Are you interested in making building additions to your home? There are a few steps you must take before you can bring your project to life in Houston.
7 Steps to Adding On to Your House in Houston
7 Steps to Adding On to Your House in Houston
7 CRITICAL STEPS TO BUILDING ADDITIONS TO YOUR HOME
Whether you’re adding a room to your home or looking into a more extensive transformation, use this guide to learn how to plan a home addition.
1. Determine Your Property Designation Status
You need to know what rules and requirements you need to follow when you’re building additions to your home. Is your property landmark protected or in a historic district? Are you a contributing structure, which adds to the character and significance of a historic neighborhood?
2. Find Your Property Lines
How much room do you have to work with on this project? You may want a massive sunroom or another large-scale addition, but you also need to keep in mind where your property lines are located so you don’t end up in your neighbor’s yard.
3. Establish the Scope of the Addition
Be exact with the scope of your new addition. Whether you’re adding a sunroom or converting a garage into a bedroom, you want to list all the details, from the expected size of the room to the fixtures that you want in it. Avoid adding more to the addition’s scope once the project is underway, as this can lead to major delays and budget increases.
4. Create a Design that Complements Your Current Floor Plan
While learning how to do an addition to your house, remember that you want the new room to be cohesive with the rest of your floor plan. When someone steps into that part of the house, it should feel like it was part of the original design. Look at similar houses to get inspiration and figure out which must-haves you should include when adding a room to your home.
5. Contact the City of Houston Planning and Development Department
Now that you know what you want to do, it’s time to get the right permits to proceed with the project. You can contact the City of Houston Planning and Development Department to start this process.
If this is your first home addition or you’d rather have someone experienced helping you with the often-confusing requirements, contact Plans & Permits to handle your City of Houston Planning and Permitting. Our team of professionals can expedite your permitting so that administrative tasks don’t cause a bottleneck while making additions to your home.
6. Create House Plans
Now you need the finalized plans that the contractors use to bring your home addition plans to life. Typically, you work with Houston home designers that specialize in creating these plans, such as Plans & Permits. While it might seem like a relatively straightforward part of your project, you need to have a plan that meets requirements for the City of Houston Building Code. Professional assistance is highly recommended.
7. Implement House Plans
Now it’s the most exciting part of the process — implementing your plans! All your hard work pays off once the contractors come in and create your new room. Enjoy your expanded floor plan and start thinking about other home improvements that can improve your quality of life.
You have a lot of steps to go through when you’re preparing to add on to your Houston home. Reduce the stress and time it takes to go from idea to implementation by contacting Plans & Permits today.