Contractor recommendations for large addition & thoughts on cost

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the pp in NE DC doing the addition - who are you using? Are you happy so far with the work?

We're actually in NW, I was using NE as an example. But we live in 20001 for context so not somewhere known for being affluent even though houses now sell for $600-$1.2m). I am not happy enough with the work to recommend my contractor. They are competent but would be better for a straight forward GC job rather than design build. If I had to do it again we'd have an architect throughout the process and may or may not have gone with a different contractor. We've also had a lot of delays. That said we didn't go with the cheap option and contractor was very well recommended and previous clients appeared very happy.

For the PPs who can't get lower quotes, you are calling the wrong contractors. If you call the contractors that all your neighbors have used they will try and fleece you. Get quotes from contractors who do work all over the city.

$130k. You get what you pay for.
Neighbors just paid 75k for a kitchen redo. It's nice. Likely overpriced.
But chances are your price was a tad low. Also, what kinds of windows, hardwood floors, trim and finishes came at that price point?

[Anonymous]

We used Larry Weems for a house in Georgetown several years ago. He's not the cheapest but he's very honest and insists on expert work from his subs. I think he's based in Virginia.

[Anonymous]

We live in Bethesda got bids to add a second story of abt 1000 sq ft, which included some reconfiguring on first floor and a kitchen redo. One bid was $300K. The second bid was $420K, but included bumping back about 7 ft which really made the whole thing work better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in Bethesda got bids to add a second story of abt 1000 sq ft, which included some reconfiguring on first floor and a kitchen redo. One bid was $300K. The second bid was $420K, but included bumping back about 7 ft which really made the whole thing work better.

We're planning a similar project in Bethesda. Do you mind sharing who you used?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in Bethesda got bids to add a second story of abt 1000 sq ft, which included some reconfiguring on first floor and a kitchen redo. One bid was $300K. The second bid was $420K, but included bumping back about 7 ft which really made the whole thing work better.

We're planning a similar project in Bethesda. Do you mind sharing who you used?

We didn't end up moving forward for a variety of reasons. We talked to Mark Kramer (Bethesda-based architect) and Mike McCurley (design/build guy). Their approaches were completely different and there were merits in both.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the pp in NE DC doing the addition - who are you using? Are you happy so far with the work?

We're actually in NW, I was using NE as an example. But we live in 20001 for context so not somewhere known for being affluent even though houses now sell for $600-$1.2m). I am not happy enough with the work to recommend my contractor. They are competent but would be better for a straight forward GC job rather than design build. If I had to do it again we'd have an architect throughout the process and may or may not have gone with a different contractor. We've also had a lot of delays. That said we didn't go with the cheap option and contractor was very well recommended and previous clients appeared very happy.

For the PPs who can't get lower quotes, you are calling the wrong contractors. If you call the contractors that all your neighbors have used they will try and fleece you. Get quotes from contractors who do work all over the city.

$130k. You get what you pay for.
Neighbors just paid 75k for a kitchen redo. It's nice. Likely overpriced.
But chances are your price was a tad low. Also, what kinds of windows, hardwood floors, trim and finishes came at that price point?

Sigh. We have custom wood/aluminum clad Pella windows (five to six feet tall- eight windows total), a JELD-WEN French door (primed wood), Hardy plank siding, and high end hand scraped teak hard wood floors. Bathroom tile is higher end, bathroom fixtures are not (not low end either, though). We know what we are doing and worked out where it made sense to save money and where it did not as far as finishes were concerned. We paid extra for good quality windows and doors and flooring, for example. $130k is not low end by any means, we had much lower quotes (under $100k).

[Anonymous]

Bell Builders in Bethesda seems to be well like all around Woodacres, GlenMar Park, Mohican Hills, etc. I did some work a couple of years ago with Chris Conlan. He was amazing from start to finish. I think he has gone back to mainly doing new homes (less renos). If you decide to tear down and rebuild (you could do the whole house for about 650K) -- call Conlan!!

[Anonymous]

We added 600 sq feet for 125k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are in the midst of a 450 2-story sq foot addition. Total cost is close to $130k. We could have got it done cheaper. Posters who are claiming 400k are nuts. And the fact that you live in Bethesda is irrelevant. The costs are the same in NE DC as they are in Bethesda. The only reason you might pay a premium in Bethesda is because the contractor thinks you are rich and wants to fleece you. Of course it depends on how big you are talking about (sq ft) and how fancy your finishes are but $400k+ sounds crazy. Plan on $250-300 per sq foot (high end).

