3 Most Requested Home Plan Modifications

People expect more today than ever before. It is perhaps a result of the advances in technology. In the past decade we have seen a dramatic increase in people asking for modifications to our plans. This trend shows no sign of changing. We see trends in these modifications that center around 3 basic themes.

The plan that is the most popular to modify is the Prairie Pine Court. It also happens to be one of our best sellers. The unique design of this plan lends itself to fit in many different locations. People love the design and want to tweak it to better blend with their lot and lifestyle.

The most popular modification we see by far is adding a basement. If your area is well suited for a full basement it is a great choice. Adding a basement is an excellent investment. It adds a lot of extra living space while not increasing the homes foot print. You can always choose to build it unfinished which saves money, gives you great storage space now, and the ability to expand later.

A close second to adding a basement is adding a room over the garage. The Prairie Pine Court is a very popular choice for this modification. If your location is not suitable for a full basement, capturing the space over the garage is the next best thing.

The third most popular modification is a tie between expanding the kitchen and the master bedroom. The kitchen has always been the best place in your home to invest in. During any open-house people will stampede straight to the kitchen.

Most of your time is spent either in the kitchen or the bedroom. It is natural that people would want to customize those two areas. Creating a unique private get-away out of your master suite is a great choice. Your home should be your sanctuary.

Generally speaking, adding a basement, a room over the garage, and expanding the kitchen or master bedroom are not too difficult. However, that does really depend on the plan. Some plans are more complicated to modify.

What Does it Cost to Modify a Plan?

That is the big question. First people want to know if a change can be made and the next question is how much will that cost. Unfortunately, both those questions are not easy to answer. A lot of work and research has to go into figuring out if a requested change can be made and how many hours it will take to complete.

In the most general terms our modifications fall anywhere between $400 and $19,800.00. Figuring out where your modification falls within that range takes time. Our Modification Consultation Form is a tool we use to start the process of finding out.

Modification or Custom Home?

Many times people’s list of things they want to change is so long the cost is prohibitive. It takes between 120 and 200 hours to design and develop a home plan in CAD (Computer Aided Design). When modification hours get close to those numbers you are better off going with a custom designed home.

The problem is, getting a custom designed home plan is like getting a custom designed car. You can buy a new car for $24,000.00 but if you go to GM and ask them to design and build you a custom car, that price will shoot up to $100,000 or more. That is because they design and sell in bulk. The same is true with home plans.

A home plan is sold for a fraction of the cost it took to develop. It is a gamble on the designer’s part because in order to make money a plan must be sold many times. Just like a car, or a movie.

Home Plan Modification Best Practices!

Our advice for people thinking about modifying a home is to start with a plan that needs as little modification as possible. Then make sure the areas you are changing are going to add value to your home in the long run. Then make sure the changes do not distract from the flow and charm of the home.

That's where we come in. Because we designed these homes, we are best suited to changing them. Your builder can usually make small changes, but large changes should always be done by the original designer.