How much does real wood siding cost?

My dad, who has a house covered in cedar shake, always used to say to me that it’s about double the price of standard (vinyl) siding to replace the wood siding on his house.

I suppose this link supports his observation, depending on the quality of the vinyl siding and what kind of wood you use (cedar is very expensive).

If you’re really serious about purchasing this house be sure to have your Realtor look into all covenants and ordinances about this—because perhaps you can get away with something like a HardiePlank siding that will look like real wood but last much better (and have other positive attributes) instead of wood.

My friend who has a historic home near Cambridge, MA was able to use modern equivalents (e.g. modern materials) that would maintain the “appearance” of the original home—and they found this gave them more options to choose cost-effective materials with excellent insulation capabilities and additionally, had the advantage of being far more “low-maintenance”. (Have you ever painted or sealed a house with wood siding? That is a TON of work. The wood just drinks it up. This is why products like the HardiePlank or Pressboard that look like wood but are far more low-maintenance than wood are worth looking into.)

The biggest cost will be in the routine maintenance required, either staining or scraping and painting.

Ah, historical districts.

A quick Google search shows a 1” x 8” by 8 foot piece of siding going for about $8. This is considerably less up-front than vinyl siding, but with real wood there is the added cost of maintenance.

If you maintain the existing wood correctly, however, it can last ages. I definitely recommend that you have the place inspected for wood-eating insect infestations before placing a bid. Carpenter ants and termites are not your friend.