Building a Addition/References (hardwood floors, buying a house, buying)

[leens514]

I have seen some threads on here but nothing new. I am planning on buying a house in the barton heights/barton hills area that is old and approx 1,000 sq ft. I am hoping to add a additional 1000 sq feet that would include extending the kitchen area ( so pretty much will have to build the kitchen again), adding a masterbedroom and master bath. The house is ranch style so an architect already looked at it and it would take knocking the right back side of the house and extending from there ( keeping it one story). So not to much demo work.

I know its hard to give an estimate. But i was wondering has anyone done any remodels lately? What could be the average costs? i do want some nice finishes such as hardwood floors but nothing over the top expensive.

I am also new to the area. Anyone have a good references for contractors , architects, design/build firms?

Thanks! any help will be appreciated!

[centralaustinite]

I've posted this before. But as a general rule of thumb both my friend who is an architect and my friend who is a general contractor, recommend using $150 a sq foot as a good ballpark figure for both remodeling and expanding space. It is just a rough guide but it accounts for nice finishes, full permitting, and the inevitable changes that come with construction (raw material prices can shift as can labor). If the $150 a sq foot figure, produces a total that is just impossible, then they suggest re-thinking the project. You can probably do it for less but that requires specific choices and decisions and you are not at that point yet.

I love the Barton Hills area! Lucky you.

[shorehomes]

$150 per/sf is definitely a good reference

[sal kassab]

thanks for the info. but would building in travis hieghts in 2011 be the same pricing as other places in austin, considering that we're building a 340 sq. room add.

[sal kassab]

340sq. Addi, no plumbing involved, would be sitting on stone colomns ,all stone front and cedar sidding for the back, low cost metal roofing, 5 good quality windows averrage size but very energy efficient. fur hardwood floors , real wood doors for stain grade, cathedral cieling, and we're hoping to be able to extend the same utilities without having to upgrade the units( AC & Electric panel). could anyone would be able to guesstimate per sq ft cost, Thanks

[CptnRn]

I don't think you will find large differences in prices for Travis Heights, unless there are sloping site considerations or clay soils involved.

The smaller an addition is the more it typically costs per square foot, because you have a larger percentage of exterior walls in relation to the enclosed space, relatively more waste plus the same mobilization costs as you would have for a larger addition.

Those prices are almost 2 years old so I'm sure some material costs have gone up. At the same time inflation has been low and there is a lot more competition for fewer jobs these days. There are so many variables involved, what type of construction and structure, what kind of materials (brick or siding?), will the electrical service have to be upgraded, a separate HVAC system added, etc. Its hard to pull a number out of the air that is valid for every situation. You could initially plan on $150/sf and recognize that you might have to go with lower budget finishes, windows, etc. to keep in budget if that is your limit.

[sal kassab]

Thanks CptnRn, we thought the same about the 150/sf. Couple more things we're not sure about:
- The addition have to sit on steel columns wraped with stone veneer some will be as high as 9 feet because of the sloped lot (no clay soil) and all the sub stucture has to be steel frame.
- The stone veneer on front
Do you think that these items would be more costlier than conventional foundation & typical wood siding ?