# Room Addition Second Story vs Ground Floor Add On



## Topcat (Jul 27, 2011)

How much more per square foot is it to add on above the garage than add on to the house at the ground floor? Per square foot?


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## Daniel Holzman (Mar 10, 2009)

There are at least two possible ways to approach this question. One way is to develop rough architectural plans for each option, then bid them out to local contractors. The other alternative is to hire an architect to develop alternative plans and prepare a cost estimate (a cost estimate is NOT a bid, it is simply an estimate). Option three is to ask this question on an internet chat forum, however that cannot yield a reasonable answer, merely uninformed speculation.


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## cibula11 (Jan 6, 2007)

Getting 2 or 3 bids from local contractors would be the best idea. My initial thought is that building OUT rather than building UP is going to be more cost effective, but that depends on a number of variables. Building UP you must demo the current roof structure which could post a few issues, especially to the current first floor space.


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## Jackofall1 (Dec 5, 2010)

The first question I have to ask is what kind of living space are you looking for, added bedrooms or added family room?

Naturally added bedrooms would be better suited on the UP side, added family space would be better suited on the ground floor level.

Is the house already 2-story? where-by you are simply extending the second floor over the garage?

Mark


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

You want to check if the garage foundation was engineered to carry the load of a second floor above.
Maybe the engineers can chime in. 
Is it typical for a garage foundation to be able to carry the additional load without reinforcement?
Are garages with brick ledges(12" thick foundations) better suited for the extra load?
I've seen ranches(with basements) become colonials without foundation modifications.


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## Topcat (Jul 27, 2011)

Jackofall1 said:


> The first question I have to ask is what kind of living space are you looking for, added bedrooms or added family room?
> 
> Naturally added bedrooms would be better suited on the UP side, added family space would be better suited on the ground floor level.
> 
> ...


Thank you all for suggestions-the living space is another bedroom and maybe half bathroom -family space will be on down. The house though is not already two story but the roof needs to be replaced anyway. I saw a neighbor add on over garage this way with circluar stairwell access and to my suprise they said it was only about 20% more than adding on downstairs-I think it might be more but getting some contractors to even give an estimate in a timely fashion is a chore in itself. You woudl think in a down market they would be hungry for work.


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