I'm looking for some advice on realistic total budget for an upstairs addition to my home. Some basics regarding the existing home are as follows:
House Type: Semi-detached
Location: South Eastern Sydney (old Botany Council area)
Rooms: 3 Bedroom, 1 bathroom
Land Size: 279m2
Floor Size: 87m2
Proposed upstairs addition: 35m2 (1 en-suite bedroom)
Construction Date: approx. 1919
Material: Double brick
Roof: Zinc/Colorbond
Planning Restrictions: The land is located in a heritage conservation area
Maximum Building Height: 8.5 metres
About the proposed upstairs addition
The house is in South Eastern Sydney with reasonable site access. The house is in a Heritage Conservation area, but it is not a heritage home. The floor size for the upstairs addition would be approximately 35m2. We would like the upstairs addition to feature a bedroom large enough to fit a king size bed, an en-suite bathroom with shower, and ample wardrobe space/walk-in wardrobes. The bedroom would feature double-glazed windows providing ample natural lighting to the space. We would like the construction materials and finish for the upstairs extension to match the existing home as much as possible - but we are open to ideas on this. We would like to add the upstairs extension to the back of the house, above the existing living room, bedroom 3, and laundry room area. The existing living room features a cathedral ceiling. We would like to consider the possibility of the stairwell to the upstairs area being located at the site of the existing laundry room – possibly with an extended footprint in that corner of the house. We would then like for the new under stairs area to be designed for a new replacement laundry. I have uploaded an existing floor plan for the house, and a basic sketch of the proposed upstairs addition.
Budget indications from builders
I have been trying to obtain quotes for the design, DA approval, and build for this upstairs addition - using lower cost-mid-range materials - nothing too fancy. In early 2021 I made some informal enquiries and had a budget of $175-$200k quoted to me. So far in 2022 I have now had 2 builders out for a site visit. The first didn't really say much apart from that a site survey and engineering report would be needed before drafting any plans. When I asked about an indicative budget they mentioned $350k would cover a good quality upstairs addition. The 2nd builder was recommended by a friend who had a good experience from a major renovation to their home. This builder was much more thorough and talked through the feasibility of the job - agreeing that what I had sketched out seemed feasible. They then estimated a budget of $375-$400k plus GST.
I am aware of the major issues in the building industry due to COVID disruptions, supply chain issues, inflation of materials and labour costs, lack of labour availability, some builders going bust, and a general and significant increases in costs across the board. However, the budgets quoted to me still seem high for the job as this works out at over $10k per m2. I do understand that pricing an upstairs addition by per square metre is not necessarily the best way to think about things. And I was prepared that the $200k indicative budget I had quoted to me in 2021 would have increased significantly. But I did not expect this now to be double. So, I am now at the stage of considering whether this is a realistic idea as a budget of +$400k is in excess of what we can afford.
I am looking for some advice on whether it is worth speaking to other builders, perhaps those more specialised in fairly standardised upstairs additions to see if I get more affordable proposals, to hold off until things settle down in the building trade (accepting that the new higher costs may remain as high as they are now), or to give up on the idea?
What would be a realistic budget for this proposed upstairs extension?
thanks for any input you can offer