Need opinions for a major reno project

9 years ago

Hi there!
I'm a first time poster here but long time lurker. I need your opinions on a huge project that we may undertake or not. We are thinking about buying a house (right across the street from us) that needs major reno, which is something we are comfortable with. The house is not huge, but is definitely larger than what we currently have. It's a typical red brick 2 1/2 story circa 1915 American Foursquare house.
Here is the current layout of the first floor.

We would like to expand the house in the front to have a larger den that we would use as a family room and also expand towards the back to have a bigger kitchen/eating area. I can only add 4' in the front and don't want the extension in the back to take the entire backyard. Also, we would be parking our cars towards the back of the house near the detached garage (not shown), so I thought a side entry with closet space would be practical.

The extensions are only adding about 200 ft2 of living space on the first floor to the existing 850ft2. Would that be worth it? Do you think it is worth going through this remodeling project or should we wait to find something that needs less work?
Maybe I should give you more information about our lifestyle and tastes:
-We have 2 young children, might go for a third if we buy the house and till have energy after all that remodeling is over ;)
-We are not fans of open concept floor plans. We like a little open, but not too open.
-Although this house may seem small to most of you, it is in fact an upgrade for us.
-We plan on living there for at least 10 years.
-There would be a finished room in the basement with all the kids' toys (we currently have a games room in the basement and it works wonders, our kids love playing in the basement).
-We love old houses and especially love the area. Other turnkey houses with similar square footage in the area are way over our budget. It is a quiet family neighborhood very close to the city.
-We are not in a rush to move to a bigger house but would love to within the next 2-3 years.
-The second floor also needs a lot of work, but that will be in another post.

Please share your thoughts.

This post was edited by Tiramisu_ on Thu, Nov 20, 14 at 11:14

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Comments (4)

User
9 years ago
Do you have a picture of the home? I wouldn't be so quick to remodel---or remuddle-- a Foursquare. They are a desirable and livable form of housing that keep a good value based on originality. :)

I think you're trying to force a modern plan onto a home that lives quite nicely as is. 3 places to eat is way more than is really needed. Yes, I owned a Foursquare, and while the kitchen was small, it was adequate for even large meal preparation, and we ate all of our meals in the dining room as a consequence. A 10x10 den is a cozy gathering spot around the fireplace, especially if you have the basement for other activities.

I also think that you may be underestimating the budget that would go into creating new square footage in an older home. Those places that you said are larger and out of your budget? They will probably end up being cheaper per square foot by the time your renovation is done.
Fori
9 years ago
I'd try to keep any additions on the back. I agree with LWO in that it's a shame to mess up something as elegant as a good foursquare (maybe this one isn't good?). Of course if it's already trashed then have at it.

If I had to expand it, again assuming the front is a typical charming foursquare, I might use the den as a small dining room. Then use the former DR and LR for den and LR and add on to the back to make this space and kitchen larger if needed.

That old mudroom as a vestibule between inside and out in the original is really practical in places with weather and it would be worthwhile imitating it in a redo.

If putting all the addition on the back makes the yard too small, it's probably not meant to be. I'm wondering why you'd park the cars near the garage but not in it. The yard will feel bigger without the cars in it.
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tira_misu
Original Author
9 years ago
Hi Live_wire_oak,

Thanks for your opinion. Part of me thinks this is crazy but for some reasons, we can't stop thinking about this project.

I don't have a picture of the house and can,t printscreen from google maps because it's got trees hiding the house.This is, according to our drawings, what the front of the house would look like with extension:

It is currently symmetrical so picture the right side of the house being exactly like the left part.

I was in fact concerned with the front extension interfering with the foursquare charm. However, the idea came from a few houses in the area that have this exterior look:

Also, by enlarging the den, we would be enlarging the bedroom that is above the den.

Budget wise, we could spend up to $175k for the remodeling. Even with this investment, it would still be cheaper than buying a turnkey house (houses around here are really expensive). Small extensions are common in this area and many have included a small eating area in the kitchen. Some neighbours have also enclosed part of their front porch to add more square footage.
tira_misu
Original Author
9 years ago
Hi Fori,
Thanks for your input.
We currently have a little vestibule in our current house and do find it practical because it's our only door leading outside other than the main entrance. By adding a door on the side of the house and a closet space, I thought we wouldn't need such a room in the back of the house.
As for not parking the cars in the garage, well, what can I say, we never do lol! Right now, we store bikes, strollers, Christmas tree, patio furniture and all what you can think of in the garage. We'd park the cars between the garage and the house. Basically, the garage is located in the "top right" corner of the lot and the driveway goes all the way to the garage. So the cars would not be in the backyard, but next to the backyard.