Portland Attic Remodeling Ideas: All Budgets
Updated 05/2024.
Improving the usefulness of your house brings big benefits. You can change the home to match your lifestyle, accommodate a growing family, add storage, or provide a rentable space for more income. The same changes also boost your home’s resale value when it is time to sell. Yes, it pays to do home improvements.
If you are searching for an area of the home where you can take advantage of any or all these traits, look up. An attic is often where our real estate clients capitalize. Still, understanding more about this area of the home can determine how you approach it.
Here is a closer look at the benefits of attic conversions and the important legal requirements so you can make the best decision to improve your upstairs real estate.
Why Your Attic?
Here are reasons why choosing your attic for your next home addition is a smart choice:
● It requires less work and money than building onto your existing home. You won’t have to pour concrete slabs or add exterior walls or a roof. You may need to add support for proper flooring, but you still benefit financially overall.
● You maintain the same amount of usable land on your property, eliminating the need to reduce your greenspace. This also means you add to the home’s resale without having to go larger or sacrificing the home’s current functionality.
● It works better than another popular addition location – your garage – because it lhelps you maintain valuable parking space.
This is all impressive, but an attic also provides other financial and usability benefits worth knowing, regardless of your budget. Let’s take a look at some now.
How Attic Renovations Can Benefit Any Budget
Here are some solutions you can implement that match any budgets you have.
Benefits for Lower Budgets
Not everyone can create an attic space worthy of Architectural Digest. If money is tight or your attic doesn’t meet the legal requirements of a living space (more on this in a bit), even small improvements go a long way. As a real estate agent, I recommend these buyer-approved steps to improve your attic. All can be accomplished over a couple of weekends.
● Place sheets of plywood or wide planks across the floor joists so that you can walk around your attic safely. It doesn’t have to be brand new. Check Portland Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace for material left over from other peoples’ home improvement projects. Use screws to attach the wood to the floor joists.
● Use the space to install basic shelving. Avoid storing heavy objects on attic joists unless they have been reinforced.
● If your HVAC unit is in the attic, insulation and sealing of heating ducts will help prevent heat loss from your ducts, saving you money on energy costs.
● If you want to install HVAC but find it cost-prohibitive, try other heating strategies, such as a mini-split AC or baseboard heating.
● Add wall and ceiling insulation. You will need a minimum of R-19, but the higher the R-value, the more energy efficiency improvement you’ll see. Be sure to use proper barriers around can lights, ducts, chimneys, and other heat sources, and check the requirements to ensure you maintain adequate ventilation.
● Insulate the attic hatch. Seal it up tightly to prevent loss of heated and cooled air from the home into the attic.
Implementing insulation improvements improves the comfort of your attic and entire home while lowering your monthly electrical bill. You even improve your home’s chance of selling. With Portland’s home energy score requirement in full effect, these improvements help your home score better, leading to greater demand from buyers. Find more information about do-it-yourself attic insulation on the Order Home Energy Score website.
Benefits of Higher Budgets
Do you have the funds for a full conversion? The City of Portland has put together a handy guide on converting garages, basements, and attics to living spaces. (For more information on basements, check out our Portland real estate guide to turning your basement into a living space. Many of these tips also apply to garages!)
Attic Conversions: The Legal Low-Down on Going Up
One important fact worth knowing before any planning is whether your attic qualifies as a living space. According to the Portland city code, your attic must be at least 70 square feet and have a ceiling height of at least 6′ 8″ for at least half of the square footage. If your attic is too small or short but is close, you can add a dormer to make it fit the required specifications.
Outside of the size and height requirement, there are no blanket rules for knowing whether your attic project will be allowed under city code because house styles vary. Still, here are some general rules worth considering:
■ You’re going to need a permit. You can calculate how much it might cost using the Portland Development Services’ Fee Estimator. Non-permitted attic conversions will prove to be a headache down the road when you want to sell. You may be charged penalties, have your home insurance revoked, and be required to rip out all of the beautiful remodel!
