As a general life rule, anything done out of impatience rather than proper planning will come out half-assed. Your addition is no different.

Jobs like this are usually half assed and horrrible it means the owner couldn't really afford it and it shows.

Permits are typically time-limited, so getting a permit to add the second story on might only give you a year to get the project finished to CO.

My parents did this, it worked fine. It's not like you won't have a kitchen or bathroom, the disruptions are minimal because it's added space. My dad is a GC, so he did the work himself. Just check the coding and permits.

Codes change as well. So what you have planned may have to be modified as you go - this could significantly increase your costs or even set you back. Will insurance cover this? What about heating and cooling of a space that is unfinished could increase your costs significantly. Somethings like painting, finishing touches can be done on your timeframe but if you truly want the addition then I would work towards getting a loan to cover the entire thing and have it completed to the point of using it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait until you can afford it.

Why? Whats the downside of doing it slowly? People live with unfinished basements for years.

Because if your circumstances change and you have to sell your house, and unfinished upstairs will make your house completely unsellable.

We wont be selling or moving. We hope to live there forever and have stable jobs and strong ties to the house and community.

Life happens. What if one of you is hit by a bus tomorrow?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait until you can afford it.

Why? Whats the downside of doing it slowly? People live with unfinished basements for years.

Turn this around: what's the advantage of doing this over many years? If you plan to DIY anything, you still can.

Have you ever done a major renovation? It's very disruptive and takes up an incredible amount of time. The thought of spreading it out over many years makes me want to drive spikes into my eyeballs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait until you can afford it.

Why? Whats the downside of doing it slowly? People live with unfinished basements for years.

Because if your circumstances change and you have to sell your house, and unfinished upstairs will make your house completely unsellable.

We wont be selling or moving. We hope to live there forever and have stable jobs and strong ties to the house and community.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait until you can afford it.

Why? Whats the downside of doing it slowly? People live with unfinished basements for years.

Because if your circumstances change and you have to sell your house, and unfinished upstairs will make your house completely unsellable.

It will end up costing you more to do it this way. Prices for labor and materials will only go up and crews charge a premium for smaller jobs.

Anonymous wrote:Wait until you can afford it.

Why? Whats the downside of doing it slowly? People live with unfinished basements for years.

Wait until you can afford it.

Anonymous wrote:Not an expert but I would start by checking what's required to get an occupancy certificate in your jurisdiction as I assume you'd want to use the space even if it wasn't completely finished - right?

http://www.homeconstructionimprovement.com/certificate-occupancy/

We wouldn't be using the space until it was finished. It would just give us an opportunity to spread the costs over a couple years or to have a handyman or DIY some of the finishes.

Not an expert but I would start by checking what's required to get an occupancy certificate in your jurisdiction as I assume you'd want to use the space even if it wasn't completely finished - right?

http://www.homeconstructionimprovement.com/certificate-occupancy/

We'd like to add a 2nd level to our house, consisting of a master suite, bathroom, and closets. I am not sure we can afford to do the entire project at once, so I am considering adding the shell and then doing the finishes, a little at a time. Like building the outer walls, subfloor, and rough-in electric, and plumbing, but waiting on the carpet, bathroom tile, bathroom fixtures, lighting, closets, etc.

They are estimating $120K for the entire project - with approx. $75K for the shell and the rest for the finishes.

Anyone done this? Issues with permitting? Issues with contractor?