As a ballpark figure for a second storey addition you'd probably be spending at least $2300+ per square metre of space. This would be for a 'standard' fit out.

The important part is stair location as this will affect the whole house.

Stair's also chew up quite a bit of room so you're pretty much losing an average bedroom sized area for the stair's alone so to make it all worthwhile!

Using an architect (or any other experienced building designer) is a worthwhile investment. However an architect in particular really come's into their own when you use them for not just plan's but also to organise council approval's and oversee construction. In some area's this is a very important move as some council's can be tricky to deal with so having the architect deal with it all will make your life much easier!

Added floor area as a ballpark is around $2300 per square metre. So a 70 sqm upstair's addition you'd have to presume initially you're up for around $161,000 for a 'standard' fit out. Add solid timber staircase, decorative cornice's, hardwood floors and it will jump up rather quickly again.

Depending on the extent of the works/reno downstair's you'd be ballpark around $1500 per square metre. Renovation to an existing space is harder to ballpark.

I use these number's as a starting point when designing so I can gauge the work's. We sharpen it up as it becomes clearer what we're going to do. We guesstimate quite a bit at the start and any experienced designer should have a reasonable idea of cost's of building, building material's and the processes.

would you consider some double story extension as well as adding above the existing house, do you need car access into the backyard, what are the two rooms without furniture at the front and side of the house (garage or carport?) is there any space available in the front yard for any extra rooms (eg add an extra garage at front and re-purpose existing garage) where is north, are there any good or bad views, please name the rooms on the plan and show dimensions

ignoring aspect and correct dimensions my suggestion may have some ideas to consider and i've left the two garages with backyard access and the upstairs could have a simple gable roof to complement downstairs

front facing north would be better with windows into upstairs lounge

Hey oklouise clearly you're much better at this than me!!! We just found out from the council that we could also go forward up to the garage... So now we're considering this. Maybe everything downstairs and upstairs just over the outdoor area as I've been told that it would save a lot. Think you could have a play off the original house plans?? Basically, we want 2 good living areas, study, 4 bedrooms, 2 or 3 bathrooms and we were thinking we would move the garage on the right forward and use that for a living area that opens to the back area...

What do you think??

Here are the house plans as is today. We have a pool directly behind the outdoor area;

House;

Garage and outdoor;

Hi Ross, I 'm in favour of keeping it single storey for a couple of reasons 1) cost of going up for questionable real gain (an architect will come up with something snazzy but it will be $$$$) 2) you have a really attractive home with a nice roof line 3) you can do what you want by rejigging the front of the house, saving probably $100K against going up, and getting a very comfortable modern, stylish home. savings can be put towards more plants , furnishing the new rooms etc

are you talking about the window in the second picture, making it a slider and bigger? If so that wall is definitely load bearing, but you should be able to replace that window by using a bigger lintel, and strengthening the supporting frame.

shouldn't be a problem Ross

how about like this??

Hey, oklouise this is good. I would like to open the back part rather than put a bed there but understand the issues with the light given that the right-hand side is right up against another house. Would love a walk-in pantry and maybe a storeroom as well I guess that could be a part of the rumpus. Where would the kitchen island go here?? That wall in the new rumpus to go into the outdoor entertainment area is where I could put those doors I posted earlier.

This also looks much simpler and more cost-effective than going up. Would rather single storey if it ticks the boxes.

Hi Ross, I think I can get you what u want with 1 internal wall moved, and 1 small addition, and reuse the garage door. The back part keep as is as it has a nice view of the yard, maybe with new larger window and sliding door. The rumpus might only need some more furniture. I wouldn't muck around with it too much at this stage. Leftover money can go on improving the windows if necessary, landscaping and furniture. I will try and draw something up..

basic kitchen layout with pantry and garage access reusing existing kitchen cabinets and appliances with extra storage and variations for bathroom, laundry, study and entry with step up from new living..With careful doorways this variation has minimal demolition, new walls and roof and limited driveway alterations and creates open plan kitchen family dining and rumpus room opening to verandah and pool area and should be less than half the cost of the two storey renovation and be a more comfortable home with small children

Hi Ross, I promised I would draw something, here it is. It should result in a nice comfortable light filled home that won't break the bank..features north facing lounge room, courtyard garden, awnings over all windows, combined study and occasional bedroom (Bed 4), walk in pantry, new windows and sliding door in family room, skylights or voids in the entertainment area roof. The only thing I haven't got is a 3rd loo, but that can be put in the entertainment area by extending out from the Bed 4 (current lounge) wall. I am guessing the garage is more an entertainment area then a garage..if u need another car spot, I would suggest a timber clad carport out the front of the entertainment area. But make sure that light can get into the house. The 3rd loo would be useful for the entertainment area and could act as a guest ensuite. You could put a shower in there for pool users, or go for a nice outdoor shower with a copper head next to the pavilion. The pavilion needs an awning too.

oops..sorry. got technology issues with a dodgy scanner...

here they are..

