Before you commit to anything go slow, relax…focus on these 6 things, so you feel like you are actualing doing something.
- Get your house drawn up “as built” This can be done for a set fee, about 50 cents to $1.00/sf. Your future AIA will need this…This is step 1 before approaching any architect… so it is NOT a waste of time or money. There is no art or design to this, it is just your house, as it is built today…great for practicing your 3D skills anyway…. or better yet…draw it yourself.
- Get a land survey…again… a set fee…no commitment… less than $1000. This is a legal document that has to be done before building, so it is not a waste of time or money.
- Learn the zoning codes for your area, the setbacks, the height restrictions, the percent land allowed to build on… simple Google work.
- Learn what trees might need to be removed…and get them removed… again.. this does not commit you….a baby step.
- Buy some home drawing software… play with the free versions for 30 days, then consider buying… again… this is the $500 range… still you can back out… give up, quit… you are safe.
- Start drawing… Learn how to draw, learn the keypad shortcuts, make your mouse fly, learn the software, get your muscle memory going, discover great YouTube teachers, buy a few books… Do this while watching TV at night… Redraw your house over and over and over again…Your ideas will evolve a lot as you draw… good…it cost your nothing but time to answer your own questions…
You will begin to think about the (costs/sf) vs the (appraisal/sf).
You will balance expensive rooms to build (kitchen, bathrooms, foundations) with cheap rooms to build (bedrooms, living rooms, decks, storage…. )
You can project an appraisal cost… the amount bank will loan you.
Also, think about your future taxes… this too, is just a matter of square feet. If your new house will get taxed too much, then reduce the living spaces, but increase the decks…(these are not taxed…) decks are great living spaces…that take the pressure off the main house.
Similarly, garages are not taxed, storage rooms under your house are not taxed…be creative…
Build a flexible house with minimum taxable square feet.
Finally, SEE your new house, BEFORE you commit to building it…from all angles, all seasons, all light. See that it fits in your neighborhood.
This is your dream time…your free time.
You are not committed to building or renovating.
… just getting the facts ‘Ma’am.
The “Planning to build” stage, is a year or two process… not a month or two process.
At each point…you can eject…and just sell your house and move.
People can avoid years of heartache and misery, by just moving. …not building new or renovating.
Your real life, your real job, your real family should take precedence over renovation.
However, you might not want to move … again.
You might like your neighbors, your schools and location… so renovation might make sense…. but to be SURE, you need facts.
Then add a year of your spare time drawing… while watching TV, drawing over and over again, your future house. No one else will care more than you… so just do it.
Dream can be fun, and errors are fixed on screen.
As you get surer, you can show your drawings to your family, to an architect.
Make a list of contractors, ask your neighbors or banks for people… cross out the bad ones, getting references BEFORE you even speak to one.
But still, you can back out… you are just thinking, just talking, you are safe… you can still move!
You have not built a Frankenstein house, or gone bankrupt… you are just thinking…drawing, dreaming… you are safe.
I repeat…this is not a month or two process…this is a year or two operation… always know you can stop and just move…
But if your drawings are really good, and your bid is detailed (YOUR detailed bid… not your contractors vague bid..)…you might be safe to take the leap and renovate… always repeating:
If it is not in the blueprints,
You will not get it.
If it is not in the bid,
You will not get it.
By spending this time, and SEEING your 3D drawings, and learning about beauty, and creative design, and fitting into your neighborhood, and prospect and refuge.... your odds of being successful, are exponentially better than 90% of the badly build houses you see around you ….
Then, and only then, it MIGHT be safe to renovate… or build…
Putting your life savings into the 2 years it takes to build… takes guts…
But with the 3D drawings you made, drawings of each room, each view, proving you are correct… it will give you the backbone to face the banks, the appraisers, the subs and contractors in the uphill battle ahead.
All you money, your life, your dreams will be on RED…
Spin…?