AboutRichard Taylor, AIA Expertise Ask me about all aspects of house, remodeling. , and room addition design and construction. Ask me about historic homes, renovation, and restoration. Ask me about materials and techniques, and about how you can get the best value for your design and construction dollar. Ask me how you can make your home a very special place. I can't, however, answer specific structural engineering questions in this forum - that's something you'll need on-site observation for.
Experience I own a five-person residential architectural firm, and have been designing custom homes, remodelings, and room additions across the country since 1983. Check us out at Richard Taylor Architects and RTA Plans. I have written and been published extensively on the subject of residential architecture. .
Organizations American Institute of Architects, City of Dublin Architectural Review Board, Past Editor of SPLASH (a CAD program), Past Editor of Open Directory Project, Boy Scouts of America
Education/Credentials Bachelor of Environmental Design (Architecture) Miami University 1983
For more about home design, check out my blog at Richard Taylor Architects Looking for great Luxury Home House Plans? Try ours at RTA Plans.
Question My husband and I are living in Connecticut. The popular houses in the area are Colonial. There are some contemporary thrown in from a fad that went through, years ago. We are currently in one of those contemporary houses(these do not have a great resell value). The actual layout is great. Our problem is in the roof line and grand modern windows(drafty). We would love to buy the house and remodel from contemporary to a more traditional look, but how much cost will it be to change roof lines? I'm not sure if this investment will turn into a money pit.
Answer Hi Melissa - thanks for your question!
There are many factors that affect the cost of a remodeling project; it's impossible to guess what changing the roofline might cost without actually seeing the project and preparing at least a preliminary design of a new roof and other associated changes.
But changing the roofline might not be the only way to give the house a more traditional look, and your house might not require something that drastic to make the exterior more appealing anyway.
Interestingly, "modern" design is now old enough (almost 100 years since the Modern movement began) that it's beginning to be seen as a "traditional" style. We're seeing a resurgence in interest in "mid-century modern" design all across the country.
The problem many homeowners encounter with modern design is that it's sometimes been done so badly (as have many traditional home designs) that it seems the only option is get rid of it's modern-ness. But just like a poorly-done traditional home, a bad modern home can be redesigned to give it proper proportion, scale, detail, and color.
You've said the layout's great - but since you can't often completely separate the floor plan from the elevations, you might find that making the exterior more traditional causes floor plan changes that you don't want.
If it's value you're after, then you might not want to make the house just like every other on the street anyway! Sure, you don't want the house standing out like a sore thumb, but why not celebrate it's uniqueness? Spend your remodeling dollars on making it an interesting and attractive modern home - that'll certainly cost far less than trying to change the stylistic "bones" of the house!
I suggest you contact a good local Architect to discuss this with you. Find one whose practice focuses on residences and that has some experience with modern homes. Go to www.AIA.org and find your local chapter - contact them for references for residential architects. Once you find someone you're comfortable with, contract with them for a couple of very quick design studies - nothing detailed - to give you a general idea of the possibilities. If you like what you see, you can contract for further services.
Good design always sells - regardless of the style and even in traditional areas like Connecticut. You might be surprised at how valuable a well-done "modern" home can be!
Hope this helps,
Richard Taylor, AIA
www.rtastudio.com
www.rtaplans.com
