Building an Addition? What You Need to Know

What You Need to Know About Building a Home AdditionBuilding an addition is an excellent option for a homeowner who is outgrowing the size of their house, but who wants to stay on their property. If you're a Rochester homeowner, you might consider a home addition if your family is growing but your home is located near your child's school, or near the place where you work, and you really don't want to move.

Some homeowners consider a home addition when a family member like a senior relative wants to move onto their property. This type of addition is known as an "in-law suite,"and often has a separate entrance from the rest of the house. This article will discuss many factors that should be considered when building an addition onto a home.

Lengthy Process

Home additions take time to construct. After a contractor has been selected, the contract is signed and the paperwork is in order, it can take about 3 months to build a standard home addition. The contractor should give the homeowner the timeline before work begins.

In the time when construction is taking place, the home turns into a noisy and often messy construction site. Often, portions of the home become unusable. The homeowner must be aware of how the construction will affect life in their home, and must be prepared for this. The contractor will help the homeowner understand how the home addition will affect their everyday life, so the homeowner can make plans.

Zoning Laws May Come Into Play

Depending on what the home addition is for, zoning laws may affect the way the home addition proceeds. For example, an in-law apartment is an addition that includes a kitchenette and separate bathroom. Some in-law suites can easily be turned into an apartment that can be rented to tenants.

Many communities regulate home additions to prevent homeowners from creating separate rental apartments. Homeowners who want to install an in-law suite in their home should know their zoning laws before talking to a contractor. This prevents them from wasting time, should their community prevent them from building an in-law suite on their property.

Surveys Are Important

One of the risks that homeowners should avoid is the possibility of building their home addition over their property line. Sometimes, homeowners think they know where the edge of their property is located, while the real property line is somewhere else entirely. A homeowner who accidentally builds their home over the edge of their property may have to make an expensive repair to fix the problem.

Getting a survey can prevent this from happening. A surveyor can help a homeowner by determining where their property is located. This should be done before plans are drawn up.

Choosing the Right Contractor Is Important

During a home addition, the homeowner relies heavily on the contractor to make good, ethical choices. The contractor must be upfront and transparent about costs, must know how to do good quality work, and must have good communication skills to ensure that the process will go smoothly.

Hiring the right contractor is critical. While looking for a contractor, the homeowner must ask questions such as:

  • How much experience do you have with installation of a home addition?
  • When can you start?
  • How long will it take?
  • Can you show me pictures of your previous work?
  • Do you have references?

It's very important to work with a contractor who has references, and to check those references before hiring that contractor. Furthermore, the references the contractor gives should be references for customers who used the contractor to install an addition on their home.

If you're a homeowner who is thinking about installing an addition, the most important thing you can do is to hire the right professional. Working with a good contractor will ensure that the process goes smoothly overall.

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