How-to Plan The Ideal Master Suite Addition

master suite addition planning guide As the size of your household grows, so does your need for additional space.

Rather than going through the process of selling and buying another house, you can solve your need for additional space by building a bedroom addition onto the structure you already own.

Learn all the details of how you can properly plan, design, and ultimately add a bedroom to your house, so that all of your household members are happy and comfortable in the end.

"I say this with great confidence, because I built a ton of bedroom additions before I even thought about writing this how-to guide."

The Ideal Master Suite Addition Design

How does a master suite differ from a master bedroom? In terms of size alone, a master suite typically is much more spacious, so much so that it allows for extra space for an in-room office, entertainment system, or sitting area. But what really makes it a master suite is an ensuite bathroom.

Given the size of a typical master suite, however, you may need to verify the zoning for your property during the process of planning a home addition of such dimensions. Your property might be zoned for the current structure alone and not for any additional space or buildings. If need be, you may need to ask the city or county for a zoning variance so that you can add a large master suite onto your house.

In fact, most cities and counties require that homeowners get the appropriate permits before adding an extension to a house. If you ask for a zoning variance, the zoning board will require that you pay the necessary fees and file the required paperwork. It also may notify your neighbors of your building plans.

Aside from the zoning and permit requirements, you also need to consider other aspects during the overall master suite design process. First, you must decide how large you would like your master suite to be. A spacious master suite can be as large as 586 square feet, roomy enough to include a walk-in closet and a master bathroom.

However, the size of the master suite largely depends on how much you can afford for the project. It also depends on the zoning allotment and size of your property. This aspect should be the first that you consider in the process of adding a master suite onto your house.

Location, Location, Location

Next, you need to consider the geographic location of the master suite in your house. In what direction do you want it to face? Do you want it to face your neighbors' homes, the street or front yard, or the backyard? For that matter, do you want the windows in the master suite to face east so the morning sun streams in through the windows to awaken you? Do you want the windows to face west so you can watch the sun set every evening?

If you want your master suite to be energy efficient, you might avoid building it onto the north or south end of your home. The north wind could chill the room in the wintertime while the south winds could make your master suite hotter in the summer. By choosing the best geographic location for your master suite, you ensure that you stay comfortable, enjoy great scenery, and avoid the distraction of street noises and neighbors.

Of course, if you have a two-story house, you may have more leeway to determine your master suite's location. One ideal space to build it could be over your garage, for instance. This addition would give your home a more dimensional and even appearance from the outside. It also would allow you to build onto your existing structure without protruding into your back or side yard. You may even be allowed to build an over-the-garage master suite without having to get additional building permits or zoning variances.

What Design Features to Include

You also may think about the overall layout of the master suite itself. You should have ample room to not only include basic bedroom furniture like a bed and a dresser or chest of drawers. You should also have plenty of space to include a sitting area, an office, or an entertainment center. As with hotel suites, your ideal master suite design should give you enough room so that the overall room is not cramped but rather a haven of coziness, peace, and beauty.

Finally, your master suite design should include additions like closets and a bathroom. In fact, the room may not be considered a suite at all if you fail to include at least a half-bath in its design. If you want the ultimate convenience and comfort, you may find it better to include a full bath with a tub and shower in your master suite. The bathroom size can be as large as 10 feet by 10 feet, giving you ample room to include amenities like:

Big Ticket Items for Master Suite Additions

• a stand-up shower
• a full size or garden bathtub
• built-in cupboards or a linen closet
• a single or double vanity and mirror
• water closet
• double door entry

Like the bathroom, closet space is another key component of designing a master suite. Most master suites have walk-in rather than sliding door closets.

Of course, smaller components should also be taken into consideration as you plan out your ideal master suite. Smaller yet still vital key design aspects can include:

Small but Important Bedroom Features to Consider

• the size and number of windows
• flooring material like hardwood or carpeting
• wall surfaces like paint or wallpaper

You may be restricted in some of these lesser design aspects by your budget or the space you have allotted for the project. You likewise may be restricted by the zoning ordinance or variance as well as the design of your home. You presumably want your master suite's appearance to be on par with the look and layout of the rest of your home.

Building The Ideal Master Bedroom Addition

A master bedroom is smaller than a master suite. However, it can still be a place of relaxation and comfort if you consider some of ideas for the best master bedroom designs available to you today. These ideas let you accommodate the spatial needs for your household without compromising your own comfort levels or budget.

How to Bypass Zoning Laws

However, if you plan on building the master bedroom inside the house itself without adding onto your existing structure, you may be able to bypass any permit or zoning laws and continue with your project. For example: many homeowners create bedroom areas in the basement or garage portions of their homes.

