Dormers
Shed and gable dormers that make an attic usable — headroom, light and egress, without extending the footprint or touching the setbacks.
Additions · Bergen County, NJ
Additions that look like they were always there.
Rear extensions, second stories, dormers, sunrooms and porches — from the survey and the zoning check through framing, the weather envelope and the final trim. The roof and siding tie-ins are our own trades, and they are the part that usually gives an addition away from the street.
Scope
Six ways to get the room you need
Roughly in order of cost. The cheapest square footage in any house is often the space you already own and are not using.
Front porches & porticos
Proportion is everything: column spacing, beam depth and railing height are what make a porch look original or applied.
Covered back porches
A roof over the back of the house, on its own footings, framed and flashed into the wall so the water runs off it rather than into it.
Sunrooms
Three-season or fully conditioned. The difference is insulation, the glazing specification and whether the heating and cooling can carry it — decided before design, not after.
Rear extensions
The usual answer for a bigger kitchen or family room: new foundation, framing and envelope, and a roof that ties into the existing one at the right pitch.
Second stories
Full or partial. The existing foundation and framing are assessed by a structural engineer first — that is the first phone call, not the last.
Before the first nail
Zoning first, design second.
Plenty of people arrive with handsome drawings for something their lot will not allow. Many Bergen County lots are already non-conforming, which means an addition can trigger a variance for a setback that has been there for decades. Checking costs very little. Finding out afterwards costs a design. The full sequence, with the deadlines the law sets at each step, is in our guide to addition permits and zoning in New Jersey.
01
Survey and zoning check
A current survey, then the municipal zoning schedule for your zone: setbacks, building coverage, lot coverage, height and impervious limits. We establish what can be built as of right before anything is drawn.
02
Concept and feasibility
A rough layout, the structural implications and a realistic cost range, so the decision to go ahead is made with a number attached rather than after full drawings.
03
Design and engineering
Construction drawings, with a structural engineer where beams, foundations or a second story are involved. Where a variance is needed, this is when the zoning board application is prepared.
04
Permits
Building, electrical, plumbing and fire subcode permits, filed with the municipality. Review times vary between towns and the schedule uses the real one.
05
Foundation, frame, envelope
Footings and foundation, framing, roof, windows and the weather envelope. Getting the building closed in and watertight is the milestone everything after it is scheduled around.
06
Fit-out, inspections, certificate
Rough-in inspections, insulation, drywall and finishes, then the final inspections and the certificate for your file.
Realistic timelines
Design and approvals routinely take longer than construction. A few months from first drawing to permit in hand is normal for a straightforward addition, and longer if a variance is needed. A contractor promising you a permit in three weeks either is not filing one or has not read your zone.
The tell is always the roof line and the trim.
Additions give themselves away where the new roof meets the old one and where new trim dies into the existing fascia. Roofing and siding are our own trades, so we match the pitch, the overhang, the fascia depth and the siding exposure to the original. A house with two eras of trim on it never quite reads as one house.
One contractor
An addition touches every trade in the house.
Foundation, framing, roofing, siding, windows, plumbing, electrical, heating and cooling, insulation and finishes all meet in one new room. We run the whole job: our own crews for the carpentry, roofing, siding and windows, and licensed plumbers, electricians and HVAC contractors for their trades, on one schedule under one contract.
The tie-in is planned, not improvised
Where the new structure meets the old one — the roof valley, the wall flashing, the floor level — is drawn and detailed before framing starts.
One project manager
The same person from the first visit to the final inspection, coordinating every trade so you are not the one doing it.
A written scope
Named materials, stated quantities and exclusions, so a second quote is a real comparison.
A schedule with the inspections in it
Rough-in, insulation and final inspections are dates on the schedule, not surprises.
Questions
Additions, zoning and permits
How long does a home addition take?
Design and approvals often take longer than construction. Drawings, the zoning review and permits commonly take two to four months, depending on the town and on whether a variance is needed. Construction of a typical rear extension or second story then runs for months rather than weeks. A dormer or a porch is considerably shorter. You get a phase-by-phase schedule with the estimate.
Do I need a variance for an addition?
Only if the design breaks your zone's bulk requirements: setbacks, building coverage, lot coverage or height. Many Bergen County lots are already non-conforming, so it is worth checking early. We start with a current survey and the zoning schedule before anyone draws anything.
Does an addition need a permit in New Jersey?
Yes. An addition is new construction, so it needs construction permits and inspections, usually across the building, electrical, plumbing and fire subcodes, and a zoning review first. We file the permits and book the inspections as part of the job.
Can my house take a second story?
Sometimes. The existing foundation and framing have to be assessed by a structural engineer before anything else, because they were sized for one story. That assessment is the first step, and it decides whether a second story is a straightforward job, a job with structural work underneath it, or the wrong answer.
Will the addition match the rest of the house?
That is the part we care most about. The giveaways are where the new roof meets the old one and where new trim meets old fascia. Because roofing and siding are our own trades, we match the pitch, the overhang, the fascia depth and the siding exposure to the original.
Start with the survey.
Tell us the town and what you want the room for. We will tell you what your zone allows before anyone draws anything.