8 Tips for Expanding Your Home

You love your current home as much as your neighbourhood and don’t want to move. But you have a problem: your family and you could use more space for convenience and comfort.

Perhaps you are expecting a baby or tired of working from a corner of your dining room table and would like to build your home office. You need more space, and you need it as soon as possible.

What could you do to solve this problem? You could add an extension to your house, of course! These eight tips for expanding your home will help you start this project and improve your quality of life.

Determine Which Type of Home Expansion You Need

Start by figuring out exactly how much space you need and which purpose you want your home extension to serve.

Are you thinking about a garage with plenty of storage space? Or are you thinking about remodelling your bedroom, bathroom, playroom, or dining room?

Determine how large your home addition is and how you want it to be connected to the rest of your home. You can make sketches to visualize it.

Be Sure to Hire a Home Addition Contractor

Unless you are an architect, it’s best not to handle your home expansion project alone. You should rely on experts who will assess your situation, design your home addition plans, ensure compliance with local building codes, and build your project for you.

Your home addition contractor could suggest some home extension possibilities you never thought about alone. This will help you save time and money, compared to trying to do it yourself without knowing what you are doing.

Don’t Hesitate to Discuss with Your Home Addition Contractor

Before you get a quote from a home addition contractor, discuss your expectations and budget with them. Let them know if you have a limited budget for your home expansion project.

If a contractor is unwilling to respect your limitations and help you get the most value for your money, you should consider working with a different contractor.

Home extension projects are expensive, but that doesn’t mean you should use all your savings to add space to your home.

Carefully Choose the Location of The New Doors and Windows

You probably don’t want your home addition to resemble a big box attached to your house. It will surely need a door and a few windows.

While planning your extension, carefully choose its location. Ideally, any door or window you add to your home should be positioned to enjoy natural light and make the most of it.

You could even plan for skylights to make your new space feel brighter and more spacious.

Harmonize Your Expansion with The Rest of Your Home

You don’t want your home expansion to stick out like a sore thumb. You and your home addition contractor should plan for an expansion that seamlessly aligns with your home’s architectural style.

Choose your materials carefully, and consider even small details, such as your home’s window trim. When it comes to the interior decor of your home expansion, you will decide whether you want it to match the rest of your home decor.

Get the Necessary Permits and Approvals

These tips for expanding your home will not help if you fail to get the necessary permits and approvals.

Contact your municipality to inform them about your home addition project and ask which permits and approvals you need to proceed. You might need to make a few changes to your plans to fully comply with the rules in place.

Decide Whether You Want to Stay in Your Home During Renovations

Depending on the type of expansion you want, you might be able to stay in your home during renovations. This would allow you to save money and see your project come to life day after day.

However, there would be some cons to staying in your home while dust and sand settle everywhere, along with constant drilling and sawing noises. You decide whether you want to stay or move elsewhere.