From: Ignoramus18484
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house alt.home.repair
Subject: Re: Adding one more floor to the house? Possible????
Date: 25 Feb 2004 17:19:01 GMT
In article , AJScott wrote:
> In article ,
> Ignoramus18484 wrote:
>
>> In article , AJScott
>> wrote:
>> > In article ,
>> > Ignoramus18484 wrote:
>> >
>> >> Some pictures of my house are at:
>> >>
>> >> http://igor.chudov.com/misc/house/cascade/
>> >>
>> >> This is actually a three story house. The third floor is basically one
>> >> nice big bedroom, plus a shower, a bat, and toilet. 5 bedrooms, 4.1
>> >> bathrooms. 3400 square feet above ground plus basement.
>> >>
>> >> The wall studs are 2x4s spaced 16 inch apart.
>> >>
>> >> What I am thinking is
>> >>
>> >> 1. expanding second floor to continue over the garage and
>> >> 2. making this third floor the same dimensions as the whole house,
>> >> instead of it being one big room it would be much bigger, same size as
>> >> first and second floor.
>> >>
>> >> My questions are:
>> >>
>> >> 1. Is this feasible architecturally/structurally?
>> >>
>> >> 2. How much such a thing could cost (some top limit).
>> >>
>> >> 3. Am I likely to get a permit for it?
>> >>
>> >> 4. Is this so crazy that I should give up even thinking about it?
>> >>
>> >> 5. How much value would be added to the house, compared to the amount
>> >> spent, given that the house is in a nice neighborhood comprised of
>> >> nice but not excessive 4 bedroom homes.
>> >>
>> >> Thanks!
>> >>
>> >>
>> > I'm not in the trades, so I'll leave questions 1-3. But I am a homeowner
>> > (and one considering a major expansion as well), so I'll give my take on
>> > 4-5.
>> >
>> > Is it crazy? Not if you really need the space. You house *looks* pretty
>> > castle-esque from the outside, but people don't live on the outside, and
>> > photos can be deceiving. If you're just wanting to expand for the sake
>> > of expanding, it just means you have too much money ;)
>>
>> The reason why I am thinking about it, is that I want to put a library
>> and a nice study there. Your comment about money is applicable, but it
>> is applicable to most home improvement projects to some extent.
>>
>> Is there "not enough space" in the house? This is like asking if I
>> have enough guns. Of course the answer is no, but quite frankly, there
>> is plenty of space for normal living.
>>
>> > I think "value" is something that people who want to expand wrestle
>> > with all the time, but it's kind of hard to answer in one specific
>> > way because "value" means different things to the people who live
>> > there, to the banks, to the resale buyers, and to what the local
>> > market will bear.
>>
>> There are enough buyers of expensive homes, as such. But, perhaps,
>> these buyers are only interested in buying expensive homes when they
>> are surrounded by other expensive homes. Or, perhaps, buyers of
>> expensive homes are interested in buying "flatter" big homes rather
>> than "taller" big homes.
>>
>> > Even major expansions that would be outlandish and
>> > foolish in one neighborhood would make total sense in the
>> > neighborhood right next to it.
>>
>> good point.
>>
>> > The final authority would be the bank
>> > because they're pretty sensitive to the cost/value equation
>> > involved, but other than that, I think the answer lies more in
>> > whether you'd be expanding to bring your home more in line with the
>> > others in the neighborhood (i.e. making a 3BR into a 4BR in a hood
>> > with 4BRs), or expanding to give your place more bang for a
>> > *reasonable* more buck -- in other words, raising its value without
>> > making it *too* valuable and so inconsistent with the neighborhood
>> > that it'll end up being something of a white elephant.
>>
>>
>> it's definitely going to be out of line with neighborhood home values,
>> although like I said, this is a very nice neighborhood.
>>
>> > Kings don't live with the middle class, and the middle class can't
>> > afford to live with kings. Likewise, if you're going to be doing
>> > something with all that space that has some broad appeal that no
>> > other houses in the neighborhood offer (i.e. in-law suite, etc.),
>>
>> Well, I want to build a library and a study there.
>>
>> > If you know with 100% certainty that you'll never move and have cash on
>> > hand to finance pretty much all of the expansion, "value" becomes a moot
>> > point. You're doing it just for you, and if you're going to die there,
>> > then it's not all that crazy. But just remember -- when you're 90 years
>> > old, you'll still be dusting and vacuuming all that empty space that
>> > used to be filled with kids and their stuff.
>>
>> My desire is to never move and never sell, and if I am to do this,
>> I would pay for it out of pocket, if and when I have enough money to
>> be allocated for it. That said, obviously, life is unpredictable and
>> there is a possibility that one day we may want to sell the house.
>>
>> i
>
> Well, libraries and studies *are* pretty popular among the high-falutin'
> folk, LOL
>
> You didn't mention whether you have kids or your age in either post, and
> I think this might have some influence on it, because expanding for a
> library/study makes more sense -- or less sense -- depending on where
> you are in your life now and where you figure you'll be when the day
> comes to do all this with cash on the barrelhead.
I have one 2.5 year old.
> If you have kids and they're pretty young (anklebiter to pre-teen) and
> you're pretty young yourself (20s-30s), then doing it makes more sense
> because the house will be pretty full for a good while yet. If you're in
> your early 40s with young 'un kids like that, it might even make sense
> to do it now with a bank loan instead of waiting until you get the cash
> because, well, AARP membership and the grim reaper is kinda right around
> the corner, old chap. Enjoy it now while you can get the most enjoyment
> out of it. But if the kids are teenagers, they'll (hopefully) be out of
> the house within 5-10 years -- in which case you can eliminate the whole
> "value" concern by converting one of their rooms into your study/library
> when the first one flies the nest. Makes for a convenient excuse for
> them not to come back, too ;)
>
> Another tidbit for thought: Just because your neighborhood is nice now
> doesn't necessarily mean it will always be in your lifetime. The
> country's seen some of the finest neighborhoods go from longtime jewel
> to shit in as little as 10 years. And I don't necessarily mean the
> buildings going to seed, altho that's often the case. There's plenty of
> riff-raff able to afford nice houses (or move in with parents able to
> afford nice houses), and landfills don't always end up next to ghettos.
>
> AJS
That's quite sensible.
i
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