I live in LA and would love to raise my two-car garage roof, install a small staircase (indoor or out) and add a guest bedroom above my garage. Ideally, I’d love to add a small bathroom up there. However, I’ve heard that such projects can turn into a pain if you don’t plan extensively ahead of time – what are some things that I sould consider? For example, how hard are permits to get for this sort of work? Roughly how long would the project take? Are there any unique considerations for building above a garage vs in other places around my property?
This type of project is a piece of cake for a professional contractor. You’ll need architectural plans, structural framing, smoke & heat detectors. Yes you need a building permit, which can take about a month to obtain. This type of addition is always desired by home owners: to use the space over the garage, add a master suite with bathroom and closets, avoid excavation work, and have it cost less. If you have a septic system, it might affect the work, as it limits the number of bedroom to the home. One thing to ask the building department about is the stairs being inside the garage for fire rating purposes.
One important consideration often overlooked in the beginning is the HVAC system when converting an attic in your home to habitable living space. Almost every home’s heat and air conditioning system is installed based on load calculations for the heated square footage at the time of construction. In most every instance, the system must be resized and replaced or a separate system installed for the new space. In addition, insulation to evelope the room may require additional framing and could affect the finished ceiling height.
Get an architect and get a few concepts designs before asking about pricing.
Is this garage attached or detached?
If detached, you will be spending a lot of money just to get plumbing in there and conditioning the space with a separate HVAC system. If attached the costs will be significant less as the plumbing will be more accessible and there is an ability to tap in to the existing HVAC system.
What is your garage made of? Does it have a Spanish tiled roof? Brick exterior?
These are all factors that can have a huge impact on cost.
Unique considerations
Should get a belt drive for the garage door opener, it won’t wake the guest(s)
Definitely make sure that the garage ceiling is well insulated, spray foam is the best
Verify that you have the appropriate fire rating in the ceiling, wouldn’t want to get sued if there was a fire and a guest was injured or worse
Verify that the floor joists will support the weight required by code
When asking for estimates, please try to have as much information as possible.
Get an architect. They will answer all your questions, investigate Zoning & Building parameters prior to proceeding, will do that advance-planning with you and will think thru a myriad issues & possibilities to help assure that your project achieves your goals, does not disappoint, and does not become a nightmare
If you are planning to add a guest room above a garage then there are some important things to be considered context and design compatibility. To know more in detail visit - http://www.behmgarageplans.com/apartment-garage-plans-considerations/