8-questions-to-ask-when-you-outgrow-your-homeIf you’ve outgrown your home and need more space, you have two options: remodel or move. Here are 8 questions to ask yourself to help decide which the right approach is for you.

1. What are the benefits of remodeling? Remodeling can often times cost less than buying a new home.If you love the neighborhood and the local schools around your current home, and you are willing to live through a lot of disruption, it may be worth the aggravation and expense.

2. What are the cons of remodeling a house? Remodeling is messy. There will be lots of dust, dumpsters, drilling and disruption. But moving into a new home can come with its own set of challenges. There’s also the question of return on investment for home remodeling projects. Your improvements might make your home stand out from the others in your neighborhood, but a unique home is not likely to sell for much more than the other homes no matter how much you spend on renovations because your home value is controlled by neighboring properties.

3. What are the advantages of buying a bigger house? Buying a larger home is exciting and can start a new life chapter for your family. Plus, you’ve probably learned from mistakes in your first home which made you more confident when it comes to managing a house. If your life is already too busy to tackle overseeing a renovation project, moving into a larger home may better suit your current needs and be less time-consuming than remodeling your current house.

4. What are the drawbacks to buying a larger home? Buying the “next size up” will probably set you back a bit financially, and likely more than remodeling your current home. Before you decide whether to remodel or move, meet with a few contractors and run the numbers to find out how much your remodel will cost and compare that number with the cost of buying a larger home.

5. Will building a home addition pay off when it’s time to sell? Building an addition because you need the space and plan to stay in the house for a while is different than improving the house with the intention of getting out of the house what you put into it. Additions do add value but not necessarily a full return on your investment.

6. Will the home addition address future needs? If you add two extra bedrooms to accommodate your growing family, will you need more leisure space too? Will the cozy kitchen be big enough down the road? Is there enough storage space or bathrooms? Think about whether everyone can live happily and comfortably sharing the space of the common areas of your home.

7. Are you willing to move farther away? Houses can often cost less farther from the city, but there are other costs involved with moving to the suburbs, such as gas and car maintenance, especially if your job is located far from your new home.

8. How will you finance the addition? If you have enough equity built up, you can take out a home equity loan, which is ideal for renovations. If you don’t qualify for a home equity loan, start a savings account and make regular deposits. Or, if you have little or no credit card debt — and your project is small enough — consider taking out a credit card with 0% interest and pay it off during the card’s limited-time-offer period.