■ Existing stairways to the attic must meet width and clearance minimums, and new stairways must be built to an even more generous code.
■ If your attic does not have a window large enough to use as an emergency escape (also known as an egress window), you’ll need to put one in.
■ In addition to the attic space and ceiling height requirements mentioned before, there are additional requirements for bathrooms in attics.
■ If your attic upgrades include a bathroom, your life will be much easier if you can site it over an existing bathroom or kitchen (water/sewer lines).
■ If your attic doesn’t have them now, you’ll be required to add wall and ceiling insulation as part of the upgrade. From an energy efficiency point of view, you’ll save money in the long run. You will also score better in the Portland home energy assessment that’s required when listing your home. Check out this helpful article to learn more about the energy score process and requirements.
■ Attic joists may not be adequate to support a floor and a “live load” (as opposed to a few sheets of plywood and some storage boxes). Consult with a contractor to see if you need to reinforce floor joists before converting your attic.
■ If you are thinking about raising the roof of your home to increase your attic space, you’ll need to check the zoning requirements for maximum building height in your area.
Converting Your Attic into an ADU
If you want to convert their attics into an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU), be aware that there are a number of rules to consider first. In addition to the above basics, legalities, and tips, there are also some hoops you may need to jump through to monetize your attic as a separate ADU.
We outline all of the updated information you need to know about ADUs in our new article. Portland’s Permit Page also provides a good jumping off point for an ADU build or remodel.
The first decision to make when considering an attic remodel is whether you will be using the ADU to generate income or simply provide housing for a family member. You will need to meet all permitting requirements regardless, but depending on your immediate or long-term plans, you will have to decide whether you are adding an official ADU or an additional room in your house before beginning the renovation.
One of the biggest considerations is the entrance/exit for the remodeled attic. If you do not plan to provide a private way in and out of the attic, it may not be able to generate as much income as a rental. Renters generally like to be able to use a separate entrance. In addition to a private entrance, you will need to ensure there is sufficient electricity and plumbing to provide at least a kitchenette and bathroom. There are fewer factors to consider if you are creating an additional bedroom, office, or multipurpose room. For more insight, read our brand new Portland ADU guide here.
Four Must-Do Attic Design Tips
Any real estate agent will tell you it’s crucial to keep resale value in mind when doing any upgrade or renovation. Here are four attic ideas buyers will love:
Make the attic soundproof. If your attic does not have flooring, this is a great opportunity to think about acoustics before you start adding any hardwood. Sound made there will reverberate though your home. Carpet is the best option, along with good floor insulation and a soundproof underlayment.
Use dormers for storage. Short walls under a slanted roof do not offer much usable floor space, but they’re great for built-in shelves and drawers. If there’s a dormer window, a built-in window seat is a nice touch, with storage underneath.
Use skylights for added light and more headspace. Not only do they bring in needed daylight, but skylights can also add precious feet to your headspace in key areas, such as over sinks, toilets, and entryways. Don’t skimp on added features like shades and a remote to open and close the skylight.
Don’t forget about closets. Even if you’re not shooting for fourth-bedroom status, a closet is handy for supplies you don’t want to haul upstairs every time, like an extra vacuum cleaner.
Attic Design Ideas
Now that you fully understand what to consider before starting your remodel, it’s time to learn what’s possible in terms of design. Two sources are Pinterest and Instagram. Once you begin viewing and saving designs you love, both apps will provide more ideas in the same vein. YouTube is another strong source for a more thorough walk-through of designs and for a closer look at many of the solutions listed above.
But you probably already knew those were good places to check. Another excellent idea is to hire a local building and / or interior designer. You can easily find them (and examples of their work) on Houzz.
Work with a Local Real Estate Expert
Do you have additional questions about current codes or the resale value of your attic remodel? Reach out to our top-ranked Portland real estate agents today. Our buyer’s and seller’s agents are experts on the Portland housing market and helping homeowners to maximize their home’s resale potential. Chat with the bot on this site, or give us a call at 503-714-1111 today!
