Assuming the present structure can handle the increased load (i.e., no wood rot, and has sufficient framing, which only a structural engineer can tell you), and that you aren't planning any significant interior renovations with that budget, $100k sounds doable. Barely. It will probably bed more than that, and will depend greatly on the materials you choose, such as the type of roof coverings (asphalt or wood shingles, for instance), and the complexity of the details you want.

You'll also probably need an architect, as well as a very good GC with experience in this kind of work. They'll be happy to give you estimates.

I sure hope you aren't planning to live there while this work goes on....

I don't see that renovation happening without totally reengineering the foundations and lower floor walls, which will probably require tearout to the studs when the top floor is removed to be redone. It would only be doable in some areas of the country with that budget, and only if you DIY a lot of it. If you're in the heartlands and not on either of the coasts, you might be able to do the shell for 100K, but you won't be able to do much finishing out unless you DIY. For anyone looking at that extensive a renovation, it'd be cheaper to look at a bigger house in the first place. It'll save you a ton of aggravation, and as Matt says, you will NOT be able to inhabit the structure during the 6 or more months that renovation would be going on, so add 6 months of apartment rent to the budget as well. If you live in one of the insane labor priced areas of the country like San Francisco or Connecticut, then double that budget and you still may not approach what it would buy in Iowa or somewhere like that. All in all, a complete teardown and totally new construction would probably be cheaper, and new construction costs are approaching $150 per square foot for "average" for most of the country. Renovation square foot costs are usually at minimum double that of new construction due to the complexity of tying in the old with the new.

The first step would be as remodeler matt suggested, get a consultation from a licensed,reputable structural engineer.The foundation would be your first concern, on up from there.

I sure wouldn't do it. If you can afford a larger home, buy one. You will be very unlikely to get your money back. You will have created a mostly old, somewhat new, architectural "whatsis". It will cost more and take longer than you can imagine and you will have to live elsewhere.

Hmmm...interesting points. Thanks for the comments!

We do have someplace else to live during the construction, so that's not a problem (we're buying this as a weekend/summer home), but we're definitely in a high labor cost area. The thing is, this house is in a very desirable Westchester location and is about the least expensive house in the town. The land is expensive, and there is a large price break (200K+) between a 2bd home (what it is now) and a 3bd home (what we'd like it to be) in this neighborhood. If we spent 200K more and bought a 3 bedroom fixer upper instead, we wouldn't have any money left to fix it up. We couldn't tear it down and build a new three bedroom home here for 200K due to labor costs, plus I don't think we could get a variance for a teardown anyway because the house sits on the back property line and thus violates the setbacks. I think our only chance for getting a variance for the expansion is to stay in the footprint of the original house and try to pitch the remodel as a "modest" renovation.

If we get the house evaluated and it's strong enough to support the enlarged second story without reengineering, do you still think it would go over 100K for 500 or so sq ft? There is already heat, plumbing, and electricity up there. It's hard for me to figure out what would cost so much.

Thanks for your help!

-Melissa

Seems to me that if this house is already a (current) code violation, the city won't be interested in allowing you to enlarge it.

When the small ranch next to our teardown/new build was being permitted for the same treatment, their little dollhouse/shed within five feet of our mutual lot line had to go.

It's a cute little house as it is. Guess I'd leave it alone. What is that little low extension on the right front? Is there a "main house" on the front of the lot?

The extension on the front right is an attached garage. This is the main house -- just built on the back of the property.

All of the other houses in the area either started bigger or have been expanded; this is one of the smallest houses in the vicinity.

-Melissa

Hi Melissa,
We are going to do something similar to a house we just purchased as well. After talking to several contractors, we decided to track down an architect. My hope is that will give us a few designs that will allow us to stay w/in our current square footage without doing a major overhaul, or adding on to make our dream home. We hesitated about an architect at first bc I know it seems pricey but I am hoping it will keep costs in check down the road. The contractors I spoke to had great ideas but they were quick to "spend" my whole budget. A friend suggested an architect will give us a few plans and then we will have details to use to bid out the project. It will eat into our budget for sure but (we are planning about $100k as well) and I know that 10 to 15% will go to the design but I am hoping it will make the most of every inch. Congrats on the great buy.

