ADDING ON

Daniel Builders has added square footage to many homes in the Upstate of South Carolina over the last 18+ years. The location of projects range from Anderson to Seneca to Greenville, South Carolina. These projects share one thing in common: they all require a budget. Budget is the biggest factor for determining what can and cannot be accomplished. Fortunately, there are a multitude of options (we’ll touch on a few here) to accommodate different budget ranges.

 The Design Team at Daniel Builders works close with Billy Zion, the principal architect at Zion Architects. Billy looks at the space within a home analytically, creatively and with functionality in mind. According to Billy, “Careful attention to existing walls and adjacent interior spaces. Other considerations include exterior mass, scale, and connection is necessary to ensure an addition looks and feels congruent with the existing home and not inconsistent.” Side note, speaking with a Project Guide at Daniel Builders is a great place to start the budget discussion and move your project forward into the Design phase.

Here are ways to increase livable space within your home.

Traditional Home Addition

Naturally, this is what comes to mind when discussing a home addition. These additions are built on to your home from the outside. A master bedroom suite addition (adding a bedroom with an adjacent bathroom) is a popular example. Adding this type of space to your home causes minimal disruption to your daily life during the Build phase. This because the work is happening outside your current living space. No change in routine is necessary. To make room for a traditional addition some part of your existing landscape will be sacrificed.

Detached Accessary Dwelling Units (ADUs)

The Rise of ADUs, a blog written earlier this year, has great content on ADUs. The type of ADU we’re discussing is detached or outside the existing walls of your home. Think Tiny Home. The process for building one of these is very similar to building a custom home, just on much smaller scale. The bottom line is a detached ADU, such as the one our team built pictured above, adds livable space.

Adding to your home doesn’t always require adding a completely new structure, as in the case of a traditional home addition or detached accessary dwelling unit. A less expensive approach (generally speaking) won’t require a separate structure. You can, instead, convert unused space in your home into living space. Here are common ways to utilize space already nder your roof.

Attic Conversions

What is above your ceiling? There are a variety of ways to utilize this space. The preceding photos show one example of an attic transformed by Daniel Builders and how it went from a utilitarian storage area to a very lovely living space.

Structural qualifications and code approval are challenges associated with an attic conversion. Roof trusses in this area present additional challenges but doesn’t need to derail your attic conversion.

Garage Conversions

Remodeling a garage into livable space requires electrical modifications, insulation, and windows. Insulation keeps the area from being too drafty during the cold months or sweltering heat in the summer. Plus, well insulated walls minimize noise, and that translates to more peace, privacy, and quiet for you and your family.

Windows are another big consideration. Garage conversions commonly begin with no windows, but building codes

require them when converting your garage into a livable space. Windows have an added benefit of bringing beautiful natural light and good ventilation into the converted space. Plus, they help keep energy costs manageable.

Basement Conversions

Another direction you can go in your quest for more space is down. Does your home have an unfinished basement? If so, this is a great option for adding on. This is not to say you can’t build down without one, but the cost becomes exponentially more costly when no basement is there to begin with.

Using an attic, basement, or garage may trigger new storage challenges. Possible solutions are a shed, storage unit, or just getting rid of stuff. Something else to keep in mind as you go through this process is your homeowner’s insurance. Adding livable space will require added coverage, and that’s something you’ll want should anything happen to your newfound space!

When converting unused space or creating home additions in South Carolina, Daniel Builders is your trusted partner. Are you ready to modify existing space within your home? Are you living in Greenville South Carolina or Anderson South Carolina and need more information about adding onto your home? Speak with a Daniel Builders project guide by calling 864.506.5546 and discuss the best path forward for your custom renovation or get your renovation started here! 

Read more about accessory dwelling units (ADUs) here and here. Read more about how we proudly serve Greenville, South Carolina here and learn how to choose a reliable home renovation contractor here.