Getting Started On A Home Addition (plus 7 home addition ideas)
Do you need more space in your home?
Or is your home missing a critical element, like a master bathroom or spacious garage?
Good news!
Just because you feel your home is lacking something doesn’t mean you are stuck.
If you feel like your home needs a boost, consider adding an addition. Though they can seem like overwhelming projects, additions can pay off big in terms of home enjoyment or resale value.
And at DG Builders, we don’t think home additions need to feel overwhelming at all!
We put together a list of several types of home additions you could add to your house, so you know what your options are.
Ready to go?
Let’s dive right in!
Should You Build An Addition?
First of all, the million dollar question:
Should you build an addition?
After all, a home addition can be a large, expensive, and sometimes stressful project. You don’t want to embark on it without really needing it.
If you are not sure, start asking yourself some questions. Asking yourself questions is one of the best ways to help yourself make a decision.
4 Questions to Ask Before Building an Addition
Here are some questions you can ask yourself when deciding whether or not you need an addition on your home:
- Do I plan to stay in my home long term?
- If I don’t plan to stay in my home long term, how will an addition affect the resale value of my home?
- Do I need more space? If not now, will I need more space in the future, say if I have more kids?
- How much will the particular addition I am thinking of building cost?
These questions can help you decide whether or not it’s worth taking the plunge.
How To Get Started With Your Home Addition
So you conclude that you need a home addition.
What now?
Where do you start?
The thought of actually starting on a big project like an addition fills many people with dismay because they’re not sure what to do.
We won’t say it’s all going to be easy, but getting started is not as hard as some people may think.
Here are the first few steps you have to take to get rolling on your project:
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Explore your space
Take a look at your house and think about where the best place would be to add an addition.
Could you build upwards, adding dormers or even a second story? Could you put a room overtop of your garage? Or would it be better for you to build out and add space to your home horizontally?
Give your home a thorough looking over and work out your options for where an addition could go. If you are unsure, get an expert to help you look.
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Determine your budget
Once you have an idea of what sort of addition you would like and where you would like to put it, start crunching some numbers.
Sit down and figure out how much you can afford to spend on your addition. Take everything into account: materials, contracting costs, permits, cleanup, and architectural services.
Your architect or builder can help you determine a realistic budget if you are unsure. They can also help you get a loan if you need it.
If you would like to get an estimate now, here’s a free addition cost calculator by Home Advisor.
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Hire a contractor
Now, hire a reputable contractor to do the actual building for you. Be sure they are trustworthy and have a good reputation.
A good builder can also help you through other parts of the process, such as designing and obtaining permits and loans.
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Get through the red tape
Sometimes, home additions require a good deal of paperwork, such as permits. You will need to find papers like plans of your property that include property lines and distances from neighbors. You can usually find these papers in your local deed registry.
It’s crucial to have these papers at hand while planning for your addition because additions built over property lines are liable to be torn down or cause legal complications.
Once you get all the necessary paperwork, you are free to build! Get ready to love your new space!
Types Of Home Additions
The point on which most of your decisions hinge is:
What type of addition are you going to build?
This question determines quite a few other things, such as cost, permitting, and how long your addition will take to build.
Let’s take a look at some options, shall we?
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Living room addition
Your living room is an essential part of your home. It’s a place to relax and spend time with the people who matter most - your family and friends.
If you need a larger living room, consider adding an addition! An addition would give you space to host more friends or accommodate a growing family.
If you have a convenient space and budget, you could add a whole new living room to your home, or you could simply extend your old one with a bump out addition.
More on bump out additions later on!
Here are a few other ways you could add on to your living room:
- Knock out a wall and join two smaller rooms
- Enclose a covered patio or deck
- Annex a smaller space such as a closet
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Bedroom addition
If your family is growing, your home may need to grow with it.
Maybe you have another child on the way and need a new nursery. Or maybe you would like the option of hosting friends and family overnight and need a spare room. Either way, another bedroom might be handy to have.
Here are a few ideas for places to put another bedroom:
- Finish an attic. You could even add a dormer if you need more space.
- Enclose a porch or patio.
- Add a room above the garage or covered deck.
- Block off some space in the garage.
- Build a granny flat that’s unattached to the house.
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Bathroom addition
Are you tired of clogged-up bathrooms?
As your family grows, sometimes bathrooms become bottlenecks, especially when you are getting ready to go somewhere! Mom needs to get the kids ready, Dad needs to shave, and teenage daughter takes half an hour on her hair...the bathroom can become a chaos zone.
If this is you, it may be time to add another bathroom!
Luckily, it’s usually easy to find enough space to add a bathroom to your home. You can even repurpose a walk-in closet into a bathroom or carve out some space from a large hallway.
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Master suite addition
If you want to take things a step further, you could install a whole master suite, complete with a bedroom and bathroom! A master suite provides privacy, luxury, and convenience for the masters of the house.
Besides that, adding a master suite can really improve the value of your home!
In fact, according to Home Advisor, a master suite usually brings about a 63% ROI.
When building your master suite addition think about:
- Storage space (Do you want a large walk-in closet somewhere?)
- Privacy (Will the windows look out into the street?)
- Noise levels (Will noisy neighbors or vehicles disturb me?)
- Special needs (Will my countertops and mirrors be at the right height for me?)
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Attached garage addition
Do you need space for another vehicle? Or more storage space for your lawn and garden equipment and other household items?