Thanks Jennemmy -- would love to see the progress you make on yours!

We're planning on going the architect route too. I think that could increase our chances of getting the zoning variance approved. We're going to stay in the original footprint of the house, but they could still block it since the house is legal nonconforming. It would be silly to not at least try given the price of land in this particular neighborhood, and the fact that the current second story is ridiculously tiny (my husband is 6'4" and his head hits the ceiling fan, and the only stairs up to the second story are wobbly attic stairs).

-Melissa

Similar problem here. Ugly ranch. I wanted to add a second floor and create a master bed/bath and convert to a 4 bedroom. Budget was 200k because that is all the house will suppport as an investment. Any dollar in over 200k won't be returned. As it is, 200k addition will only get me 200k in value. Met with an Architect, he said "no way" for that budget. Since I already need a new roof, siding and windows, he said I really could only realistically move some walls inside to stay in budget, maybe. The house is on Cape Cod, and he said building costs are 200/sq-ft MINIMUM! He jut bid a house that came back at 450/sq-ft!

Plan to meet with a builder next. I am still hoping to hear something different, but I doubt I will.

Wow, keep me posted on how it goes Wianno. We just closed on our house and now after seeing it empty for the first time I'm freaking out about how much work has to be done and wondering if we made a huge mistake. It's funny how much more livable a house looks when it's furnished, but how glaring all the problems seem when it's empty. I'm feeling pretty discouraged. We haven't seen the architect yet because we wanted to wait until after closing.

Hi,
I would worry most that the front of the house looks like an enclosed porch, which would mean major foundation issues. The foundation issues for the remainder of the house are also valid concerns. The house looks narrow as it stands, so fitting a good-looking code-compliant staircase is going to eat into already scarce floorspace. Thinking of aesthetics, will you get rid of the garage? Think how it would impact curb appeal. After all, you want bigger to = better, and be able to get all of your investment back, or why bother.
My instinct would be that unless the property (lot) is worth it, I wouldn't enlarge the house. Will it become the highest price property on the block, or will there still be others higher? You never want the most expensive house on the block to be yours- there isn't anyone pulling your values up- you are doing all the pulling for everybody else.
Casey

I had wanted to do this on the house we purchased and couldn't even come close to touching it with a $100,000 budget. We are also in a high labor cost.

When you have the engineer and design person look at it, look at possibly raising the first floor up. I was told it is much easier to raise the structure and build a new first floor, than to go up like I wanted.

Gloria

#1, I can't see how in a high labor market you could afford to do any sizable remodeling on an old house (just wait till you tear into the walls and find the usual horrors) for $100K.

#2, as a weekend/summer home, I seriously doubt you'd get your money back, even in Westchester. Your property taxes alone would be a killer increase, wouldn't they?

I think the front of the house used to be a porch, but at some point (possibly in the 40s, when the second story was added) a front addition and rear addition were added. It was a tiny house originally! We had an architect come look at it today and he didn't think foundation issues would be a problem (he's done several second story additions in the neighborhood) but he says we would have a structural engineer look at it. He also thought our budget was very tight, but that maybe we could afford to have it framed and roofed, and then do a lot of the finishing ourselves (which was our plan). We won't be able to get a certificate of occupancy until a lot of things are basically done but I think we're ok with that.

Regarding whether it's worth it -- if we can finish everything off for less than $175K over the next two years, I'm pretty sure it's worth it. The houses one block up from us are in the 800K-$1M range; our block is mostly in the 700K range even for some of the scruffier looking houses so we could spend our whole budget and still only have as much investment in the house as the others are currently worth. This isn't considered a weekend home area; it's very much a full-time family residence area, we are just in a unique position of having an employer-subsidized rental in the city, so it can be a weekend place for us until when/if we decide to move up there more full-time. I should find out about the increase in property taxes though. This thread is really helpful -- thank you all for your feedback!