Extension or knockdown rebuild: how to decide

Almost every client who calls us about more space asks the same question in the first ten minutes: do we extend, or do we start again? The answer usually comes down to the bones of the existing house and what the block allows.

Five checks worth making early

• Structure: are the existing footings, frame and roof worth carrying forward?
• Layout: does the current floor plan work with an addition, or fight it?
• Site: slope, access, easements and setbacks all shape what is possible
• Services: age and capacity of plumbing, drainage and electrical
• Value: what the finished home is worth against total project spend

Working through those five points with a builder and designer together, before drawings are locked in, is what keeps a project realistic. It is exactly what our consult and design stages are built to do.