Estimating Home Addition Costs

On deciding that your property would benefit from a home addition, the first step should be to estimate the cost involved to determine whether the project is within your budget. With a little research and a confirmed design, you can effectively estimate the cost of your home addition remodel.

Step 1 – Design

Before you can estimate the cost of your home addition, you must be aware of exactly what you want to achieve. Begin by drawing a floor plan on a large sheet of paper and planning where you intend to place various items by plotting them on the design. This will help you to determine whether your planned use for the addition is feasible as well as establishing which tools necessary and whether there are any structural changes needed to accommodate the design.

If the amount of work required for your home addition is significant, you may need to engage an architect in this regard. Where this is the case, obtain several different quotes to get an idea of the average cost you can expect for such a service.

Step 2 – Area

Once you know what you need, you must make sure that it is possible to carry out the in the zone that your property is located in. If there has been similar work undertaken to neighboring properties, it should not be a problem. You will need to contact the local authority to determine whether you require planning permission and to find out whether there is a sum to be paid to make an application.

Step 3 – Labor

If you intend to undertake the work yourself, you will not need to take the cost of labor into account unless you will lose out on earnings from another source in the process. Where this is the case, consider whether it will be cheaper to engage a contractor to do the job rather than doing it yourself.

Where you have to engage a contractor to do the job, make sure you are fully aware of exactly what you want before obtaining quotes. This will ensure that the contractors are able to provide a comprehensive quote which covers every aspect of the intended project. As well as the cost of labor, find out how they calculate the cost of materials. Where the supply of gas, electricity or water must be extended to the home addition, make sure that the contractor can handle these requirements or whether separate engineers are needed as well as the sums they will charge.

Step 4 – Materials

Whether you intend to complete the project yourself or if you can obtain a better deal than the contractor can provide, it is worthwhile shopping around for the materials required.

If you are creating a home addition that is to be used as a residence rather than for storage, consider all the additional materials that will be required such as windows and skylights if additional light is needed. Do not overlook aspects that make the room more comfortable such as wall insulation.