-side elevation by elevation for exactly that reason.