Home Renovation Ideas and Suggestions Needed

DH and I are brainstorming a $50,000 construction project to our small cape. It's very boxy right now. Two bedrooms upstairs without closests or a bathroom. One bedroom downstairs. The downstairs is a true square...dining room, living room, bedroom, kitchen...with a full bath and staircase in the middle. We are at odds about how to spend the money. He wants to rear dormer the upstairs and add a bedroom, closets and a bathroom. I want to increase the living space on the ground floor so that our 2 kids can play comfortably and we can have more than 2.5 people over. What would you suggest for the money and return on investment?

Message edited 11/27/2012 4:29:49 PM.

Re: Home Renovation Ideas and Suggestions Needed

It's kind of hard to comment without knowing the specifics of your house and area.

Is your house currently a 3 bedroom/1 bath? If so, then adding a second bath will definitely be a good investment, both for your family's use and for resale value. Many buyers won't even look at a one bathroom house.

And adding closets to the existing bedrooms will definitely make them more functional. Lack of storage is a turnoff for buyers. You can never have enough closet space!

Adding a bedroom upstairs would also be a good investment, imo. I know a lot of buyers don't love the 2 beds up/2 beds down layout of a traditional cape, because if they have more than one child, they don't like the idea of kids being on a separate level than parents for sleeping. So 3 bedrooms on the same level will make your cape more akin to a colonial, and might appeal to buyers that wouldn't typically consider a cape.

Perhaps re: the main level, you can then knock down some walls to open up access to the downstairs bedroom, making that a den or family room, and expanding the living space on the first level. It would be a compromise... you would then have a 3 bedroom home with all bedrooms upstairs, and have more common living space on the main level (again, more like a colonial floor plan).

But adding a full rear dormer will likely cost more than $50K (unless you are able to do the work yourself). Building out is always more affordable than building up. So if you have space to build an extension at the back of your house to create a den or other gathering space, that may be a more affordable and still worthwhile investment (esp. if you have no basement that could serve the same purpose).

You should do some more research -- there are published lists of what gives you the most return on your investment in terms of renovation projects. I think www.frontdoor.com may have such a list, as well as realtor.com.

Also, you should look into what is selling in your area -- which houses command the highest prices? Do the dormered capes get more than the ones that have main floor extensions? I suspect they do - dormering a cape typically adds a lot of value. But at least you'll be armed with facts relevant to your house and area, and then can decide what's realistic budget-wise.

Message edited 11/27/2012 8:24:50 PM.

Re: Home Renovation Ideas and Suggestions Needed

Dormer upstairs and use the downstairs bedroom as a den or break through if it makes sense.

Home Renovation Ideas and Suggestions Needed

I would dormer. Also you need to look into the increase in your taxes. I think its cheaper to go up than to increase the foot print.

Re: Home Renovation Ideas and Suggestions Needed

I don't own a cape, but we are currently renting one. It's actually all remodeled so there are no longer bedrooms on the first floor but rather an EIK, dining room, kitchen, living room, and full bath on the first floor and 3 bed//1 ba upstairs. I love love love the layout. It's more like a colonial now, but has some cute/not cute cape features, like slanted bedroom ceiling and little closet space.

We are in the market to buy down the road (once we decide what state we want to live in!) I can only give you my opinion as a future homeowner, but dormer the rear! I wouldn't even look at a two story house that has only one bathroom. I don't mind ranches that have one bath, while it's not ideal it's something I could live with, but not a two story house.

Message edited 11/28/2012 1:12:56 PM.