Smart Remodeling

Home Extension Ideas

Share

A home extension is a great way to add value to your home. An extension also works well when transforming a bland house into something which works for every member of the family.

For families who are a little short on room, house expansions are an excellent answer. Do you need extra space to get you through the upcoming years but aren't quite ready to relocate entirely? Do you want to maximize the potential of your home to make it your permanent home? This is the right place for advice on where to start as well as for exciting house expansion ideas.

Things To Consider To Add Value With A Home Extension

A home extension comes with many benefits, one of which includes value addition. Here are some crucial factors to think about when planning a home addition to make sure it doesn't end up costing considerably more than the value it brings.

Look up the maximum price for comparable properties in your area. This is important because buyers will not pay more than what other properties are asking for.

Make sure you select an experienced and trained contractor to complete the expansion work to a high standard. Remember that quality costs more but adds more value so the quality of the home extension will also affect the return on investment.

Make sure that the anticipated cost of the home extension is less than the possible increased values by comparing the budget to the value add.

Consider any complications that might increase the cost of the extension. Involve a contractor during your planning and design stage to look for areas such as sloping land or deeper foundations that might require more capital during an extension.

ProTip Takeaway: The amount of value that an extension will contribute to a property's value will vary greatly. This will depend on the size, design, and complexity of the addition, as well as the property's location.

Our Home Extension Ideas

Add a porch to create space

Raise the ceiling

Add a balcony

A spacious double story

Build a small glass extension

Use a lightwell in a dark basement

Add a Studio or Guest House

Replace concrete roofing with a length of glass

Add a Sunroom

Add a bay window extension

A side return extension

A kitchen extension

A Loft Conversion

A garden room extension

Add a porch to create space

Building a new porch might serve as a practical barrier against the elements. This is especially useful if your front door leads directly into the living room rather than a hallway or if you want to open up a narrow corridor.

A porch is also a fantastic house expansion idea to provide additional, useful interior storage space and to help give character to a featureless exterior.

An enclosed porch might affect the quantity of natural light that enters your home through the front door. However, with careful design and planning, you may be able to increase the amount of daylight that the room receives.

Raise the ceiling

Raising the ceiling is a good home extension idea for a room like a kitchen to make it feel bigger. This is a great way to conserve the original, large elements of the house while opening up and rationalizing the secondary spaces.

Add a balcony

Adding a balcony to your home is a terrific way to expand your living area. The balcony will create a shaded area outside the living room thanks to the balcony roof. You can also install glass doors in place of the back wall in your living area. For more seclusion and shade, you can have a long trellis that reaches the second story. 

A spacious double story 

A double-story addition is more affordable since it doubles up as the foundation and roof, which are two of the most expensive components of a structure. This can normally be used to enlarge the kitchen at the back of a house and even add a new bedroom upstairs.

Build a small glass extension

A small glass extension is one of the best house extension ideas for adding more light to your home. This can be used in a single-story addition, a side return, or across the back of your house. You will have to use a large area of windows to ensure that your newly expanded room is flooded with light all year long.

ProTip Takeaway: Glass extensions are suitable for both modern and traditional homes and are subject to building laws.

Use a lightwell in a dark basement

A basement does not have to be dark. Convert your basement to make it appear larger and lighter by adding a small glazed extension to the back of it. The addition needs to be very small in scale. It works well if it opens onto a courtyard that is sunken and/or has steps leading to a garden.

Add a Studio or Guest House

An existing garage can be transformed into a studio or more guest living space. This is a flexible approach to adding more space so that you can host visitors or use it as a workspace for your craftwork. It is also possible to create a patio for entertainment. You can also add an outdoor fireplace or fire pit to add a special touch.

Replace concrete roofing with a length of glass

If you have a small home you could benefit from adding an expansion to emphasize the length and ceiling height. You can use a long piece of glass or a row of roof lights for this.

It's important to select glass for a compact extension with a small or nearly unnoticeable frame. Not only will this make the windows appear bigger, but it will also let in more light. This will also make the room feel larger and, naturally, friendlier.

ProTip Takeaway: The best option would be to use large single panes, but they would be significantly more expensive than roof lights.

Add a Sunroom

If you are looking for additional space for unwinding, reading a good book, or finding some peace and quiet, a sunroom is a way to go. It is also perfect for those chilly winter days when you spend more time inside.

There are two ways to go about adding a sunroom. You can either convert an existing room into a sunroom to utilize it as additional space. You can also add this home extension by having a completely new addition that is accessed through a door inside the house.

Add a bay window extension

A room can be made larger with a projecting bay window extension. This extension can be cantilevered on brackets from the original building and does not necessarily need foundations.

ProTip Takeaway: A creative way to add a bay window extension is to add windows on the three sides which add to the feeling of space in a room.

A side return extension

A side return extension is a conventional way to expand a house. If a big space is available, side return extensions can even be combined with a second-story addition above the original kitchen to create an additional bedroom.

To successfully build a side return extension, you must strike a balance between expanding the interior space and sacrificing too much garden space. Additionally, it's important to involve a contractor during the design process to prevent the home from becoming unbalanced, with many bedrooms upstairs and a large living area downstairs.

These extensions go straight out to the side, across the full width of the property while others even go sideways and outward.

A kitchen extension

A modern kitchen extension to your home creates the perfect opportunity for you to improve the entire ground floor of your home. You can make a simple layout adjustment with the addition of natural light, and the installation of gadgets that can make your life easier.

If you have a room, consider designing a room that includes not only a kitchen and an eating area but also a spot for relaxing. You can also maximize the connection between the new room and the garden with French doors, bi-fold, or sliding doors.

A Loft Conversion

Loft conversions provide essential additional living space while also providing one of the best returns on investment for extending a home.

Additionally, loft conversions are permitted home expansions that do not require full planning permission for conversion. There is no need to go through the drawn-out process of requesting planning permission which makes the building process straightforward.

A garden room extension

If you need additional space in your home but there isn't enough area for an extension close to the house, building a garden room can be a perfect solution.

A garden room can be useful if you need a home office or theater room, a playroom for kids, a hobby area, or a home gym to solve all your space problems. It can also be built as a covered area from which to enjoy the garden when the weather is cooler.

Are You Ready For Home Extension?

Home extension ideas come in all shapes and sizes and can greatly increase both value and space in any home. Working with an experienced contractor like Smart Remodeling LLC will guide you on the best addition to make the most of the available space while also increasing the value of your home.

We are ready to answer any questions you may have so feel free to contact us today!