You might be able to build a master bedroom in either area of your house without having to obtain a permit or zoning change. You may even be able to add walls, closets, a bathroom, and other spaces without securing a building permit. Before you proceed, you should check with your local county or city government and zoning board.

In addition to researching and abiding by the zoning and permit requirements in your city and county, you may want to consider other important design ideas for master bedroom additions. Along with considering where you actually want to place the bedroom itself, you may contemplate its size.

Many master bedrooms are about 200 to 300 square feet, or around 16 feet by 16 feet, large enough to accommodate a full, queen, or king size bed as well as additional furniture like a dresser, nightstand, and perhaps a desk. It will not be large enough to accommodate a sitting area or an office space, however. Still, the square footage should allow the master bedroom to be the largest bedroom in your home.

Considering The View

Along with the size of the bedroom itself, you should ask yourself what kind of view you want to enjoy from the master bedroom. Before building additional room to your house, you may contemplate if you want your bedroom to face street side or toward the backyard, for instance. Do you want the bedroom windows to face toward your neighbors' houses? Do you want it to be close to your children's bedrooms or across the house? Can you comfortably sleep in a basement master bedroom?

Of course, your answer on where to place the master bedroom could center on the very layout and structural integrity of the house itself. If you want to knock down walls in the hallway, for example, to build the master bedroom, you must ensure that this task will not weaken the structure or put fixtures like the roof or floor at risk of collapsing. You may need to hire a third-party contractor to review the original architectural designs of your house so that you know where you can and cannot safely build the bedroom.

You equally might want to consider what master bedroom ensuite additions you want to include in the room itself. Will there be enough space in a 256 square foot room to include a walk-in bathroom or walk-in closets? Will the space in which you plan to build the bedroom restrict you to building sliding door closets?

Before you settle on any additions to include in the room, you may find it helpful to look at master bedroom addition photos so that you know what you can realistically include and exclude in your design plans. It is better to start the project with reasonable expectations rather than having to go back and revise your best bedroom design ideas.

Planning Your New Bedroom Addition Around Furniture Requirements

The best master bedroom floor plans should leave you enough space to fit in all of your desired furniture comfortably without you having to sacrifice pieces that are important to the beauty, rest, and value of this new addition. As you proceed with the initial designs, you may review and change accordingly where you plan to fit furniture like:

• the bed
• dressers
• nightstands
• miscellaneous furnishings like a desk or lounge chair

The amount of furniture that you want to include in the master bedroom could determine its overall dimensions. It could also determine whether or not you should build a bedroom or a suite. If you want to include several lounge chairs, recliners, or large pieces of furniture, you might fair better to build a small suite rather than a typical size master bedroom.

Choosing Your Finishes Before Building Begins

Likewise, do you want carpeting or hardwood flooring in this bedroom? Do you want to paint or wallpaper the walls? These decorative details can be saved to the very last planning stages of the project simply because they can be changed quickly and have the least impact on the overall design. Still, you should finalize them before the actual master bedroom building process begins.

As exciting as it can be to plan out a master suite or master bedroom addition for your house, your excitement could be tempered if you fail to plan out the budget for the project as well. In fact, many homeowners are surprised by how costly the designs for these extra spaces can become because of poor planning.

Before you start the project itself, you should do some research on the typical adding a bedroom to a house cost, there's plenty of home addition plans with building costs on this site alone. By knowing the typical costs for room additions in your area, you can decide how you want to pay for the work or how much money you need to save before the project can begin.

You also should add extra money to your average home extension cost plans. This extra money could cover incidentals and unexpected expenses that arise during the work. It also ensures that you do not have to stop or delay the project until you free up more cash or secure additional financing.

While the size of your home may have been the ideal fit at first, you may have outgrown the space and now are considering adding an extension to a house. When you want that extra space to be yours, you may decide to add a master bedroom or master suite onto your home. A master suite is bigger than a master bedroom. Both projects can be an exciting undertaking that increases the size and comfort of your house.

However, this exciting prospect demands your careful attention to details, so much so that you are encouraged to consider some of the best bedroom ideas before you allow any work to start on the project. These ideas let you know how much furniture you can add to the room or suite. You also can plan for extra amenities like an ensuite bathroom with walk-in closets.

Your pre-planning lets you apply for permits or zoning variances as demanded by your city or county. By reviewing the best plans for a master suite or master bedroom, you can plan out a room that accommodates your household size and your expectations for the overall comfort, beauty, and layout of this new room.