I would seriously consider it if you are staying there 10 years or more. If not do what the 80K version instead.

We got quoted close to $150K for a pretty basic two story addition, small colonial in the same general area as you. We opted instead to do a really nice kitchen renovation that involved knocking out a wall to make our small kitchen and small dining room into one large eat in kitchen. It turned out really well. It cost $80K, but we could have gotten it done for less (got granite countertops, custom cabinets, etc.).

Renovating is really expensive. For us, because we bought when we did, it would not make sense to spend more than a certain amount on the house. Our neighbors spent $200K on their addition but paid 200K less for their house, so it made sense. You don't want to have the most expensive house in the neighborhood.

To this poster who renovated your kitchen, was this a recent reno? That seems like a good price. I'd be curious to know who you used, if you liked them, and how extensive the work was.

For all those who have done a house reno, how have you funded it? did you pull equity or pay cash?

Curious as we may find ourselves in a similar situation,. In the market to buy, wondering if we should buy a fixer at a bargain then renovate. I know that banks no longer loan money on home purchases where it's padded with renovation dollars. i.e., loan after 20% down is $900K, but you take out a loan for $1M knowing that you will need that $100K for renovations.

how does one go about getting those dollars these days?

Anonymous wrote:We live in your standard Arlington brick colonials and our neighbors in the last 2 years paid 400k for a 2-story addition was basically a family room on the first floor and a master bedroom on the second. I was blown away.

I am in N.Arl and this is what I keep hearing for 2-story--$400k-500k. There are 3 of them happening around me right now.

I'd jump at $150k-200k!

Anonymous wrote:Live in Colonial in Bethesda. Old home. Considering 2 story bump out (family room, larger kitchen on one floor, master suite on second). DH says there's no way we can afford it. How much do such things actually cost? Any cost efficient architects or design build firms you can recommend would also be appreciated.

Bump (so to speak).

Would also love to hear of any design/build recommendations.

Anything that involves plumbing is expensive, which means that adding a bathroom and moving a kitchen are a lot more expensive than adding a family room and a bedroom. If you can keep the kitchen where it is, you'll save money.

If you've kept in touch with your realtor, it might be worth asking them their thoughts. You don't want your house to be bigger or more expensive than others in the immediate area. And if you might move in the next decade, you want the changes to be ones that potential buyers would like. Our realtor talked us out of converting our garage to living space because the flow wouldn't work well and most houses in our neighborhood have a garage (although few cars are kept in garages). Your realtor might also have an idea how much the changes you are talking about cost (especially to do at the quality that fits with your neighborhood) and what they might add in value.

We did something similar with two bathrooms but no kitchen renovation (kept ours as-is) and it was $230K two years ago.

So I would think $300K would be the bottom end.

We got two quotes for this in upper NW DC a little less then a year ago, the multi-story was about $500,000 and if we did just one story it was ab out $250,000. We decided we couldn't afford that, the value of the house would not increase proportionately.

We live in your standard Arlington brick colonials and our neighbors in the last 2 years paid 400k for a 2-story addition was basically a family room on the first floor and a master bedroom on the second. I was blown away.

Anonymous wrote:$250-$350 - depending on the finishes.

We're in the process of doing this in your area and out of the 5 quotes from reputable, but not high-end, design build firms, none were less than $300k. It doesn't cost anything to get quotes, so you may want to call a few firms.

$250-$350 - depending on the finishes.

We got quoted close to $150K for a pretty basic two story addition, small colonial in the same general area as you. We opted instead to do a really nice kitchen renovation that involved knocking out a wall to make our small kitchen and small dining room into one large eat in kitchen. It turned out really well. It cost $80K, but we could have gotten it done for less (got granite countertops, custom cabinets, etc.).

Renovating is really expensive. For us, because we bought when we did, it would not make sense to spend more than a certain amount on the house. Our neighbors spent $200K on their addition but paid 200K less for their house, so it made sense. You don't want to have the most expensive house in the neighborhood.

very expensive! 250K.

We are in the same boat- my husband says the same thing. Am hoping for some helpful posts.

Live in Colonial in Bethesda. Old home. Considering 2 story bump out (family room, larger kitchen on one floor, master suite on second). DH says there's no way we can afford it. How much do such things actually cost? Any cost efficient architects or design build firms you can recommend would also be appreciated.