While we love all of our projects, both big and small, one of our favorite undertakings is an addition. We love to dig in deep and transform a home from a good place to live a great place, perfectly specific to the family in residence.
Yet, sometimes an addition or a large-scale remodel can seem like a daunting task. To get started, begin by developing your wish list for the added space. Consider the problem that you are looking to solve and the objectives that you hope to achieve. Do you find that 
you are still trying to wrap your arms around too much? Triage your objectives, ranking them from most important to least important. Once you get an idea of what you are hoping to accomplish, you can sit down with your contractor to determine the specifications of your project. As you move forward with your addition planning, consider the following:
• Ground Floor Expansions: With an aging population, the trend right now is towards ground floor expansions whenever possible. Whether you hope to live in your house well into your seniority (and thus, want to avoid excess stairs in future years) or plan to sell it in the near future, you can never go wrong with added space on the ground floor.
• Don’t Forget Your Property Lines: Most home additions will likely change the shape of, not only your home, but also your yard. If you have a large yard this may be less of an issue. However, if your home sits on a smaller lot, be sure to verify property lines and any building restrictions. For example, most cities have setback restrictions that govern how close a structure can be built to property lines, height restrictions, building area ratios, design covenants, and historic-district preservation ordinances.
• Plan Your Materials: In a perfect world, we would be able to easily purchase the same siding that we had used on our house when it was originally built 15 years ago and, as such, create a seamless aesthetic. In actuality this is rarely the case. Consider what materials you will use to ensure that your addition looks like a well-thought out expansion, as opposed to a hurried afterthought. If materials are not available to match your home’s current aesthetic, choose harmonious alternatives – for example, a siding of a similar patina and tone, but with a slightly different texture.
Are you ready to begin a home addition? We are excited to tackle your project of any size! Contact us today to get started.
