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hethafetha

Cost of project

hethafetha
9 years ago

I have a 1750sf single story mid-century modern ranch house in the San Francisco East Bay and would like to know if I could do the following with $200,000:

1. Convert a covered patio into a family room approximately 16x14,
2. Add on a 2nd full bathroom approximately 10x10
3. Remodel kitchen with new cabinets, quartz counters, tile floor, same layout, keeping old appliances
4. Replace asphalt roof
5. Replace 16 windows with dual panes
6. Upgrade electrical system (already quoted about $5,000)
7. Replace old concrete walkways and driveway with new concrete.

Thanks in advance for your collective wisdom. ;)

Comments (6)

  • _sophiewheeler
    9 years ago

    Just the bathroom, kitchen, and family room is 30K over your budget. 5K is way too little to update an electrical service as well. IF the person is licensed and insured as an electrician and pulls the proper permits. You might want to double your budget for that list of projects.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Cost vs. Value. SF

  • hethafetha
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    The cost for electrical is by 2 different electricians. I was given an idea of the cost by a GC for the bathroom, family room, and kitchen to be approximately $70,000 for each room. Another GC said it would be about $50,000 each room. At the time I got these prices, I hadn't mentioned the exterior cement work. I thought they were too high. Why would you say I'm too low by $30,000? For the kitchen I was told the countertops would be about $7000, cabinets $14,000-$20,000 depending on brand and options. I don't need appliances. So where is this money supposed to be going to?

  • hethafetha
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Also the patio that is turning into a family room already has a roof. Shouldn't it cost less than a full addition? I would like ideas on what I can do to bring down costs.

  • pixie_lou
    9 years ago

    You've received estimates from 2 different contractors to do line items 1-3. One says $210k. The other says $150k. Then you are adding 4 other projects. Clearly you know the answer to your own question. These things ALWAYS cost more than we want to pay.

    A contractor can't just pop some walls between an existing concrete patio and roof. They will need to demo the roof, excavate the patio, pour a proper foundation, and then build the family room.

  • hethafetha
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    The roof would not be demo'd, just the ceiling. It is an extension of the roof of the rest of the house. It's essentially a gigantic room-sized overhang. What I want to know is if there is anything I can do to bring the costs down, like do some work myself, be my own GC, manifest. That sort of thing. Besides, they are not official estimates, just guesstimates. So back to my previous question, if the cabinets are $20,000, the counters are $6,000, I already have the appliances, no walls are moving or being added, why am I being told the kichen is $50,000 to $70,000? The flooring, faucet and sink can't be that much.

  • live_wire_oak
    9 years ago

    You live in a location with extensive seismic retrofit requirements. And expensive permitting requirements. Expensive licensing requirements for contractors also. No one is going to be cheap that will do the job correctly, with the right bona fides. And while 5K might be for upgrading the service drop only, it won't cover the wiring in the rest of the house being upgraded. Which WILL need to happen for all of the other projects that you have in mind. A modern kitchen swallows a heck of a lot of juice. As does a family room with all of the 2014 electrical doodads. And that family room can not really utilize the existing roof and slab structure. It has to have a modern seismic rated foundation, and the framing has to meet those requirements as well. Demo and reconstruction is what is going to be needed to do it properly. Doing it improperly, without the permits and inspections is likely to result in fines and teardowns.