{"id":21599,"date":"2025-03-25T04:00:51","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T11:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=21599"},"modified":"2025-12-11T08:22:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T16:22:15","slug":"cost-to-add-a-second-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/cost-to-add-a-second-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Building Up? Here\u2019s the Cost to Add a Second Story to Your Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve decluttered<\/a>, reorganized, and maybe even rearranged some furniture, but there\u2019s no getting around the fact that you\u2019ve outgrown your single-story home. Maybe your family has expanded, or perhaps you\u2019re now working permanently from home. Whatever the situation, you need more space \u2014 and you\u2019d rather not go through the hassle or sacrifice of selling a house you otherwise love. Instead, you\u2019re seriously considering the alternative of building up.<\/p>\n

To put together this cost guide for homeowners like you, we combined reputable pricing information from our online research with insights from contractors and builders who have spearheaded these types of massive projects in the past.<\/p>\n

Before we dive in, be warned: This decision is drastic and probably a lot more expensive and disruptive than you realize. Take the time to digest all of the information, crunch the numbers, and go in eyes-open to determine whether building up is really better than moving on.<\/p>\n

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\n \"homelight\n <\/div>\n \n

Get a Home Value Estimate Before You Renovate<\/h3>\n

Home values have skyrocketed over the past two years. As you plan whether to sell or build up, start with a preliminary estimate of how much your home is currently worth.<\/p>\n \n

\n Get Estimate<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/div><\/p>\n

National averages for second-story additions<\/h2>\n

Justin Bride<\/a>, principal at Ascent Contracting in Denver, Colorado, has worked with many residential expansions. Over the past few years, he\u2019s seen some pretty significant pricing increases for this type of project. These price increases may be attributed to the lingering effects of the pandemic on the supply chain and the economy, inflation, \u201cor whether they are the result of continued increased demand,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Prices for this project will vary across states and markets, but below are some general averages for adding a second story in the U.S.<\/p>\n

Source: Angi<\/a><\/h4>\n

Average cost per square foot: <\/strong>$100-$300<\/p>\n

Low and high-end cost range: <\/strong>You\u2019ll pay somewhere between $100,000 to $250,000 for an 800-square-feet addition.<\/p>\n

Methodology: <\/strong>Angi taps into its database of thousands of projects, then verifies costs with reputable sources.<\/p>\n

Source: Fixr<\/a><\/h4>\n

Average cost per square foot:<\/strong> $100-$300<\/p>\n

Low and high-end cost range:<\/strong> Expect to pay $100,000-$300,000 for a home 1,000 square feet or larger. Owners of small homes (~600 square feet) may complete the project for $60,000-$180,000.<\/p>\n

Methodology: <\/strong>Fixr pulls its cost data from multiple sources, including \u201cspecialized publications, websites, cost studies, U.S. associations, reports from the U.S. government, contractors and subcontractors, material suppliers, material price services, and other vendor websites.\u201d<\/p>\n

Source: HomeGuide<\/a><\/h4>\n

Average cost per square foot:<\/strong> $200-$500+<\/p>\n

Low and high-end cost range: <\/strong>Depending on the size of the space and quality of the materials, HomeGuide estimates a price range of $200,000-$500,000 for a 1,000-square-foot home.<\/p>\n

Methodology:<\/strong> HomeGuide receives millions of requests for home improvement<\/a> cost estimates every year. The site then tracks cost estimates consumers get from local companies and shares pricing information.

<\/div><\/p>\n

Types of second-story additions<\/h2>\n

Not all second-story additions have the same scope. Depending on how much space you need and the size of your budget, you can choose from the following options:<\/p>\n

Full-story addition<\/h3>\n

If you need a lot of extra space, you can opt to add a full second story that\u2019s roughly the same size as the first story. In the below example, a full second story was added to this Denver, Colorado home:<\/p>\n

\"A
Source: (Ascent Contracting<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A
Source: (Ascent Contracting<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Partial addition<\/h3>\n

If you only need to add a small amount of extra space \u2014 perhaps an extra bedroom<\/a> and bathroom<\/a> \u2014 and are working on a smaller budget, adding a partial second-story addition might be the way to go.<\/p>\n

Architect Jeff Pelletier<\/a> points out in a blog post that whether you add just one primary suite or three additional bedrooms and a bathroom, many of the associated costs (not to mention the disruption to your day-to-day life) will be largely the same. \u201cI usually advocate to aim for the three-bed\/two-bath second floor,\u201d he recommends. \u201cIt is a solid investment as it is so desirable, and helps ensure the value of your investment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Below is an example of a partial second-story addition in California:<\/p>\n

\"A
Source: (Design Everest<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A
Source: (Design Everest<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bonus room addition<\/h3>\n

Another way to increase your living or storage space without expanding your house\u2019s footprint is to add a bonus room over the garage<\/a>. It could be used as a home office, in-law suite, man cave, playroom, craft room, storage room\u2026 the possibilities are endless. One of the main benefits of going this route is that because you\u2019re building on top of an unfinished garage, you don\u2019t have to worry as much about damaging existing drywall, flooring, or other elements during construction, which means there will be less need to remodel the space after the addition is complete.<\/p>\n

Not all garages are candidates for supporting bonus rooms without significant structural rework to the existing foundation, particularly in the case of detached garages. \u201cSometimes it makes more sense to demolish the existing garage if the goal is to build a new garage with an \u2018accessory dwelling unit\u2019 (or ADU<\/a>) on top,\u201d says Bride, the Colorado contractor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re evaluating the cost to add a second story, your house is likely feeling more than a little cramped. See cost examples and tips.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":298,"featured_media":45381,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[320,234],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-add-value","category-home-improvement"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBuilding Up? Here\u2019s the Cost to Add a Second Story to Your Home<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you\u2019re evaluating the cost to add a second story, your house is likely feeling more than a little cramped. 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