Renovate or Move? Questions to Ask Before You List Your Grimsby Home
Most people who ask whether they should renovate or move aren't unhappy with Grimsby. They like their street, their neighbours and being close to the lake and the escarpment. What isn't working is the house. The kitchen is too tight, there's nowhere to put a home office, or the family has outgrown the floor plan.
Before you call a real estate agent, it's worth working through a few questions. We're Simon Hayes and Stephanie Pinet, and we've spent more than 17 years in residential construction. This is how we'd think it through.
Is it the house or the location?
This is the most useful question to start with. A renovation can change a lot about a house. It can't change where the house sits.
If the real problem is the commute, the school catchment, the size of the lot or the traffic on your street, no renovation will fix it. Moving may be the better answer.
If you like where you live and the frustrations are inside the walls, renovating deserves a serious look.
What a renovation can solve
Many of the reasons people give for moving are really layout and space problems. Those are often things a builder can work with:
A closed-in kitchen that could open to the living area, where the structure allows it
A main floor that doesn't suit the way your household lives now
Not enough bedrooms or living space, which an addition may solve
An unfinished or dated basement that could become proper living space
Outdoor space that doesn't get used, such as an old deck or fence that needs replacing
Our renovations and additions page covers the interior and addition work we take on, and our exterior projects page covers decks, fences and other outdoor work.
What a renovation can't solve
Be honest about the limits. A renovation won't make a small lot bigger. Zoning rules control what can be built on your property, and they may limit how large an addition can be or where it can go.
Renovating also means living with construction for a while, or arranging to stay somewhere else for part of it. Some families are fine with that. Others would rather pack once and be done.
Costs to weigh on both sides
We won't put dollar figures in a general article, because every house and every project is different. It still helps to list what each path involves.
Moving usually means real estate commissions, legal fees and moving costs, plus whatever work the next house needs. Buyers in Ontario also generally pay the provincial land transfer tax when a purchase closes.
Renovating means design and drawings, building permit fees, the construction itself and some disruption at home. In Grimsby, building permit fees are set by the Town and depend on the type and size of the work.
Once you have a real quote for the renovation, you can set it beside what a move would cost and compare the two properly.
Check zoning and permits before you count on an addition
If an addition is part of the plan, find out early what your lot allows. The Town of Grimsby's Zoning By-law sets the rules for each property, and the Town's interactive maps show zoning information. They also show whether a property is on the Heritage Register or designated. For the most accurate zoning information on your property, the Town suggests contacting its Planning Department at planning@grimsby.ca.
Grimsby also offers a zoning pre-review before you apply for a building permit. It's meant to catch zoning issues early, so the plans can be changed before they're submitted.
If a design doesn't meet the Zoning By-law, you may need a minor variance from the Town's Committee of Adjustment. After the Committee makes its decision there's a 20-day appeal period. If no appeal is received, the decision becomes final and binding. The Province's guide to building permits explains that a permit won't be issued until a required variance has been obtained.
Additions and many renovations need a building permit before work starts. Grimsby takes building permit applications online through Cloudpermit, and the Town recommends applying well before your planned start date. Its published average processing time for alterations to detached and semi-detached homes is about seven weeks. Check the Town's page for current figures, because they can change.
None of this has to stop you, but it all takes time. It's much better to know about it before you commit to a renovation or to a sale. If your project needs permit drawings, we can prepare or arrange them.
How a consultation helps you decide
You don't need finished drawings to start. Send us a few photos, a rough sketch or a list of what isn't working, and tell us what you'd like the house to do. If you already have plans from a designer, send those too.
We'll set up a consultation by phone or video to talk it through. If the project is a good fit, we arrange a site visit and prepare a quote. That gives you a real number to weigh against the cost of moving, instead of a guess. We carry insurance and WSIB coverage on our projects.
Sometimes the honest answer is that moving makes more sense, and that's worth knowing too.
Have Plans? Let's Talk About the Build.
Whether you have drawings in hand or you're still deciding between renovating and moving, get in touch through the contact section on our homepage or call us at 905-630-8255, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This article is general information. The Town of Grimsby and the Province of Ontario set the rules for zoning and permits, so confirm the details for your property with the Town.
Pine Shore Construction. Love Where You Live.
