5 Home Expansion Ideas For Your Growing Family

If you're home is like ours you might need more room but dont really want to relocate! We decided to go instead with an expansion of our home to change our cramped issues! In 2021, 53% of homeowners renovated their homes to add value or cater to their family's growing size. But, not all home additions are made equal so why not tweak to your own home! Here are some popular home expansion ideas to consider.

1. Side return extensions

Do you have an alley or a walkway along the side of your house? Many vintage houses do, and they're usually home to bins and yard junk, which offer little value to the overall living experience. However, side return extensions are a popular option to enlarge your property. The addition itself is often relatively little in terms of how far it extends, but it spans the length of the space, allowing it to modify your interior without the need for planning approval. The roof lights above can replace lost wall windows, allowing far more light than a window facing a fence or wall.

2. Wrap-around extensions

Wrap-around extensions combine a side return with a rear extension, allowing the outer walls to move in both directions. They're wonderful for drastically expanding your living space and especially fit family life, producing vast open plan areas with a medium-sized kitchen, dining area, and seating space all in the same "room." You can also do a more thorough job of merging interior and outdoors with much greater space, employing bifold doors and roof lights to create a mix and flow between the garden and house. The cost of these expansions varies greatly due to the size of the whole extension.

3. Rare extensions

This extension is built at the back of your home, adding to your existing yard or patio space. They are commonly used to create bigger open-plan living rooms and integrate indoor/outdoor spaces. A typical example of a rare extension is a deck extension. This provides extra space to host small events such as family reunions. A small one may normally be completed without planning clearance, saving time and trouble. Lesser back extensions normally take 3-4 months, but larger options can take up to six months. A 5 x 5 m expansion will cost a minimum of £40,000. However, costs can vary based on the grade of materials used and where you live. 

4. Dormer extensions 

What do you have in your attic? Junk? Cobwebs? A dormer expansion might be an excellent choice if this is the case. A dormer extension replaces the roof’s pitch with a flat roof, resulting in a squared-off box area perfect for building master bedrooms with ensuite baths or more space for children's bedrooms. They seldom require planning approval and are more economical than other expansion construction types.

5. Extensions with two levels

Two-story extensions include taking one of the three types mentioned above, back, side return, or wrap around, and extending it across two stories rather than one. This benefit is that you get double the room for half the price. A double-story expansion is often just 50% more expensive than a single-story extension. This is because all the costs of foundations are locked into the bottom floor, and adding a story above is less effort overall. Most double-story additions require planning clearance, so keep that in mind as you plan your home improvement project.