My neighbors were planning to put their 1975 sq. foot home on the market as it has become a bit tight for their family of five. With two teens in the house, space is at a premium and everyone wants and needs their personal living area.

These days, my neighbors are no longer looking to move, choosing to upgrade their current home by adding a family room. Although the project will cost them just over $30,000, they’ll save on moving, closing, and new financing costs, expenditures they would have had to contend with even if they had moved across town.

Tens of thousands of people will be adding on to their homes this Spring and Summer, choosing to stay put rather than putting up with the hassle of a move and having to familiarize themselves all over again with a new house, different neighborhood, perhaps even a completely different school system.

Most of the cost of adding on to a home can be recouped when you sell it. Over a long period of time that new family room can increase the value of your home significantly, paying you a nice dividend when you choose to downsize.

Before you begin your family room project, there are some things for you to consider:

• Is the property level where the room will be placed. If not, you may have to pay significantly extra to regrade the area where the room will built. Something to think about: If located on a slope, you could gain some valuable storage space underneath via the exposed room.

• Will adding a family room mean that changes will have to done to the adjoining part of the house? Some family rooms are designed to be virtually self contained, while others are more of an extension of the current home.

• How large of a room will you need? Will your new room be in proportion to the rest of the house or will it be a significant add-on?

• Will the roofing materials, exterior siding, interior walls, doors and windows match the rest of the house?

• Can solar panels or skylights be added? This can be a good time to create a highly energy efficient room, particularly helpful in light of today’s high energy costs.

The Construction Process

Will you be hiring a general contractor or overseeing construction yourself? Whether you are doing the work yourself, outsourcing it completely or doing a combination of the two, you will need to find people who can:

• Provide demolition services.

• Grade the property, if needed.

• Pour the foundation.

• Put up the framing, roofing, and walls.

• Install windows and doors.

• Run electricity, plumbing, and heating/air-conditioning.

• Install the ceiling.

• Build shelves, a fireplace, install flooring.

• Install light fixtures.

• Paint or wallpaper the room.

Familiarizing yourself with your town’s building code as getting all of the necessary permits is important. Making sure that your contractors are licensed and insured is also critical.

Finally, consider hiring an interior designer who can help you create a room that maximizes its livability and is enjoyable. Use the designer before construction begins to include ideas which should become part of the final blueprint. Have this person return when construction is done to help you lay out furniture, hang pictures, and add those personal touches to maximize the benefit of your new space.

A family room project can be completed within 2-3 months time, from developing the plans to move in. Pick the time of the year when disruption can be minimized and be prepared to enjoy your expanded quarters when the project is done!

Resources

Planning Your Home Expansion Project

All About Spec Planning

Home Equity Lending

Review House Plans

Tags: family room, home addition, home building, Home Construction, home loan

This article is part of our ongoing home construction specification plan series.

Assembling a Home Construction Specification Plan — Spec Plan Q: Other Amenities

What is it that makes a house, truly a home? Some would say the people who live there. Others would include the neighborhood where it is located, while some may say it is a bit of both with the owner’s personal touches included.

Now that your home’s major construction projects are completed, what sort of amenities did you have built into your home’s construction? Most popular with homeowners today are the following:

Entranceway — The first impression anyone has when entering a home is what they see is your entranceway. A unique door knocker, custom door with arch or radial top, door chimes, trim and light fixtures can go a long way to giving your home a unique, inviting look.

Foyer — Once inside your home, presenting an elegant or refined look can be achieved in the foyer. A sweeping staircase to the second floor, a special window, french doors leading to the living quarters, or a chandelier are some of the attractive options for this part of the house.

Fireplaces — Even in a warmer climate, a fireplace can make for a nice touch particularly on cold mornings or when the weather is especially damp. No need to mess with wood anymore as gas units are all the rage and offer a minimum amount of maintenance. Consider a wood or gas stove as an optional way to provide heat, a special look for a den, living room or family area.

Services Utilities Room — Many homes expand the idea of a laundry room to include other features such as the home’s utility box. With online activity a crucial part of today’s lifestyles, having a home wired accordingly is essential. A services utilities room can act as the nerve center for all of the home’s electrical needs.

Many of the smaller projects not dependent on the home’s construction schedule can be handled after you move in. Once you get a feel for your new residence, you’ll be planning your next round of projects in short order!

Tags: entranceway, foyer, home building, Home Construction, Home Improvement, lighting, stairways

This article is part of our ongoing home construction specification plan series.

Assembling a Home Construction Specification Plan — Spec Plan P: Home Lighting

Some of the final touches you will want to handle in your new home can wait until after you move in, but chances are that you’ll want to have all of your lighting needs completed before then. Chandeliers need to be ordered and installed, track lighting put in its place, ceiling fans chosen and corresponding lighting selected, sconces, overhead lighting, even exterior lighting put in place. It is so much easier to do these jobs before the furniture arrives and the home is occupied.

Finding the right balance of lighting without padding your electric bill every month can be a challenge, but we’ve identified some ways you can light your home without burning your budget:

• Your kitchen is one of the central areas of your home, so plan on providing sufficient lighting for your guests. That big overheard light can cover the entire room, but you’ll want to consider undercounter lighting for areas where you prepare food and provide separate lighting above the sink. If you have a food preparation island in the middle of your kitchen, you may find having track lighting over that area to be the best way to get light.

• Bathroom lighting typically includes one overhead light with a light over the shower/bath and sconces on either side of the vanity’s mirror. Investigate the different types of lighting for your bathrooms by visiting a home decor center to mix and match your lighting with your bath’s style.

• Family rooms and living rooms are great places to install ceiling fans with a light included. However, most of your lighting can come from floor and table lamps as well as strategically placed track lighting, particularly if book shelves or display items are featured.

• Your dining room needs just one type of light, a chandelier which can be as simple or ornate as your home decor tastes. For larger, darker dining rooms track lighting above a buffet or china closet can be an attractive option, even consider an elegant floor lamp to light the room when the chandelier is off.

• Bedrooms usually have one overhead light with many homeowners choosing a ceiling fan with a light placed directly over the bed. A dimmer switch and remote control pad are nice additions especially when you don’t want to get out of bed to turn off lights or slow down the fan. Floor lamps and table lamps are a nice touches, allowing you to control the amount of lighting you want at any moment.

• Workshops, garages, utlility rooms, closests, attics and basements have their own special lighting needs from a simple wall fixture all the way to ballasts with fluorescent bulbs. Provide adequate lighting especially in those areas where you plan on spending the most time as well as enough lighting to safely help you and your family walk down hallways, move up and down stairways, and to find what you need in dark recesses.

• Outside lighting should provide both visual enhancement to your home and safety and security for you and your loved ones. Security lighting, if not already installed can be strategically placed around the home with driveway, walkway, and landscape lighting providing the right amount of illumination.

Finally, you can save on electricity by installing timers, dimmers, even room sensors that turn lights on and off as you move through the house. Select bulbs with the wattage you need and consider light emitting diode (LED) or compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFL) as ways to use less energy while getting bulbs that will last much longer. Please note that the disposal of CFLs can be tricky as they do contain a highly toxic substance — mercury.

Tags: home building, home building plans, Home Construction, home construction specs, home lighting, lighting