Answers
Additions and conversions
Adding space rather than moving: additions, accessory dwellings, garage conversions and what a load-bearing wall really costs.
7 questions
- Is an addition cheaper than moving?Sometimes, and the break-even is about your lot and your current house more than the build cost. Additions cost more per square foot than new construction, because you are tying into an existing structure, matching a roof line and often upgrading the panel and the HVAC.Read the answer
- Can I put an ADU in my backyard?Zoning answers this, not the internet. Call your county or city planning desk with your parcel ID and ask three things: is an accessory dwelling unit permitted in this district, what is the maximum size and setback, and is separate utility metering allowed or required.Read the answer
- Will converting the garage hurt resale?Usually yes, in a market where everyone else has a garage, and Central Florida is one of those. Appraisers will credit the square footage if the work was permitted and properly conditioned, but buyers still deduct for the missing garage.Read the answer
- Can my house take a second story?Possibly, and a structural engineer answers it, not a contractor and certainly not a salesman. The three questions are whether the foundation and footings can carry the load, whether the existing walls can, and whether lot coverage and height limits allow it.Read the answer
- How do I know if this wall is load-bearing?There are clues, and then there is an engineer. It is probably bearing if it runs perpendicular to the joists above, sits over a beam or a foundation wall, is near the centre of the house, or continues on the floor above. Clues are not a permit.Read the answer
- Is adding a primary suite worth it?It is one of the better additions for resale, but only up to your neighbourhood ceiling. Going from three-bed one-bath to three-bed two-bath is the highest-return change in most older stock; a grander primary in a modest street returns very little.Read the answer
- Planning an in-law suite - what do we get wrong?Three, usually: accessibility designed in too late or not at all, sound ignored, and the kitchen question — a second full kitchen is often what turns a suite into a legal second dwelling with different rules. A wet bar and a fridge gets most of the function with none of the fight.Read the answer