I think the first layout is fine. You might want to consider moving the door for the storage room of the master bedroom so that it opens into the hall. That way the kids can use it for overflow storage. Also, that hallway is big enough that I think it could hold a large armour, providing more closet space. (There's no need to sleep in the same room as your clothes, so long as they're not too far off.) Also, don't forget that while the drawing shows kids in double beds, this need not be the case, so there will be more room for furniture (dressers or whatever) in their rooms. Finally, that step to bedroom 4 will not be odd at all. I've seen it in other homes. It looks clumsy in the drawing but it isn't. What you'll see when you come up the stairs is a bedroom door on a slight diagonal. It's only an odd jagged step if you walk like a robot, in straight lines along the wall, which is what your eye is doing on the drawing but you won't do in real life.

I'm not a builder or an expert . The downstairs looks easy -- obviously you want exactly the same width and profile -- take 1 or 2 boards off the end of the house , add new boards , paint the entire thing . The garage will 'hide' the existing side wall , so that can be left as it is , relined , painted , whatever you want , as its now an 'internal' wall . Upstairs though is trickier -- I assume there are horizontal weatherboards along the side of the house , so adding across and 'around the corner' would be more difficult , but not impossible -- it will take more labour and a bit more materials . At the end of the day , talk to your builder -- they are the one that will asked , so if they say No , pretty much the end of the conversation -- you accept , or you look for another builder , who hopefully says yes , and even more hopefully , actually can do it haha !

Hi , There are three factors that will increase your square meter rate. Earthworks , Design and fittings choice. Some companies will allow for a PC Sum in earthworks which doesn't reflect the total cost. This in itself can make one quote higher than the other. If you have any questions contact me.

I didn't see this either , and how long is a piece of string ? Wellington ( a bit like parts of Queenstown ) is known for steep slopes and high winds , so the actual design will affect things a lot -- my sister once 'conned' me into moving her to Wellington when she got a Government job . We loaded one of my small trucks and drove several hours , when we got to her new place on the side of Mt Victoria with lovely harbour views , it seems she had forgotten to mention that the new house was the one up there -- yes , a 1920's build 130 steps up from the street . Hard enough moving a glass fronted china cabinet and solid Kauri 1880s dining table -- imagine carting every bit of timber , tile , window , kitchen appliance up there !