Phases in Planning a Home Addition

Phases in Planning a Home Addition

As you would expect, designing a Home Addition in Toronto can be a time-consuming process. As it is a large task, it is critical not to rush the planning step to guarantee that everything is done correctly the first time.

Whether you want to add a sunroom, a formal dining room, a home office, or any other sort of home addition, proper planning is necessary. This will save you money and time in the long term. It can also help you become aware of any potential issues along the way and help you to prepare for them.

While there will be numerous decisions to be taken, the planning process may be divided into three major and crucial phases.

Phase 1: Define property lines

Before creating a floor plan, it is important to determine where the ownership boundaries are. It is important to make sure you know exactly where your property line starts and ends between your neighbours and the municipality. This will give you an idea of the amount of space you can use when creating your floor plan.

How do you know where the boundary of your land is? Usually, if the previous owner has an official survey from the property they would have passed the copy to your lawyer. However, if you don’t have access to it, it can be obtained by hiring a professional survey company to complete a survey from your property.

The process of preparing and stamping an official survey copy can take 3 to 5 weeks. It is important to hire an experienced survivor to complete this portion of jobs properly, as many of your following decision will lead from here.

Phase 2: Design a plan

Now that you know how much space there is, you can start arranging the floor plan of your home addition. Following are what you need to pay attention in the process of designing:

City By-Laws and Legality

Even though you have the ownership of your property in full, The city’s by-law has a section on how far you can use your back and front yard as a living space. This is a critical point, as you can not add as much as you like to your home.

Functionality and Return on Investment

While you do not need to create a design, as one of our designers at Maserat Developments can assist you, you should think about how you will use the space.

You’ll want to plan something that not only is inside the area but also works great with the design of your existing home. The layout of the new space is another important aspect that can be dictated by your goals and needs in future. Through our consultation meeting with our clients, we always emphasize both the client’s needs and future Returns. You have to understand the needs of the market, so you can plan your addition in a way that your future prospective buyer finds your property fuctional.

Phase 3: Building permit

Once the layout and structure of your project are defined by the designer and structure engineer, then it can be submitted to the city to apply for a building permit. At the city, a zoning officer will review the proposed plan to make sure it will comply with all city’s By-Laws, if it does then upon his approval you will be issued with the building permit.

Phase 4: Choose material

The final stage in designing a home addition is to develop a material selection list. It is a good idea to think about second and third options for materials because your initial pick may be too pricey or unavailable. Our Design and Senior project manager will assist you with this stage as well, to make sure you can benefit from our past experiences.

Decide your must-have design choices and the areas where you’d be prepared to sacrifice if necessary. The above steps can be complicated and time-consuming, that is why at Maserat Developments we will help our clients to apply and get a building permit before the home addition project starts. We are a Home Addition Contractors in the City of Toronto.

We will arrange and schedule a professional engineer to visit your property to produce all necessary components. Contact us today to arrange a hassle-free consultation.

Do I require a permit for the renovation?

Do I require a permit for the renovation?

Depending on the scale of your project and what structural impact the renovation will have on the building, you may need permits. Our specialized project managers will discuss your project in detail and would advise you if you do need permits.

To obtain a building permit, a homeowner must submit an application to the district office where the home is located requesting necessary permits. Depending on the type and the size of the renovation there will be fees required to pay before processing the building permit. Once the prerequisites have been met, The Toronto building staff will review your plans in order to make sure they comply with the Ontario Building Code, local zoning by-laws, as well as other applicable regulations.

How to monitor the Building Permit Application online?

The building application process can be monitored online from the city’s website. Building permits are valid for the duration of the ongoing construction. However, if the work hasn’t started yet or has stopped, the permit is valid for up to six months and a building inspector can provide an extension to your permit.

Apart from the building permit — which is formal permission from your municipality to begin construction, demolition, addition, or renovation — there are other special types of permits you might need: 

heating permits, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) permits, plumbing permits, demolition permits, sign permits, or sign variance permits.

When do you need to apply for Building Permits?

