Many of our foothill homes are built on sloping parcels of land. The result is often that the house sits on top of a huge crawlspace that is generally unusable. Most homeowner’s are aware of the potential to finish this bonus space, but may not know how to plan the project. There are several ways to tackle this opportunity, depending upon what sort of use you envision for the new space.
Expanding Within the Footprint of the Room
We have all heard the phrase, “think outside the box.” When remodeling, sometimes it is more cost effective to think inside the box. It may be possible to rearrange the space you have within your home to gain what you want, instead of adding on to the house.
We recently completed a project for a couple in Alta Sierra who had a nicely appointed home with spacious living areas, but a very small master bedroom. Typical to many homes of the ’70s and ’80s, the master bedroom was only slightly larger than the secondary bedrooms. The ensuite bath was also a convoluted maze of tiny corridors serving a several closets and bath. The headroom was limited by 8-foot ceilings making the space seem even smaller.