Agree. I added 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen renovation and basement for about $250 k in Bethesda. $400000 estimates are outrageous unless you're doing high end everything with lots of built ins.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in the midst of a 450 2-story sq foot addition. Total cost is close to $130k. We could have got it done cheaper. Posters who are claiming 400k are nuts. And the fact that you live in Bethesda is irrelevant. The costs are the same in NE DC as they are in Bethesda. The only reason you might pay a premium in Bethesda is because the contractor thinks you are rich and wants to fleece you. Of course it depends on how big you are talking about (sq ft) and how fancy your finishes are but $400k+ sounds crazy. Plan on $250-300 per sq foot (high end).

Agree. I added 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen renovation and basement for about $250 k in Bethesda. $400000 estimates are outrageous unless you're doing high end everything with lots of built ins.

Even the 250K is a little high.
The builders assume you know NOTHING about building. They assume that if you live in Bethesda, you have never held a hammer in your hand.
We got a handyman to speak to the builders for us. He acted like he was a part of the family, his truck was out front. The bids came in at HALF when he was there. The price differences sacred us so much we decided to hold off on the project.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in the midst of a 450 2-story sq foot addition. Total cost is close to $130k. We could have got it done cheaper. Posters who are claiming 400k are nuts. And the fact that you live in Bethesda is irrelevant. The costs are the same in NE DC as they are in Bethesda. The only reason you might pay a premium in Bethesda is because the contractor thinks you are rich and wants to fleece you. Of course it depends on how big you are talking about (sq ft) and how fancy your finishes are but $400k+ sounds crazy. Plan on $250-300 per sq foot (high end).

Agree. I added 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen renovation and basement for about $250 k in Bethesda. $400000 estimates are outrageous unless you're doing high end everything with lots of built ins.

Even the 250K is a little high.
The builders assume you know NOTHING about building. They assume that if you live in Bethesda, you have never held a hammer in your hand.
We got a handyman to speak to the builders for us. He acted like he was a part of the family, his truck was out front. The bids came in at HALF when he was there. The price differences sacred us so much we decided to hold off on the project.

scared

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are in the midst of a 450 2-story sq foot addition. Total cost is close to $130k. We could have got it done cheaper. Posters who are claiming 400k are nuts. And the fact that you live in Bethesda is irrelevant. The costs are the same in NE DC as they are in Bethesda. The only reason you might pay a premium in Bethesda is because the contractor thinks you are rich and wants to fleece you. Of course it depends on how big you are talking about (sq ft) and how fancy your finishes are but $400k+ sounds crazy. Plan on $250-300 per sq foot (high end).

Agree. I added 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen renovation and basement for about $250 k in Bethesda. $400000 estimates are outrageous unless you're doing high end everything with lots of built ins.

This is very helpful. We've decided to have an architect draw up the plans and then bid out the job to 5 builders who have been recommended. Will be interesting to see if the bids are drastically different.

[Anonymous]

We did one in Bethesda a few years ago that was in the $400-500k range. The kitchen was probably $85-$100k of that though. We did custom built ins in 2 rooms, exterior stonework, 3 bathrooms (1 high end, 2 more mid-high end), kitchen, all new top of the line windows/doors, new roof, etc. We had 4 architects bid, and 5 contractors once we had the design, and the cost estimates were pretty consistent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We did one in Bethesda a few years ago that was in the $400-500k range. The kitchen was probably $85-$100k of that though. We did custom built ins in 2 rooms, exterior stonework, 3 bathrooms (1 high end, 2 more mid-high end), kitchen, all new top of the line windows/doors, new roof, etc. We had 4 architects bid, and 5 contractors once we had the design, and the cost estimates were pretty consistent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We did one in Bethesda a few years ago that was in the $400-500k range. The kitchen was probably $85-$100k of that though. We did custom built ins in 2 rooms, exterior stonework, 3 bathrooms (1 high end, 2 more mid-high end), kitchen, all new top of the line windows/doors, new roof, etc. We had 4 architects bid, and 5 contractors once we had the design, and the cost estimates were pretty consistent.

I've never heard of architects bidding. Did they charge you a fee to meet with them?