If your home feels a little cramped, then your first instinct may be to look at buying a new one and start moving. However, many real estate markets are tight and expensive, and this option may not be very cost effective.
The good news is that there are several ways to add useful space to your existing house without packing up and changing addresses. Here are five ideas to get you started.
1. Build an Addition
To add useful space, it makes sense to look for ways to actually increase the size of your home. Adding on an addition to the house can be as large or as small a project as you want and can afford. You could add something as simple as an extra bathroom or expand the kitchen. Alternatively, you could create another bedroom or even build a family room for the kids to play.
You can still keep the cost of an addition under control by limiting it to one location and as simple a layout as possible.
2. Add a Deck
A deck addition is sometimes a much simpler home renovation project than interior additions. With fewer restrictions and structural changes than a full addition, you can get more space on a much smaller budget. Modern decks don’t need to be boring, either. You could use your deck as an outdoor kitchen or dining room, boost your ability to entertain guests, or add luxuries like a spa.
3. Convert an Outbuilding
Backyard sheds aren’t just for storing tools anymore. Modern, renovated sheds are comfortable, well lit, and insulated. You could use one for an exercise or yoga studio, create a gardening center, convert it to a home office, or simply add a place to get away from it all.
When designing your fancy shed, make sure it’s easily accessible from the house and has amenities like electricity and climate control.
4. Utilize the Basement
If your home has a basement, then make sure you’re utilizing it to its best function. Many basements are either unfinished or partially finished. This area may be the space that you and your family could otherwise be using. While rooms can serve as useful storage space even when unfinished, investing in completing them could be a better call.
If the basement is finished, then does it have a large and open layout? While an open concept is appealing, it often means that the space serves only one purpose and may have a lot of unused square footage. You could recoup this unused space by adding a few walls and creating a bathroom, bedroom, laundry area, or home office.
5. Change the Layout
Think outside the box when it comes to your house’s interior layout. You may be able to make a few adjustments to make rooms more useful.
For example, if the kitchen is separated from surrounding rooms by a wall, would you benefit from removing the wall and restructuring both of the adjacent areas? On the other hand, if you don’t have enough bathrooms, you may be able to split a large bath into two smaller ones or utilize a walk-in closet.
The best way to really understand your options for changing the layout is to sketch the home’s exterior perimeters on paper. Consult with an engineer or remodeling contractor to determine what walls are load bearing, then add them to your sketch. Now, you know how much of your home’s interior you can really alter.
Any one of these clever tricks could add more space to your home than you may realize. For help determining the best way to renovate your particular property, contact our experienced remodeling experts at Sawhorse Designers and Builders today.
