Everyone has an opinion of how much their remodel should cost, and sometimes people base it on the cost per square feet of new construction. Using the square foot method to price an addition is a risky and inaccurate way of pricing an addition. There are many aspects that impact the value of a remodel, such as access to the project. For example, will it be simple to stage the…
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Many times we encounter clients who have an idea of what they want and would like a quick estimate. It is important to clarify that only a very rough estimate can be provided under these circumstances as there are many unknowns at this point. If you really want to compare bids you need to have a set of plans and specifications with finishes selected so that each contractor can bid…
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Did you know that adding a small addition to your home is not necessarily cheaper? Let me tell you why; many of the trades used in construction are going to charge for a minimum amount of work. Subcontractors have fixed costs when setting up a job; the smaller the job the more expensive per square foot. All trades involved have a minimum for their work so it is important to ask your contractor what size addition makes the most sense given your budget.
The most expensive items to add in a house are bathrooms and kitchens. The contractor will give you a budget with allowances of what you can spend on finishes as these will determine your cost. In order to get an accurate estimate, it is important for you to shop around and provide your contractor an average cost of the material you have seen that interests you. This way proper amounts can be included in the budget and there will be no surprises; for example if Jane was thinking she wanted travertine flooring but we quoted only tile flooring the difference in cost can impact the project greatly.
Another cost associated with the addition depending on the size can be air conditioning and electrical. Florida has strict rules about how many tons of ac are needed per square foot to comply with the building costs. Ok so now you need an AC and the question is ‘does your electrical box have capacity for the extra AC unit?’ And so it begins. As you can see there are many variables when adding space to a home. The design, location of the addition, types of rooms and finishes will all play an important part in your budget, just remember try to build as big an addition as you can. It’s like we always say when you buy a pair of shoes a size 8 isn’t more expensive than a size 12 given the fixed costs involved to make the shoes.