Andy Pat's variation for a new living area with extra garage

thanks Louise, that's pretty close..the garage on the right could be a carport (mainly for aesthetics and airflow), and can be added later. Bed 4/ study could have a narrow 300Wx1200H window in the entertainment area.. not strictly necessary but will look good. The front room should have 2 windows, NNE and NNW (carport side) for the winter. Sliding door access via the double garage into the hall. Also I would like to see 2 rectangular 2mx1m voids or skylights in the entertainment area for light and airflow..1 adjacent the kitchen window on the eastern pitch and 1 adjacent the study on the western pitch, this one will light up the study wall in the afternoon creating interest. On that wall can be hung a nice outdoor artpiece next to the window. I prefer voids to skylights for airflow up/down and sky views. the lining of the void could be something snazzy too.

Hey, sorry for not responding. I have had so many opinions and really want to keep costs to some level. I wouldn't want to spend any more than 400k and I got some ridiculous prices from builders. Also really want to keep the garage on the right with great access out back. So going up but smaller is on the cards after speaking to another architect (family friend). With a Truss roof opening downstairs is fairly straightforward. So trying to keep it fairly simple and lift one part of the roof and leave other trusses in place. Whilst still achieving the desired outcome. So here's what the latest is and now trying to get some builders to give me some idea of cost.

Original:

New:

- Staircase

- Open downstairs

- Move laundry and toilet downstairs

- Add butlers pantry

- 3 beds upstairs with bathroom, toilet and study

- Open master bedroom

so bringing this roof off an up. I'd love to raise the ceiling downstairs but think that'll blow cost out.

What are your thoughts? It's about 10sq addition upstairs. at 20k a square that's 200k then spend 150k downstairs (surely not that much....) so 350k reno. I would like quality and want to change floors downstairs also and just 2pac the kitchen draws.

Thoughts?

Pretty good overall.

I'd probably swap bathroom with study and add a toilet to bathroom as well as keep WC. But really either way works and not the end of the world.

A client is doing a similar size project and they spent $110,000 downstairs and just under $200,000 for the second storey add. They have now decided to add a balcony to upstairs so that has bumped up costs a bit. Luckily its all under construction and wasn't 100% completed.....

Therefore your cost estimate is pretty close to the mark.

Thanks. I put the study in the front because I do have some late night and early morning calls so tried to keep it as far away from bedrooms as possible. Like it open, but could close it off. Thanks for sharing that estimation. I'll be interested to hear if I go forward a bit more upstairs which means altering the other trusses how much that would blow out the cost. That's why I tried to only affect a set of the trusses from the original roof.

no don't do it, not necessary..did u cost out my suggestions?

you will still get some nice garden views and light from the backyard..also don't forget you will have a really nice undercover entertainment area, going up is expensive, difficult, often looks 'funny', where do you put the stairs, and where/how do u live while major building is going on. I will only recommend going up in special circumstances such as a new house on a tight block, or where a view can be made from the living area. See my previous posts about this (in activity). Also, bigger is not necessarily better, so if you are wanting to make the whole of the back of the house open plan..it might not work as well as a nice smaller area with sofas and views of the backyard. You have a a good entertainment area which will be pretty comfortable at most times of the year.

plan's looking better every time but can't help offering some more ideas..pushing the fridge back will make the kitchen feel much more spacious and now that you've decided to keep the upstairs restricted to the central part of the house the single flight of stairs may be worth considering with space for a shower in the powder room and entry to the stairs at the more "open" end of the room with space under the stairs for a walk in storage area

i agree that the lower roof at the back is better and also reduces overshadowing in the rear garden but another option for a separate study is very much dependent on downstairs headroom and upstairs access over the stairs but could be worth discussing with your building designer

Thanks for this Louise. I love this Houzz forum it's so helpful. Was really considering a knockdown rebuild but think we should get what we would love for half the price of a rebuild. Don't need huge space just well-used space where my family can grow up in. Think I'm really close now. Appreciate all the help from everyone!!

Thanks, Paul and yes I do agree and understand going double is more work and there are a lot of unknowns that could cause scope creep.

Will work with a single storey and a double storey plan to make comparison. Just didn't seem to hit the mark with a single storey plan because of how we want to open the back.

