All Forum Posts by: Connor Wingfield

@Reza Tashakori Right, by terraced I mean your "basement" is any habitable space beneath the main floor of the house, but the basement can have a pretty amazing view / deck depending on how it fits on the site. 

@Michael McCartney  I agree with Roy, the balcony is being supported by the joists that cantilever perpendicular to the front door. The 45 deg kickers probably are picking up some of the load but for the most part they look like are supporting the end beam. I am not an engineer so id recommend to get a professional to look at it. Best case scenario would be to replace the rotten joists, and rebuild it how it is.  Dropping a post can also be a solution, but it doesn't look like you have anything underneath it to drop down to unless there is a concrete pad under the balcony that I cant see in the photo. Good luck!

Slopes can be tricky especially without having first done the survey.  From what it sounds like the lot you are looking at has a fairly steep slope. 

Like Colin mentioned above, basements will not count toward FAR. This is why you see a lot of houses that terrace down the hill. The thing you will have to watch out for with a basement is there is a limit to earth displacement. This will limit the size of the basement to a degree. The BMO (baseline hillside ordinance you mentioned above) caps your grading to something like 5,000 cubic yards for a lot of places including Bell Air. 

Architectural designer here. I agree with Emilio, the more professional you approach it the more professional your GC will respond to you. If you prepare a scope document that lists out in bullet points every item you would like the GC to bid on, they should respond with a price that is broken down item by item. Once you walk the different GCs through the space and go over each item on your scope document you can ask for them to essentially bid on it. They should put a price by each item in the scope document, as well as the amount they require for overhead and insurance. You could even put both the new half-bath and the kitchen enlargement and have the GCs price both. Then you can decide at a later point what makes the most sense based on your numbers. Once you get all the bids back you can do a cost analysis on which feature might make the home more valuable. Just remember big kitchens, open floor plans and large master bedrooms with bathrooms suites are what bring in the big bucks here in California.

Logan, great write up on house-hacking. Many thanks for sharing with the community!

@Sebastia H.

I think I was too optimistic about all the things I could pack into the weekend.  I don't think ill make this one. I do like the meetups on the weekend, so next one you do Ill defiantly make the drive up there. 

I am Interested, will try to be there!

Hi Amy, 

I work as an architect in Santa Monica. We get a number of investors looking to add value to properties on the west side of LA.  Generally we see people who are developing and can afford to wait for permitting and or variances to zoning (split lots, extra sqftage etc). However, I've only been on the design and planning side. I have been looking for good success stories that explain the numbers in more detail, if you find some please share! 

Kyle, thanks for setting this up. I live right around the corner so Ill be there with a +1

Surfer here, also interested in Westport. Living pretty far away right now, but grew up in the Pacific Northwest surfing in Westport and Neah Bay. Im priced out of any long term recreational development opportunity here in LA and would be very interested in learning more about what you have planed!