Build an attached garage, or make your current garage bigger.
As well as being a place to park cars, a garage lets you conveniently store little-used items, landscaping items, tools, and more. It’s also a great place to store sports equipment or holiday decor.
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Sunroom addition
A sunroom is a very attractive addition to a home!
Equipped with big windows to let in natural light, sunrooms are designed purely for your enjoyment and wellbeing. They create a light, summery feel you can enjoy even in the winter months! All the natural light they let in is good for your mental health and can help prevent Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
Sunrooms also provide a pleasant space to relax, enjoy hobbies, or host friends.
Here are some things to think about when planning a sunroom
- What direction will the sunroom face?
- Is there a nice view in my yard I would like to take advantage of?
- Can I build my sunroom off my home somewhere where there is already a doorway?
- Would I like a 3 season or 4 season sunroom?
A nice sunroom adds enjoyment to any home!
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Kitchen addition
The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in your home.
It’s not only a place to cook but a place to gather and fellowship with friends and family.
You want to be sure you love your kitchen! A small, cramped kitchen can be inconvenient, inefficient, and take all the joy out of cooking. Plus, it isn’t a good gathering place.
If your kitchen is less than ideal, consider remodeling and adding an addition.
Here are some ideas
- Move the walls out several feet with a bump out addition.
- Add a window seat to make the room feel more spacious.
- Knock out a wall.
The kitchen is a huge selling point for most potential buyers, so your investment may pay off if you ever want to sell your home. Exactly how much ROI you will get on your kitchen addition depends on variables, but some real estate agents say it could be as much as 60% to 80%.
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Mudroom addition
A mudroom provides a convenient place to store shoes, coats, and backpacks. It also acts as a catch-all for dirt, mud, and snow, keeping the house cleaner.
A mudroom adds value to your home, but it doesn’t stop there. A mudroom protects your other investments and remodels as well by keeping your home clean and protecting your floors and furniture from dirt and debris.
As you can see, a mudroom is a worthwhile investment!
(side-note: Want to know about another good way to add value to your home? Add a patio or deck! Here’s a link to our ultimate guide to composite decking.)
Mudrooms are normally small, so it’s fairly easy to add them on or find a space to block off. You could add build one right onto your house, or you could block off a bit of your garage or hallway to create a mudroom space.
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Home office addition
If you work from home some or all of the time, a home office is a must. A dedicated office space keeps you organized and helps you be more productive, as well as separating your home and work lives.
If you work in your home office full time, you want to make sure it’s a space you love! It may be better to shell out the money and put an addition on your house than trying to cram an office into a basement corner or old closet.
When creating a home office ask yourself:
- What about lighting? Lots of natural lighting is ideal for home offices.
- How cramped a space can I deal with? You don’t want it to feel too cluttered or cramped if you need to work there every day.
- What about noise levels? Will my children play loudly right outside my door?
There’s more you should think about, but that will get you started.
Here’s an article we found on designing a productive home office.
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Dormer addition
A dormer addition not only adds some extra space to your upstairs but also gives the exterior of your house a facelift. It’s a relatively cheap and easy way to refresh the aesthetics of your home!
Dormers are a smaller addition project, and low-key window dormers are affordable for most people. That said, you can also go all out with dormer additions, even creating full rooms!
Besides being cute and maximizing space, dormers also provide:
- Extra light in your upstairs room or attic
- Ventilation
- An escape in the case of a house fire
- A nice view
A dormer addition would be a good choice if you need more space but don’t have a large property, as they don’t make the footprint of your house any larger.
Need inspiration?
Here are some different types of dormers you could build.
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Bump out addition
Just need to add several feet onto a room, maybe to accommodate an appliance, or make a room feel larger?
A bump out addition is a small addition that adds some square footage to your house but isn’t on the scale of an entire room addition. Essentially you just bump the walls out a few feet.
Bump outs are often used in bathrooms or kitchens to accommodate appliances like tubs, stoves, or washer and dryer sets. A window seat is considered a bump out addition as well.
If you need more space but are on a tight budget, a bump out addition is the perfect compromise! It adds a few feet of space but doesn’t break your bank account.
Also, sometimes you can unlock valuable space just by opening up closets. For example, maybe your bedroom closet is behind your living room wall. You could add two or three feet to your living room by knocking out a wall and annexing that closet space into your living room.
Don’t overlook small spaces such as this in your home!
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Second story addition
Ready for a large project?
If you need a lot of space, you could rip off your roof and add a second story to your house.
This seems drastic, but there are situations in which it makes sense. For example, what if you need a lot more space but want to stay in the same neighborhood - maybe you live in a particular setting you won’t find anywhere else. Or what if you don’t have outdoor space to build out? In these cases, a total home makeover makes sense. In some cases, it may even save you money.
Adding a second story is going to be a big project, though. Be prepared to hire an expert to help you with planning and building!
Conclusion
Is your home missing something? Or getting too small for your growing family? Maybe it just needs a facelift.
You aren’t stuck with it! And you don’t need to start house shopping.
Consider adding some type of addition to your home.
From cute little dormers to whole second stories, an addition could really spruce up your house!
Ready to get started?
Give us a call at DG Builders!
We build living room, bedroom, bathroom, master suite, and garage additions.
We also build:
We make it easy to work with us:
- Call us
- Schedule a consultation
- Sit back while we install your addition
And then love your new space!
Give us a call today! We look forward to hearing from you.