Also looking at a knockdown rebuild and what that would cost. I've made some really good capital gains on the property. If I could find a block close by I would sell and build new on that block or by a house where I like the floor plan and do some renovation. But this size block is rare for the area.

For what I bought my house and block combined, I couldn't buy just the land. To be honest I want it to be a 10 year + home so want to be satisfied and happy in it and pay what needs to be paid to be happy without going stupid and over capitalising too much. So having a few knock down rebuilds estimations coming in to get an idea.

Ross, no problem, & great to see you are considering options............as yes it is about working out the best balance for on one hand meeting the goals/vision for your home and in the other making sense in regards to the investment/value/numbers.........I've become increasingly aware that this is at the heart of what we (as designers) need to be addressing (in this particular residential area) as early as possible in the process.......it's honestly relatively straight forward (easy!) to design, detail and configure space one way or the other to a particular aethetic or functional goal. But it's when you apply hard/realistic/current construction numbers to various options where it's gets down and dirty and it sorts the men out from the boys so to speak...........there are always many different ways of achieving client's needs and funnily enough, being in my position with the knowledge/experience etc in this area I know I have (increasingly) inadvertently advised/guided people actually away from pursuing the custom/reno project (and in turn doing myself out of work!) by getting them to think rationally, deeply and objectively about the lifestyle and project goals they a really seeking, & clarifying this together with a number, before then pursuing (confidently) a particular project option. Designing space to a degree of detail really only becomes relevant AFTER those aspects are clarified/resolved and people are 100% set on pursuing a particular project in a particular context - ie you only do it if you (a) decide that place/site/house is definitely where you want to be and (b) it makes sense economically or you can afford it...........I think you're on the right track, and you'll work it out, but I think you will find in your case that due to the now significant labour factor associated with construction, that arguably you'll get better bang for buck in a rebuild package vs reno once you kick over a certain scale of project. $400K is a ballpark that now (in the custom world, on projects of your scale) unless the scale is super constrained and the degree of difficulty/spec is minima/basic, whilst it's a reasonable amount of money, in reality it doesn't stretch that far when you stack up the various substrade and components involved. Volume packages in this ballpark (albeit that they are what they are) due to their natural economies of scale will deliver more scope more economically...........and for some people that is the better investment in context (for them) depending upon their particular goals and priorities.......best of luck with continuing to work through it all Ross :)

Thanks again Paul. I'm not really keen on the big builders. As I've gone through this I am conscious of the fact that whoever would do a renovation would need to be worth their while also. I don't want someone to just do it. Been told that 400k is a starting point for any decent builders to do a renovation so they are happy doing it. Been told that with the truss roof and using external walls going up isn't a tough ask and relatively straightforward in terms of construction. One builder even mentioned I could raise the roof level downstairs to really open it up. But that would be scope creep. Wish me luck. haha.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating volume build in ANY way....there's actually little positive I can say about it except they are a more affordable option, and for some people that's the priority.....,whether or not it's in fact good value for money is a whole other discussion ;).......people have to work out where they sit within the quality to quantity spectrum for a particular project..................It's certainly a challenge here for you in that how can you accurately assess and distill/filter the "advice" offered by various parties?.......Seriously, unless a builder actually absorbs your design brief and comes back with a considered solution, any suggestion/comment such as " you could raise the ceiling" or "put in a window" or "use trusses" of whatever is neither here nor there, and are just floating ideas to consider in the mix...........but isolated "suggestions", whilst may be ideas to consider, don't effectively dealing with the overall solution/big picture to your challenge..................there are different areas of expertise in this game.....builders are builders, (and they seem to have a knack of getting called in and influencing too early in the process) they build stuff and certainly they have an idea about this and that from experience, and they can provide sound quotation/opinion on how much it will cost to do something... BUT really only properly/accurately once there is hard documentation in place (read: documented&specified, not basic concept/design sketches/verbal ideas) .......I have great respect for builders (it's a seriously hard rugged gig) and I know some fantastic ones, but builders are (in general) not "designers" unless they have come form a design background......and the conversations if held too early can be (unintentionally blurred, confusing and actually detrimental to the client and what they really need to be focusing on...........design advice from a builder can be offered with good intentions, however I have found it generally comes from more a singular benefit angle (usually motivated by business/profit) whereas (good/seasoned design) advice from a design professional comes from more complex, balanced and creative position and process in which various aspects are simultaneously managed/considered to achieve results for a client on multiple levels, ie, cost, function, aesthetic, experience etc.............the different and various professional skills all have their place, but need to be utilised in the right order relevant to the process......................yep I wish you all the luck.....these are always big investments, and big decisions, both emotionally and financially :)