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Does this sound like a familiar story? We got an inquiry on from a reader who has a house full of outdated trends complete with a sunken family room, a closed off kitchen, a two-story wall of glass, lots of wasted space, giant corner bathtub and tiny shower. As a person immersed in the industry, he knows he needs to make changes – but where should he start?

I bet many of my readers can feel his pain. Indeed, my entire career has been focused on making new homes look and live so much better than older homes that folks will want to buy the new ones we design. Now our reader needs to decide what he should do. Remodel or move?

Both options are arduous and can be expensive. An evaluation of the existing home to explore to possibilities is needed.

Where to start?

For me, it starts with a floor plan. Sadly, this is often the biggest challenges to starting. Some might have an old sales brochure that is almost like what was built.

Most have no floor plans, but they often have a survey – which is key if remodeling includes going beyond the current building envelope.

Creating As-Built Floor Plans

The good news is today we have tools like Matterport for a 3D rendering that not only captures the floor plan, but also the ceiling heights and finishes as they currently stand. Often used for virtual walk-throughs in the real estate industry, many builders are now using it to augment their still photos of their models on their website.

3D tours have also enabled architects and remodelers to create a fairly accurate floor plan.

Couple that with a survey and you now have enough information to be dangerous. Of course, this camera doesn’t have X-ray vision to tell where the bearing walls are or how big a beam might be like the original set of plans would have. But many remodelers have learned what’s in the walls and ceiling doesn’t always match the plans. Their answer is to rip into the walls and ceilings and just find out.

What next?

Armed with a floor plan, the next step is the evaluation. For me, the spaces we use daily need to be the priority. Spaces like the kitchen, primary bath, and closets. These happen to be the rooms that become most dated. If the house has lots of formal rooms like living or dining rooms, these rooms can become candidates for fixing the floor plan flaws.

The Closed-Off Kitchen

Perhaps the most common feature of an old floor plan is a closed-off kitchen. We’ve talked about the transformation of our kitchens from chore spaces to entertainment spaces in a previous blog. Opening a closed-off kitchen frequently involves removing interior walls – potentially load bearing. Yes, a beam will be required. While not at all impossible to do, it does change the project from just updating the cabinets and countertops to hiring an engineer and builder. In short – not a DIY project. But so worth it!

If the house is slab on grade, jack hammering the slab may be required to get electrical and plumbing to a free-standing island. Even an island without plumbing needs the electrical, so why not put the sink where it makes the most sense? If the house is a crawl, moving plumbing is easier – except for the poor soul who must get beneath the house to do that. If the house has a basement below the kitchen, be prepared for new ceiling.

Giant Tub vs Spa-like Shower

The next challenge might be changing out the oversized (often hideous) tub in favor of a spa-like shower.

The good news is the plumbing is already in the area – the bad news is flooring and often the cabinets will need to be replaced. I have seen lots of resale homes on the market where the DIY homeowner tried to update the finishes in the bath but failed to recognize and remove the proverbial elephant in the room.

Honey Who Shrunk the Closet?

Older homes tend to have tiny closets. Fixing this flaw requires square footage. This can be the deciding factor for remodeling or moving. If there is an adjacent under-utilized room, sometime this can be captured for closet space. If there is room on the lot, an expansion outside the home may be the best option. When the primary suite is on the first floor and there is room on the lot – consider expanding both the bath and the closet. Finding a way to expand the closets will not only making living in the house more enjoyable but also help with resale. A worthy investment, in my opinion.

Go or No-Go

Some features are simply too expensive or involved to solve. One of these is the dreaded 8’ ceiling. Fixing this one is not for the weekend DIY guy. If it is a 2-story home with an 8’ first floor – either learn to live with it or move. One strategy to consider if you can’t raise the space vertically, consider how you might expand the space horizontally by opening up rooms to one another – like the kitchen to the casual dining area and the family room. If the main living areas has roof above, raising the ceiling is an option.

Yes, it does involve an engineer and a contractor, but it can be an option. Just beware of things in the ceiling like duct work or electrical that will need to be rerouted.

What do You think?

I consider myself a fixer. I’ve always got ideas how to fix a floor plan to make it better. That’s a great trait in new construction, but an expensive one when it comes to offering advice on remodeling. “Just remove this wall, add a beam, jackhammer the slab…” cha-ching, cha-ching.

I have gotten permission from my troubled blog reader to share his floor plan. I would love to hear suggestions from my audience what he should do. Of course, I have my own thoughts but hearing from others would be fun!