Contemplating an addition to the house as opposed to moving. I'm aware it might not be the most financially advantageous path forward, but back of the napkin math puts it in range with the comparable houses I'm finding on the market.

Idea would be to add on a (roughly) 15'x18' office off of the master bedroom, extending into the back yard. Large window in the bedroom becomes french doors, a living room window becomes a second door into the office space.

Project would likely involve adding a covered back porch and porte-cochere as well. I've got a decent vision of what I'd like to see constructed, but there are definitely some details to be worked out.

I'm assuming first step is an architect, as any of this would require legit drawings. Any recommendations in the Friendswood/Pearland area? Home was built by Cervelle, and I know their office is nearby, but I don't believe they dabble in anything other than new builds.

I'm aware of most of the new-build pitfalls to look out for in the process - anything specific to additions?

We are currently going through a similar renovation in Cypress…adding another bathroom (and closets) on the exterior side of our homes (making en suite bathrooms for both our daughters rooms), adding a pool bath and covered patio on the back of our home, and enclosing our breakfast nook into an office with French pocket doors. We were going to push it out 10' into the yard, but decided to save the money and put it to a covered patio and outdoor kitchen.

We didn't engage an architect, as I had drawn what I wanted on the builders floor plan. We reached out to 3 contractors, all that did home construction or renovations/remodel.

Our biggest hurdle was HOA approval and the plumbing tie in, since it modified the existing slab and exterior of the home. I had dug into the HOA guidelines to ensure my modifications were within the requirements, and they still pushed it back 3x to clarify tie-ins.

Expanding slab and tie in roofing is way more expensive than we thought, but we looked at building at a 5-6% interest rate vs taking a home equity loan and keeping our sub-3% and the numbers were way more favorable to make this exactly what we want.

Going through the early stages of a sizable addition myself, excavation underway.

My two cents is to start the process with the right architect and ask them the right questions:

What is their fee structure? Hourly? or a percentage of the project? I find hourly to be fair to both parties. Of course, as long as the architect has integrity and doesn't over bill. A percentage, typically 10% in my area, is unfair IMO for most projects. If you go with upgraded windows, siding, etc. and the architect has little input in those decisions, why should they get more money?

What is their time line for concept drawings, floor plans, construction drawings, etc.? How busy are they? Set your expectations now. My architect is approx 2 months behind from what he said, that has caused major issues.

How much work do you want them to do? Just come up with a plan and supply bare minimum drawings? Or do you want involved drawings; extreme detail, room layouts, electrical and plumbing layouts, assistance with material selections, and possibly them to assist in managing the project? This could increase their fee 2-5x.

Check with your town to see what they require. If it is a really basic addition, and your town doesn't need a ton of detail, a decent electrician can provide adequate planning and execution without having to pay an architect to do it.

Figure out what YOU want, are you looking for pure function of the addition and to save some money? Or do you want someone with a flare for design and style? Do they specialize in a certain style (modern vs. traditional)? Are they going to stick a box on the back of your house, or integrate it smoothly into what exists? Don't let them do more work than you need. It adds up fast.

What is ballpark for something like this in Texas (central Texas, more specifically)? We've thought of adding an additional room and it would either have to go on to the end of our house, or above garage. Obviously lots of things would change the pricing, but assuming we're talking a bedroom, but no bathroom or anything that requires water or septic/sewer, would something like this be $50k? $75k?

"Home was built by Cervelle"
Here's one path to follow, others may have other ones ....

• Obtain plans from Cerville (saves time/fees)
• Ask if you might use their draftsman/or better by-the-hour to draft all your tweaks - since the plans don't have to be re-created here & no copyright fears
• Ask Cervelle for a Cost Projection Range (not a head-in-noose price) - saves time & too much picking/shopping/details
• If they say no-can-do then ask if you can get others to participate and a copyright release
• Once a builder is found w/attractive costs, then ask them who to best complete plans ... if not the Cervelle designer
• An Architect friend or by-the-hour can proof all this pre-Contract if doubts arise

Lots of factors. Will it need an upgraded electrical service ? Will it need an additional hvac system ? Will the current one support the addition?

Will it need an upsized all new hvac ?


On a 150 sq ft addition, The hvac area alone could range anywhere from $5 per sq ft of addition cost all the way to adding $100 per sq ft addition cost if needing to upsize and replace all equipment.


What are new houses costing per sq ft to build in your area ?

Rough guess $200 a sq ft


Now take this number x 1.5-2 per sq ft is a ballpark area.

Keep in mind economies of scale come into play so a smaller addition will generally be much higher per sq ft than a larger one.

Our 3 projects broke down as follows, all extensions of current home (nothing detached):

6' x 21' addition for full bath and 2 closets - $62k (plus a little extra because my wife's tile taste exceeds the allowance of $3.50/sqft)

Pool Bath with Toilet and Sink and exterior shower (fully insulated and brick wrapped per HOA) - $12k

7' x 10' Extension to our breakfast nook into side yard (requiring AC work and Electrical, and new interior wall with French doors being converted to a home office) - $15k

To posters point above, all trades were already here and foundation/concrete costs were being spread amongst 3 projects, so my cost per job is lower.
Hope that gives some perspective. We used middle priced contractor that had just finished a job with a friend and was recommended.

Thanks! That's really helpful.

https://ccchomedesign.wordpress.com/?fbclid=IwAR3Qi4nhg-Dt14a5keDhTJfWAGD9LKazdAk43rYwYOT0O2d_lewaLd7FD8k

Home designer used by Bay Area contractors for new build and remodel

hurricanejake02 said:

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Contemplating an addition to the house as opposed to moving. I'm aware it might not be the most financially advantageous path forward, but back of the napkin math puts it in range with the comparable houses I'm finding on the market.

Idea would be to add on a (roughly) 15'x18' office off of the master bedroom, extending into the back yard. Large window in the bedroom becomes french doors, a living room window becomes a second door into the office space.

Project would likely involve adding a covered back porch and porte-cochere as well. I've got a decent vision of what I'd like to see constructed, but there are definitely some details to be worked out.

I'm assuming first step is an architect, as any of this would require legit drawings. Any recommendations in the Friendswood/Pearland area? Home was built by Cervelle, and I know their office is nearby, but I don't believe they dabble in anything other than new builds.

I'm aware of most of the new-build pitfalls to look out for in the process - anything specific to additions?

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sorry to bump an old thread but did you ever get going on this project? If so, who did you use? I'm thinking about building an office/man cave above my 3 car garage and I'm in the Friendswood area. Two of my neighbors have done this and used J Brown Construction in the area and both are extremely happy...but I just know it was $$$.

Just looking to see if you had any luck in the area.

No, I never did. Even my back of the napkin estimates made it really hard to justify versus moving (haven't done that, either).