Whether you’re in your very first home and it’s a fixer upper, or if you’re in your forever home enjoying your golden years, there are many reasons why homeowners want to build home additions. Home additions offer extra space, and improve your floor plan and curb-appeal, oftentimes increasing the value of your home. It’s a great way to avoid the hassle of selling and buying a new home - especially if you love your current layout. However, this type of home improvement is a large-scale home renovation, and it’s important that before you dive in, you know what you’re getting into. Today we’re going to be talking about everything you need to know BEFORE you start a home addition.
1. Plan way in advance
Building a home addition in Arizona can be a lengthy process, which many times involves re-routing utilities, getting permits from your local city, drawing up plans with architects and more. Don’t underestimate the time needed to complete a home addition. You can expect the process to take about 6 months for one room addition on average. If you’re looking to start building, reach out to your contractor as soon as possible to get the process started. They will be able to guide you and give you a closer estimate on the scope of time needed for completion.
2. Talk to your realtor
This is another important step in the process because it helps you keep the budget in mind. The average cost for a one room home addition can be close to $30,000. However, it’s easy to spend way beyond that depending on the materials and finishes you select. You’ll want to consult with your realtor to do a cost/ value analysis. Your realtor should be able to tell you what the value of your home will be with the added square footage. Use this amount to help you stay on track of your budget and not overspend on the addition. In many cases, the value added to your property outweighs the cost significantly, making this type of home improvement a sound investment.
3. Plan for unforeseen expenses
Whenever you tear down walls and get into a major renovation such as building a new room in your home, it’s always wise to budget for more than you expect. Sometimes electrical wiring needs to be brought up to code. Sometimes you run into plumbing issues or foundation cracks that need resolving. There’s no real way to predict some of these problems until you actually start construction. For that reason, we recommend budgeting for about an extra 7% to go toward unforeseen expenses.
4. Be flexible
Flexibility is key during any home remodel! We know it can be frustrating to have a construction crew at your home during the day. Many homeowners dread remodeling for this reason. However, the nice thing about building an addition, is that the construction crew will not be taking up any space that’s utilized by you in your home. They aren’t touching any existing space whether it’s a mother in law suite or casita, or a detached RV garage, they’re simply adding a new space! This gives you the freedom to move about your home and avoid some of the hassles of remodeling.
5. Hire the right contractor for the job
This is by far the most important tip! Basically, when it comes to constructing a new part of your home from the ground up, you get what you pay for. This is certainly one of those projects where being ‘cheap’ can actually be very expensive in the end - especially if your contractor isn’t qualified to perform the job. Don’t hire a handyman or inexperienced company to build your home addition or you may cause yourself a huge headache in the long run. When vetting companies, be sure to ask the following questions?
- ● Will this addition need to be permitted? If so, do you take care of drafting plans and filing with the city, or am I responsible for that?
- ● What is your experience with home additions? Have you ever done this type of renovation before?
- ● Do you use subcontractors to perform the work, or is this all done in-house?
- ● Will I get a project manager to oversee the work?
- ● Are you licensed, bonded and insured?
If you don’t get legitimate answers to these questions, we cannot stress this enough…run!
We hope you found this week’s blog useful and exciting! Doing a home addition often gives you beautiful results that yield additional home value and overall comfort of living. You can avoid the stress of packing up and moving to a new location, and simply add on to the home you already
love! If you’re considering a home addition in the Phoenix-metro area, we’d love to set up a home consultation with you. Just give us a call at 623 582 4477 to schedule your estimate today.
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