In Ontario, you need a permit for the following renovations:

  • Constructing accessory buildings with an area of more than 10 square metres, or an addition to an existing building
  • Constructing attached or detached garages
  • Structural alterations
  • Excavating, repairing or underpinning a foundation
  • Heating ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, or electrical work
  • Constructing one or more new separate dwelling units within a building
  • Finishing previously unfinished spaces within a building
  • Adding new entrances or windows, changing the size of entrances or windows, or closing entrances or windows
  • Constructing chimneys or fireplaces
  • Installing swimming pool enclosures, constructing detached decks more than 60.96 centimetres above ground, or building any deck attached to a building
  • Demolishing or relocating all or part of a building

On the other hand, you won’t need a permit for these renovations:

  • Replacing stucco, siding, or shingles with the same material
  • Replacing doors or windows without altering the opening,
  • Constructing fences (except pool enclosure fences)
  • Patching, painting and decorating
  • Installing cabinets or shelves

If you need help to apply for a building permit, we work with professional engineers who can help to get the necessary documents together for the application.

Additional Home Addition Costs: Permits and Plans

Additional Home Addition Costs: Permits and Plans

When you start thinking about getting a home addition done, you’ll need to check with your city what kind of addition you’re allowed to have, what dimensions are permitted, whether siding options are imposed or not, and more. In fact, there are urban planning rules that specifically regulate home additions. Many municipalities even require you to get your plans done and officially signed by an architect or technologist before even handing you over the permit. Depending on where you live, the cost of a permit can vary depending on the kind of home addition you plan on getting done. On average, a permit is about $2000. As for plans, depending on how complex they are, their cost can vary between $4,000 and $10,500 if they’re done by a technologist. It’s fairly easy to find permit request information online for most cities: TorontoMississaugaVaughanMarkham. Some of them offer online application forms while others require you to show up at the urban planning office with your plans and home’s deed in hand.  Live in Toronto? Check out our Home Addition Services to learn the entire process – including the cost of each party involved! We provide home addition to our Toronto Neighbourhoods including (But not limited) to following: Davisville Village, Leaside, Summerhill, Rosedale, York Mills, Lawrence Park, Lytton Park, St. Clair West Village and Forest Hill.
The Cost of Adding a Basement

The Cost of Adding a Basement

Adding a basement to your home is no simple feat. This option is rather pricey, as there are a lot of costly steps involved. House lifting costs roughly between $16,000 and $20,000, then the foundation can cost anywhere between $30,000 and $45,000, and finally, you’ll need to add the cost of finishing your basement which is roughly $55 per square foot – all depending on whether or not you’re to include a bathroom, kitchen, etc.

The overall cost of adding a basement can vary greatly. It can be as low as $30,000 but easily go above $150,000. Of course, if you already have a basement and are looking to expand it or have a crawlspace, costs will vary as underpinning processes will take place. Reviewing our basement renovation services can help you to understand the process.

It’s also important to note that not all houses are ideal for this kind of addition. Homes with wooden structures and lightweight exterior siding are much easier to work with compared to homes covered in masonry. Sometimes, homeowners decide to get a basement put in to create a rental apartment.

In such a case, an areaway (i.e. a separate entrance) needs to be included as well as plumbing, electrical, and more. For this kind of project, there are many rules and regulations to follow according to your region’s Building Code. It’s not as simple as finishing your basement. However, adding a rental space is sure to increase your building’s resale value.

Keep in mind that you’ll need to check with your city if such a project is feasible, that’s why we provide an engineer on-site consultation. The session will allow you to discuss your desire goals and alteration with professional engineers and know if it is feasible in your neighbourhood. Our Building Permit Services can save you a lot of time and money.

The Cost of Adding a Second Storey

The Cost of Adding a Second Storey

A turnkey storey addition can cost anywhere between $145 and $210 per square foot. This is one of the most popular home addition options for many reasons.

Firstly, you can expand your living space without taking up more space on your property. It also increases your home’s resale value significantly. Though, like any other home addition, you’ll need to check the rules and regulations by the City of Toronto. Usually, the work should take between 2-4 months. Read more about our home addition services.

In most cases, it is better to add an addition to your current home rather than purchasing a new property. Since the cost related to addiction can be much lower and also you can keep enjoying same neighbourhood.