Building Over original house and its foundation

[wisconsheepgirl]

Hi! I'm Michelle. The new girl. I need some solid concrete questions/answers to the thoughts floating in my head about my house. I live in Northern Wisconsin (in case anyone wishes to know)

I own a split level, traditional--steps on side.  It is a quad-level. It is 25 x 40. You walk in directly to the kitchen, dining room. living room.

I have this idea that I can somehow cut the "tall side" from the short side and have the tall side jacked up to become a full story. Thus connecting the north side of the house to the south side where the main floor is. And hey! While I'm at it, why not jack up the main level to create a newer second level and do a whole new main level.

But then-I have the lower level (third level) that needs to be dug down to the 4th level-the tiny basement.

After all this gymnastics of my mind, I hit on the idea of perhaps scrap all of this nonsense and just build another house. I will STILL have to deal with the lower level and digging (somehow) to basement level- or..maybe not?

My next question is if I do decide to build a new house (certainly would be cheaper in my estimation that redoing this one-I think)--can I use the original foundation? Is this feasible at all?

The final issue. Due to how our property's driveway is aligned people come in to the house from the back of the house, into the kitchen- (the east side). In the entire 18 mos living here, not one person ever went into the 'front' of the house, in fact I have had people say something like oh wow that's the front door?  People can't see my front/west side of house from street or driveway. Do I have to keep my door there? If I chose to remodel- can I move the doorway somewhere else? What about moving the back area/east side-kitchen to the front/west side. Making current kitchen a sitting area?

You may ask, why in the world did you get a split level if you dislike it--I actually never disliked it until recently when I realized that I have to go up from either main level or lower level to the upper level just to potty. It's an underappreciated luxury. Then I worried about when I get older and perhaps have difficulty navigating stairs just for the bathroom. About literally the only thing that makes me feel great about this property is the outside. It is gorgeous.

If I can utilize the foundation I'd go for the Universal House plans. The best one for our wants/needs.

Hopefully I didn't bore anyone or confuse anyone. Please ask me any questions. I need a reality check and guidance.  Thank you so much for having this site!!

[Dave Sparks]

The only time I have heard that one can't use the original foundation/ slab is if it has been fire damaged (really hot fire) or designed wrong.

If you really "love the place" then why not build something that you really want. Good Luck!

[BassLakeBucki]

You should be able to do it. I have heard of the need to leave one wall standing and incorporate it into the new build to "grandfather" in. I have a relative in Virginia who basically built a new home on and around the old existing foundation.

[ChugiakTinkerer]

Welcome to the forum!  It's good to think about stairs and whether you need to make changes long before the need for such changes comes around.

Where I used to live in Denver all the houses were tiny and date back to the early 1950s.  There have been a lot of changes since, everything from a lift-up floor addition to complete scrape offs.  Within some limits defined by your local code, pretty much anything is possible.  Some things may just take a little more time and/or money than compared to working with a blank slate.

[wisconsheepgirl]

Thank you everyone for your kind comments and thoughts. I appreciate the terminology of 'grandfathered' in--that changes how I can speak to someone about this.

BTW--who would I speak with to get this past thoughts in my head to something more concrete? Contractor? Architect? House lifters people (what is their proper name?)

A question--these pictures from this R.E. listing I love. But I have no idea what type of construction this is on the interior. Anyone have any ideas?

Hugs to everyone.

[ChugiakTinkerer]

As I understand your situation, you're not in a hurry to get something started.  So you might want to take your time and pursue a few avenues of further research.  To start, I would go the county seat and find out what your building code requirements are.  If your county has a presence on the web you might be able to find it easily, otherwise you may need to call or go in person to get the official word.  The other possible restriction on what and how you can build is whether there are any covenants, either through a homeowner's association or as part of the subdivision on file at the county recorder's office.  The deed and associated documents from when you purchased the place should indicate whether there are any restrictions.

As far as what you want to build, probably any of the professionals you mentioned could get you started.  A potential problem is you could have no idea of the quality of work they do.  As a first step, you might want to cruise around prospective neighborhoods where you see construction happening and check out any remodel projects you see.  A contractor working on site should be happy to give you a business card.

This web site has a little information on how to get started: http://www.improvenet.com/r/costs-and-prices/raise-foundation-cost-estimator

Edit: I also found this interesting booklet.  It doesn't address raising half the house but offers a lot of ways to make a split level more modern.  http://www.crystalmn.gov/docs/handouts/03SplitVisions.pdf