choosing between building or remodeling
Feature Story
THE DECISION ON WHETHER TO
BUILD A HOME FROM SCRATCH or do extensive remodeling on an existing home is a difficult one facing potential owners. There are many pros and cons on both sides, but will ultimately boil down to what works best for the family.
when building makes sense
A frequent conversation at the Ashcraft home often centered on the family’s home and what should be done about it. Scott Ashcraft, owner of Las Ventanas Homes, wanted to build a new home on a lot, using many of the newest techniques and technologies that have emerged over the years. His wife, Realtor Missy Ashcraft, wanted to stay where they were because she loved the location, the lot and the mature trees that graced the land. It’s not an uncommon conundrum for people as their life situations change, Scott Ashcraft said.“We talked about it a lot,” he said.“My argument was that even if we were to gut the house down to the studs, we still wouldn’t be able to everything right.”
For instance, Ashcraft said, “I still can’t insulate it as well as new homes, we also wouldn’t have efficient plumbing with a loop for hot water and still don’t have all new electrical wiring. Most importantly, everything is now LED so we’re not saving money by utilizing that. ”The bottom line, he said, in his opinion, remodeling, at least in their own situation, would not have made sense. “I just would have a very hard time making a house as efficient as I could building a new home, ”Ashcraft said.
a family’s preference
Different families with different situations can arrive at different decisions, said Jamie Rayne of Bain Cochran Construction. “Occasionally we have clients who come to us with the question of remodeling compared to building new, and our approach parallels that of working with folks who have already answered this question,” she said.“We start with asking what are their needs and their wants, and the ensuing discussion leads us to their priorities. Most clients do already have an idea of their pictured future, and whether it is in their current home with envisioned changes. Some want to be in a different community, have a different type of land, or are desiring some type of change that leads to building new.” For families on the fence, usually one or two deciding factors will tip the balance one way or the other, and it often comes down to money versus convenience, Rayne said.
“Often clients who are truly debating both equally, the deciding factor is meeting two needs, which are budget and timeframe,” Rayne added. “The discussion varies based on factors such as the age and quality of construction of the home, it’s current condition, and the timeframe. Each of these points affect the budget, often a driving factor of a project. The type of remodel matters as well, is the remodel an addition, or a part of the existing space, or the entire home,” she said. “Each has a different direction in the need for design, comfort, efficiency, cost and possibly permits. The term remodel has many different meanings, but ultimately, a home’s viability is to the eye of the beholder.”
when remodeling isn’t an option
Some of the home’s issues are structural and simply cannot be altered. “Older homes typically had lower ceilings,” he said. “Our current home, for instance, there is now way I could remodel it because it’s a two-story, raising the low ceiling to something that would be more typical in a new home with a nine to 12-foot ceiling is impossible. I can get that in a new home, but no matter how much I remodel, can’t get that.” Another is the way the home is situated on a lot. “Orientation is a big one,” Ashcraft said. “Even with a remodel, I can’t re-orient it on the lot. What if the first guy who built the home didn’t take advantage of the views? In a new home the first thing I look at is how I’m going to orient the house to take advantage of the view. On a remodel, you can’t reorient the house, maybe add some windows, but you can’t really move the house around.”
Ashcraft, who used to do remodeling before helping form Las Ventanas, said remodels could be effective in the right circumstances. “All that being said, it comes down to budget, as well,” he added. “On a good budget, you can do a good job of remodeling a house — you can make a house much better.” Here in the southwest, there are special issues when it comes with older homes built of adobe bricks, Rayne said, but nothing that can’t be dealt with properly. “Hazards to be aware of when remodeling an older home can vary quite widely, but are all manageable with planning and qualified experience,” she said. “Some specifics to consider that can affect both the length and cost of the project are whether the home meets current building code standards or will require updates; materials containing mold, asbestos or lead that may require remediation. Construction aspects that are unknown or unseen ahead of time such as structural, plumbing or electrical that may need to be changed could also have an effect.”
reasons for remodels
There’s certainly something to be said for maintaining the roots that have been established over time, Rayne said. “The reasons behind a client wanting to stay in
an existing home range from meaning and memories of a home passed from earlier generations, to the love of a specific location, especially the mature landscaping,” she said. “For us as contractors, we enjoy the creativity and challenge of each and every remodel project, allowing us to strengthen our problem solving skills and expand on over 30 years of experience of our family serving the state of New Mexico.”
What’s more, whether building new or remodeling, there can be issues if a family fails to do its due diligence ahead of time. “With either a remodel or new home construction, the worst horror stories we see are when clients hire someone who is unqualified, or with whom they do not work well with,” Rayne said.“Both projects may be left unsafe and incomplete, or the end result is not what they envisioned, and too often clients have already paid for unsatisfactory work. Some of this can be avoided by interviewing multiple contractors, talking to their client references, hiring those who are licensed, and seeing that blueprints specifically detail design and selections as compared with the written estimates.”
satisfied customers
No matter what decision a family makes, when the project is done and it turns out well, it’s a reward for both customer and contractor.“A dream scenario is when the client's interaction with us and our team results in the project of our clients' dreams,” Rayne said.“When the process leads to our clients, and us industry professionals, being excited, and to their elation with the decision to work with us, that is our goal each and every time. A remodel pushes our craftsmanship to the next level in blending the old with the new, when we find products and techniques to blend with the existing, this is our every day motivation,” she said. “Obtaining a final building permit and seeing the tears of gratitude because of our relationship in our customer's eyes, that is our dream scenario. Months into living in their new home one of our customers reaches out and asks our family to join theirs for a holiday meal, that is our dream scenario.”