Building on is often the better answer than moving. You keep the house, the neighborhood, and the schools, and you get the space you need. We build additions onto Westchester County homes.
That means another bedroom, another bathroom, more living space, or a bigger kitchen. Those are the additions we build. We do not take on every kind of addition, and we do not list types we do not do. The four above are the work.
How an Addition Gets Built
An addition goes up in stages, and each one has to be right before the next one starts.
The plans
The job starts with what is going to be built and where it sits on the property. The plans have to fit the zoning, and they have to be drawn well enough that the building department will accept them. This is the stage where the property gets looked at before the floor plan does.
The site work and foundation
The ground is opened, the footing is dug and poured, and the foundation is laid. The new foundation has to meet the existing one — or carry the load on its own — and it has to sit below frost. The site work sets everything that follows, so it is done to the plans and not to a guess. A footing that is short or shallow is a footing that moves, and a foundation that moves cracks the addition above it, so the depth and the bearing are set for the soil and the load, not for convenience.
The framing
The floor, the walls, and the roof go up. The framing is where the addition stops being a hole in the ground and starts being a room. The new roof ties into the old one, and the new framing ties into the existing house so the two read as one building and not a box bolted on the side. The connection to the existing framing is the part that has to be engineered — a floor joist sistered to an old one, a wall tied into the existing plate, a roof built to shed water away from the seam. Done wrong, the addition leaks at the joint. Done right, you cannot find the joint from inside.
The drywall, flooring, and finish work
The addition is closed in, the drywall is hung and finished, the flooring goes down, and the trim, doors, and paint close the job out. This is the stage that makes the addition look like it was always there. The finish work is where the new room meets the old house, and the seam between them is where the work shows.
Zoning Comes First
Before anything is drawn in detail, the question is what the lot allows. How close to the property lines can you build, and how much of the lot can be covered. Every municipality in Westchester sets its own rules for setbacks and lot coverage, and an addition has to meet the local zoning rules.
Many Westchester municipalities have a zoning board. If a plan does not fit the rules, the route is a variance from the local zoning board, and that is a public process that takes time. A variance is not a sure thing, and it is not quick. It is a hearing, and the board decides.
This is the reason an addition should start with a conversation about the property, not a floor plan. A floor plan drawn before the zoning is understood is a floor plan that may have to be drawn again. The property sets what is possible. The plans come after.
A setback is the distance a structure has to sit from the property line, and lot coverage is the share of the lot a building is allowed to take up. Both are set by the municipality, and both are the first things that tell you whether the addition you have in mind can go where you want it. An addition that fits the house but not the lot is an addition that does not get built, or that goes to a variance hearing first. Knowing that before the drawings are done saves the drawings.
Architectural Review
Some municipalities in Westchester review how an addition looks from the outside. Not all do. Where it applies, exterior changes may need to go before an architectural review board before a building permit is issued. Your building department will tell you whether your property is subject to it. We do not name a municipality's rule or board here, because it varies from one to the next.
If Your House Is on Septic
In the northern part of the county many homes are on a septic system rather than a sewer. This matters most when the addition includes a bedroom. Septic systems are sized by the number of bedrooms, so adding a bedroom to a house on septic can bring the Westchester County Department of Health into the review.
Find out whether the house is on sewer or septic before you plan a bedroom addition. It is the kind of thing that changes what is possible on the property, and it is better to know it at the start than to find it in the middle.
Permits and Plans
An addition needs a building permit, and a building department will want proper drawings before it issues one. Building permits are not issued by the county — they are issued by the building department of the city, town, or village the house is in, and each one has its own forms, its own review, and its own inspectors.
We pull the permits for the work we do. We do not ask the homeowner to do it, and we do not start before the permit is in place.
What Drives the Cost
Our projects start at $40,000, and that is the only number on this page. An addition is priced by what is actually in it.
The size of the addition sets how much of everything there is. The foundation and the site conditions matter — a flat lot with easy access is a different job than a sloped one with poor access. Whether there is a bathroom or a kitchen in the addition adds plumbing and electrical work that a plain room does not. How the new roof ties into the old one is a real cost, because a bad tie leaks. And matching the existing house — the siding, the trim, the roofline, the windows — is what makes the addition read as part of the building and not an add-on. All of it is looked at at the estimate, which is free.
An addition is also the one project where the cost is not all in the room you get. Part of it is in the ground, part of it is in the connection to the house, and part of it is in the approvals. A larger addition means more foundation, more framing, and more roof, and the trades that come with a bathroom or a kitchen inside it run on top of that. The estimate is the only way to see it whole, because a number on a page does not know your lot or your house.
Who Runs Your Job
Anthony Quattrone has more than 40 years of experience, and he is on the work. He comes to the house, looks at the property with you, and gives you the estimate. He has a team of ten, and the crew that builds the addition is the crew you meet. An addition is a large project, and it is run by the owner who looked at your house and priced it — start to finish.
Additions Portfolio
Additions Gallery
Where We Work
Westchester County, only
We work in Westchester County, New York, and only there.
We work in Westchester County only. The towns we serve include Pleasantville, Hawthorne, Valhalla, White Plains, Scarsdale, Harrison, Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Rye, Port Chester, Chappaqua, Armonk, Bedford, Lewisboro.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit for an addition?
What if my addition does not meet the zoning rules?
Does my town have an architectural review board?
Can I add a bedroom if I am on septic?
Are you licensed in Westchester County?
Do you offer financing?
How long does an addition take?
Free Estimate
Request a Free Estimate
Call Anthony directly, or send the details below. We come to the house and give you a free estimate.
(914) 474-1951Monday–Friday 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM