Raising the roof

9 years ago

We are thinking of buying a home. But we would need to raise the roof to add a second floor above the middle section. Would anyone hazard a ballpark estimate?

If you look at the photo, it's the middle section, between the garage and main house; the part with the lower roof line. Right now that is the kitchen area and it has a cathedral ceiling up to the roof line. I took rough measurements when I looked at the house last week. That section is about 17x20.

We are only talking a floor, roof/ceiling, and walls. And a few windows. The stairs going to the second level are to the right of the front door, flush with the wall. So no additional stairs are involved.

FWIW the house was built in 2010. It has hardierplank siding and azec trim. We are in Boston MetroWest, so labor around here is expensive.

I've talked to the town, and the "addition" is allowed. I'm going for another look this week to double check that the rest of the house meets our needs before I call an architect or contractor to take a look.

Thanks for the help.

Front view of house:

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Comments (7)

pixie_lou
Original Author
9 years ago
And here's the back view of the house.
millworkman
9 years ago
Will the first floor handle the additional weight? You may want to get an engineer involved.
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PRO
Joseph Corlett, LLC
9 years ago
pixie_lou:

You don't say what the new space will be. A new Master suite costs considerably more than a child's bedroom.
User
9 years ago
70-170K. Depends on what's going in the space and the access to that space. If it includes plumbing, and needs stairs, and needs more engineered support in the foundation etc. It will already need a complete reworking of the roof line, new HVAC, electrical, as well as all of the finishing touches. In Boston, where the COL is pretty darn high.
pixie_lou
Original Author
9 years ago
No plumbing. No stairs. Just electrical and HVAC. Right now it's a 1 bedroom house. We would want to turn it into a 2 bedroom house.

Since I don't own the place, it becomes an issue of how much I want to pay to determine if I want to actually buy the place.

I was guessing 100k. Based on $300 per sf. Selling prices around here are in that price range.
dekeoboe
9 years ago
That's a one bedroom house? I'm surprised. Is the entire upper floor a bedroom and bath?
pixie_lou
Original Author
9 years ago
Yes, it's a 1 bedroom. It's a tiny house.

The section with the front door is a bedroom and full bath on the upper level, a living room on the first level, a finished basement with full bath. The center section is a kitchen with half bath and laundry. Then the garage.