More often than not, your home seems to have a lot of space when you move in, especially when you have no children just yet. Since it’s just you and your partner, you have the run of the house, and you have no problems entertaining guests during parties or having friends or family from out of town sleepover for a couple of days.

Then you had children, and everything changed. The house, as far as you’re concerned, has suddenly become less spacious. By the time they become pre-adolescents, your home already feels crowded. You can’t pass through any part of the house without literally bumping into a member of your household.

When your house already feels this cramped, it’s probably time to think about hiring a custom home builder. However, before you embark on what is potentially a stressful and costly home remodeling project, you have to consider several things.

Establish your goals

Before you do any home addition, you have to be very clear first about what you want to achieve exactly. Obviously, you need more living space if you’re thinking about a home addition. In some cases, it’s all about increasing storage capacity. Then there are families who do home additions because they only want the traffic-flow pattern inside the house to be better. Whatever your objectives, you need to identify them before breaking down any walls.

Do the math

Of course, a home addition is going to cost you, so you need to make sure you can afford it before you start any work. According to Homeadvisor.com, a typical home addition can cost you anywhere between $20,000 and $65,000. For major additions like a large common room, brace for more spending.

Home additions are nice and all, but do the math on the project first and see if you can put together a budget for one without breaking the bank.

Check if you have space for an addition

Whatever home addition you have in mind will always be subject to the available space you have in your home.

If there’s more lot space, then you can add horizontally, although you still have to check with the homeowners’ association or HOA in your area to find out about existing rules about home additions. You might also want to run it by city hall to know if your home addition plans are in keeping with zoning requirements.

If you’ve used up all your land, then you might want to consider building on top of your home. Again, however, you have to check HOA rules and zoning requirements before proceeding.

Draw up contingencies

It’s not easy for any one family to live in a house where there’s an ongoing construction project. Unless the home addition is at the other end of the house which doesn’t get much traffic, the noise, the dust, and the coming and going of the builder’s crew will surely bother every member of your household.

While you have every right to bear all of that and stay in any way, you might want to consider finding a house in the neighborhood that you can rent for a few months, or until the builders you’ve hired are finished with your home addition. That way, everyone can go about their respective activities with minimal interruption.

Hire reputable builders

Some homeowners consider doing home additions by themselves. If you think you have enough construction knowledge and experience to embark on a home addition project, then go for it, by all means.

However, if everything you know about construction work comes from watching all those home improvement reality shows on TV, you’re better off getting the services of competent and reputable builders. A home addition requires top-notch skills, the right training, and the proper tools and equipment, and professional contractors have them all and more.