Anyone renovated recently?

amother

Mon, May 01 2023, 10:15 am

I'm looking to move out for a few months of my single floor house and redo the entire floor plus extend the first floor/ exterior of house.
I want to renovate the existing 1,000 sq ft and extend an additional 1,000 sq ft.
In total it's 2,000 sq ft. of renovations/construction.
1.Any clue approximately how much this would cost me? I wouldn't do it the cheapest way neither too expensive. Somewhere in the middle.
2.To submit permits to extend, do I need a full ready floor plan including layout, plumbing etc? Or can I ask to extend 1,000 sq ft and once approved start working on the plans?
Thank you all!

amother

Pearl

Mon, May 01 2023, 11:16 am

You can find out basic zoning for your land which would provide basic information regarding what is permitted. This is very general as most zoning laws have general rules about how much space can be occupied - how close you can be to neighbors - how high you can build etc.

The next step would be to hire an architect to create the space you want. This is necessary because an architect will provide you with the best design that fills your needs - it is a collaboration. That would also be familiar with what is permitted under Code so that the plumbing, electrical, foundation etc. are all up to Code.

You can not get a permit to proceed until you submit very detailed plans which show exactly what is being built; what materials are being used and so forth. You would need these types of plans to get a real bid from a GC anyway

amother

Mon, May 01 2023, 11:25 am

thank you everyone for your replies and help!!

amother Pearl wrote:

thanks so much for typing this up. I'm a real novice to this field..

amother

Pearl

Mon, May 01 2023, 11:33 am

amother OP wrote:

thank you everyone for your replies and help!!

thanks so much for typing this up. I'm a real novice to this field..

Be prepared for sticker shock even if you *think* you are prepared for sticker shock.

In general doing an addition is much more expensive than buying a pre-existing home as the cost per square footage of an addition is more than a new build. So you should look around to see if there is a pre-existing home that meets your needs for space and just move.

You also save yourself the aggravation of construction which is highly stressful and you would might also find it impossible or almost impossible to live in your home while major construction is taking place.

Even remodeling a kitchen or bathroom is extremely expensive if you have never priced it out. The typical "standard" kitchen remodel for a not particularly large kitchen would be about $40,000 with standard types of finishes. Bathrooms are equally expensive because the labor needed is skilled and expensive - plumbing and electrical work is expensive.

You can also run into issues in terms of utility upgrades needed. My friend did a remodel and she was required to upgrade the electrical system and so it cost her $15,000 for a better connection to be run from the utility in the street to her home. When I remodeled, I had to spend $5000 on a new electrical panel because Code required that every major appliance have its own circuit and my original panel didn't have enough high voltage circuits - I.e. the ones that are used for ovens, cooktops, refrigerators, dishwashers, A/C etc.

amother

Fern

Mon, May 01 2023, 11:41 am

amother OP wrote:

humph. I don't want to waste money and time making a floor plan before knowing if extending is even allowed?

The architect generally knows if it'll be a problem or not. You'd need to use a good architect.
I'm in the UK, and just extended to almost 3000 square feet. We're at the tail end now, it's been both a super stressful, but also exciting year!
Best of luck.

amother

Fern

Mon, May 01 2023, 11:44 am

amother Pearl wrote:

What's sticker shock?
We lived in our house whilst had huge building works, it was a nightmare. I don't recommend it, but I'm still glad we stuck with it.
The old part of our house, the main living room was barely touched, same with 2 bedrooms so we lived in those rooms. Now I feel like we have a mansion! LOL

amother

Pearl

Mon, May 01 2023, 11:48 am

amother Fern wrote:

Sticker shock is how expensive everything is and how much stuff you need that you didn’t realize was necessary.

And prices for labor and materials has increased substantially in the past few years

amother

Fern

Mon, May 01 2023, 12:11 pm

amother Pearl wrote:

Sticker shock is how expensive everything is and how much stuff you need that you didn’t realize was necessary.

And prices for labor and materials has increased substantially in the past few years

Oh I get it. Yes it's been very stressful to say the least. We had to borrow more than we were expecting to.

amother

Mon, May 01 2023, 1:11 pm

amother Pearl wrote:

Thanks so so much for your time!
Regarding moving, I'd remodel over moving since my parents live on the same block. And I really like my neighbors. Also my work is literally around the corner.

I am planning to rent an apartment for the duration of construction.

amother

Pearl

Mon, May 01 2023, 1:20 pm

amother OP wrote:

Well then you have a reason for wanting to spend to modify your existing home since your location is worth the premium expense to remodel.