Renovating your house can make it better suited to your family’s needs. A new room or a change to the layout should make your home more functional. Think about how you use your house now, the problems you face and how to address them. Consider traffic patterns, lines of sight and other issues. Any changes that you make should fit with the house’s existing design so it won’t be obvious to a casual observer that one part was added on later.
How to Stay Consistent With Your House’s Original Style
Homeowners sometimes run into problems when they make renovations that differ significantly from a house’s original design. For instance, the new windows may be a different size or height than the old ones. If a new room is at a different elevation than the rest of the house, people may have to step up or down to enter.
An addition should not be noticeable from the outside. Your house should appear as though it has always existed in its complete form. The addition should fit with the existing roofline and should be appropriate for your lot size. It should not take up so much space that you are left with a small yard. That could leave you with limited space to spend time with family and friends and for your children to play. It could also make it difficult to sell your house in the future.
Create a cohesive look by incorporating materials or design elements from the original part of the house into a new addition. Match elements such as flooring, crown molding and door and window hardware as closely as possible. If you can’t find an exact match, you may need to replace some existing materials to create a seamless look.
Renovating a Historic Home
If you have a historic home or one with a unique architectural style, you may need to make significant updates, but you should also strive to preserve its original character. The kitchen and bathrooms in a historic house may be much smaller than the ones in modern homes and not suitable for your family’s needs. You may need to completely redesign those rooms to make them more functional while incorporating historical elements from other parts of the house or refurbishing some materials to pair them with newer materials and appliances.
Find an Experienced and Qualified Contractor
Don’t rush into a renovation project. Interview several contractors who have experience with additions and renovations. Discuss what you hope to achieve and any potential problems you have. If you have a historic house, hire professionals who have successfully renovated similar homes. Talk about how to make the new part of the house blend seamlessly with the current structure and how to address issues related to consistency and flow. Request examples of past projects and contact references to ask if they were satisfied with the contractor’s work.
