If the home you're living in is too small for your current needs, then you can move or you can add on to the home. Building an addition onto your current home can be a great choice, but it can also become a really big, extensive project. Here are some tips to employ in order to keep your home addition project simpler.

Don't bring plumbing into the new addition.

Running plumbing to the addition will greatly add to the cost of the project. The pipes themselves tend to be costly, and having the plumber out adds a whole other contractor to the project. Plus, in order to add plumbing, the walls will have to meet certain specifications, and you may have no choice but to build a basement or attic into the space. If you forgo the plumbing, you'll keep costs much lower, you won't need a basement under the space, and the addition will be completed faster.

If you do need an extra bathroom or laundry room, it is often cheaper to convert an existing space in your home for these purposes and then build on a simple bedroom as the addition.

Install a separate heater and air conditioner.

Tying the new addition into your current HVAC system is not always easy. You'll have to pay an HVAC technician to run duct work, and there's also a chance your current heater and air conditioner won't be powerful enough to heat and cool the addition, too. The cheapest option is usually to just install a separate heat pump in the new space. A reversible heat pump can heat in the winter and cool in the summer, and you don't have to have any complex duct work run to accommodate it.

Give the builders flexibility in placement.

Once you know roughly how large you want your addition to be, let your builders be the ones who decide the best place for it. They can add on to your home in the area that requires the least demolition, which will speed things up and reduce costs. They may also choose a location that requires the least destruction of your landscaping. If you have a specific site where you want the addition placed, you can let your builders know that preference, but keep an open mind if they say it won't work.

Home addition projects do not have to be grand and expensive. Keep things simpler with the tips above. Contact a company that builds home additions to learn more.