Is it better, given the current peninsula prices of $1K/sq ft to buy the square footage already there or to add on?
What’s the current price rate for doing an addition? Let’s say 1000 sq ft and needing a bathroom, but not a kitchen? Like you take a 2-1 and expand backwards adding either one or two stories and putting in a family room (on the bottom), plus two bedrooms and a bathroom (second floor). Redwood City, Inc flats or Unincorp part of RWC, flat part.
How does an addition change the property taxes? How is that amount assessed?
But my 2 cents, To my knowledge, additions are cheaper at $200/sqft to $350/sqft (higher finish material) for single story even now. Labor is tough to get, people won’t come for small jobs. It all depends how do you work it out.
The trouble is current layout and how much you can extend without affecting the beauty. Second issue is lot size, shape, slope and county/city rules, esp set back limit and max size limit. You need to have an architect eye/view on those homes
To my knowledge, if additions does not exceed beyond 50% size of current home, it is considered add-on and property tax likely be cheaper. Otherwise, city/county revise as if new home built. This varies city to city, check your city planning departments.
Again, I am not an expert/experienced, gathered from my friends experience (Cupertino, Sunnyvale, San Jose).
Just from remodeling a unit in the building that I sold, material/supply cost has gone up a lot lately. My contractor was complaining about how much plywood per piece was at HD now…
$1k/sq ft is misleading. Most of what you’re buying is the land value. That’s why the existing house costs so much. It’s rare I’ve seen additions that work well in terms of flow and function of the home. Most seem like something extra bolted on.
You’ll notice for the same size lot the price per sq ft usually decreases as the home size increases.
Could be, contractors in the BA can charge whatever they want. Talk to a few. I have few connections left. But I heard prices are outrageous. Buy then add on in the next recession…
I would avoid a major addition. Maybe take a 3/2 and turn into a 4/3. Add a 600sf mater suite at ground level.
$500/SF . $300k
elt1, what is the cost of building this home, now in 2018, for an experienced builder (tear down and rebuild like this)? Will it cost 800k or 1M or 1.2M level?
I don’t really know anymore. Been living in paradise too long. Besides all my contacts are retired like me. My generation had a lot of great craftsman. There is now a shortage of skilled labor. Costs are skyrocketing and quality is suspect. There is even a shortage of unskilled labor… nowhere in the BA to house cheap labor. I would go to Stockton or Sacramento to get reasonable bids. My Stockton dentist will do a crown for $800 that would cost $1600 in San Carlos.
Good advice from Elt1. Build only what you just need and defer the rest for the next recession. I was able to build 500 sqft addition(includes a bathroom), and refloor old house, new roof everywhere, redo 2 bathrooms, reframe a garage, new windows, new stucco/exterior paint, 800 sq feet of paver pathways, architect + city fees - all inclusive about 290$ a sq ft. My interior finishes are nothing outstanding. Just simple stuff.