Buying an smaller house and adding an addition?

Question

We are in the middle of searching for a new house to buy, but we are having a hard time finding anything that meets our needs. It seems anything that has the land we want in the location we want, has only 2 bedrooms. Should we consider buying a smaller home and doing an addition? Does anyone have experience in this? Is it worth it and do you have any advice?

Answer 1

Do you need 3 bedrooms right now? If yes then don't plan to buy and add! It will cost more and take longer than you plan.

If you can do with 2 bedrooms for now then make sure the house you purchase has a perfect place to add on. What I mean is to save money you want to look for a home that has an exterior door in a location that you could use for a door into a new room, or a hallway that ends on an exterior wall so you could add a room and just open the end of the hallway. If you remodel and change the footprint of the existing home it will cost you more and will leave you without use of that space while the work is going on.

I have a 100 year old home and we added a laundry room and bathroom where a back porch was located. It worked great for us because we still had use of our house while the work was going on.

Also make your plan and have everything planned out before you go to the contractor. Also ask for references and go visit a couple of them if possible. Then have the contractor give you a fixed price and time it will take to complete. Then consider offering a bonus in the contract if the addition is completed on time. And never forget "It will take longer, and cost more"

Answer 2

So long as your extension doesn't go beyond the properties max value you will be ok. The cost of an extension generally increases the value of the property by that amount. (so a £30,000 build cost should increase the value of the house by appro £30,000) If your extension is extensive and takes your value beyond its max worth IE if your property is a 3 bed and comparatively priced properties on the market are 4 beds then it goes without saying you can't compete. If you plan to extend and stay there for around 5 years then the increase in value of the property will have encompassed any deficit. Generally it is fine to extend, just not over extend.

Answer 3

We had the same dilemma when looking for our house last year, and we weighed our options...do we want to keep looking for maybe a lot longer to find something we can just move into and be done, or do we want to deal with the hassle of moving into a house and then putting up with the months of construction and extra costs and annoyances?
It really depends if you guys are the kind of people who like projects and stuff like that, and are prepared for unforeseen costs and problems...if not, take your time and find the perfect house that is ready-to-go.

Answer 4

So many anaologies and old sayings might apply in your case.

"A mans home is his castle." "Less is more" etc.

My personal opinion, after years of experience is,,, Space and Distance, from any neighbor, is where the true value exists in any house I inhabit. Consider that in areas most attractive to many, there are zero lot lines, multiple family dwellings, and congestion in general.

While that may work for many, it isn't my idea of a sanctuary.

The situation for you depends in large measure on what you want, what you need in the immediate sense, your budget, what length of time you plan in occupying your next dwelling, skills perhaps, in DIY, compromising some things for certain others,,, etc. etc. etc.

I can create a dream in 1000 sq. ft. of living space, as easily as I can in 10,000 sq. ft. of a dwelling I may only use 1000 sq. ft. of.

The substance and construction are another issue, as are things like climate, taxes, value if you plan this as a resale, etc.

I've read the answers prior to mine and find some valid points. No one here can truly suggest right, or wrong. We have our own preferences.

I suggest that you find what seems to most suit you, in the immediate sense, and consider a plan,,, if you feel it valid,,, that allows expansions.

In my "space" for example,,, where I spend a majority of my time, may not be any larger than 100 sq. ft. Certainly I want to be able to move about without having to walk sideways, but in the Universal scheme, I'll still only inhabit portions of any dwelling, at any given time. A bedroom for example, need not be any larger than what accomodates a bed,and furniture perhaps to store clothing in,,, BUT,,, most often the use of a bedroom takes place while we're asleep,,, and our subconcious, dream like state has no spacial or design issues.

You can THINK Large, even in the smallest of spaces... I'll give you one more example then let you choose all the suggestions that FIT you.

When I left the farm,,, 100 acres worth, at 17 years of age, I went to NYU, in NYC, and remained there for 6 years, in a 400 sq. ft. apartment,,, in a basement. It was more than adequate,,,but besides that, I had the entire city, just outside my door. Similarly at one point I owned a beach house, likely no larger than 1000 sq. ft, but just out my door was the entire Atlantic Ocean.

Rev. Steven

Answer 5

The only advice I would give you is to so a little reserach as to whether you can recoup the $$$ spent on improvements, should you ever decide to sell...I say this because we bought a small home - thinking we could put on an addition - then, afterwards, when we did the research, it wasn't a good idea because if we ever decided to sell, we wouldn't recoup the money...now we are looking for a larger home...good luck!!!

Answer 6

its easier to add on to a house than to add on to the land land will be harder to find houses
are every where if you can find a decent house that you like withl alot of land jump on it and add on a nice master suite