Add a floor,
not a footprint.

It depends heavily on the existing foundation and first-floor wall structure. Homes with adequate footing depth and sound framing can often be built up directly; older or lighter-built homes sometimes need foundation underpinning or first-floor shear-wall reinforcement before a second story is structurally permittable.

That determination comes from a licensed structural engineer's assessment, not from a contractor's visual guess on a first visit.

We do not publish a price, because the honest answer is decided by your structure rather than your square footage. Foundation reinforcement, the extent of shear-wall retrofit and whether a full re-roof is triggered move the number far more than finish selections do.

The cost-driver breakdown further up this page shows which variables carry the most weight, and an itemised estimate follows the structural feasibility study.

Structural feasibility and design usually take longer than the addition's size suggests, because the engineering has to be resolved before permitting. Construction itself commonly runs several months to a year depending on how much foundation reinforcement is required and whether the whole roof is being replaced.

We do not quote building-department review times, because no contractor controls them.

Not always. The most disruptive phase — when the existing roof is opened to tie in the new floor — often makes at least temporary relocation worth considering, particularly with young children or anyone sensitive to construction dust.

Some households stay through it with the upstairs and certain rooms off-limits. We walk through the sequencing during planning rather than after demolition starts.

Often, yes. Tying new roof framing into an existing roof typically requires removing enough of the original roof that a full re-roof of the whole house becomes the practical and often code-driven choice — for matching materials, continuous flashing details and warranty coverage that actually holds.

Yes. New construction, including a second-story addition, has to meet current Florida Building Code wind-load requirements regardless of when the original structure was built.

That is frequently why first-floor walls need shear-wall reinforcement — to carry loads the original 1970s or 1980s framing was never designed for.

Engineered floor trusses or I-joists for the new floor system; structural steel or LVL beams to transfer new point loads down to the foundation; helical piers or micropiles where existing footing capacity is short; retrofitted shear sheathing with hurricane ties and hold-downs on existing first-floor walls; impact-rated windows and doors; and a roofing system matched or coordinated with the existing structure.

Temporary shoring and weather-protection systems are used during the roof-open phase and are part of the scope, not an extra.

A building permit supported by sealed structural drawings, and product-approval documentation for impact windows, doors and roofing assemblies. Inspections typically include structural, dry-in, rough mechanical, electrical and plumbing, insulation, and final.

We prepare and submit the application, respond to plan-review comments, schedule and attend inspections, and close the permit out at the end.

Yes — financing options are available through Mosaic, and we can point you at the application before design begins. Sorting financing in principle early means scope and budget get decided together rather than the scope being cut late.

Manufacturer warranties apply to installed products — roofing assemblies, impact windows and doors, and mechanical equipment — and the specific terms come from those manufacturers with the documentation handed over at closeout. Workmanship coverage is set out in your contract; ask for it in writing and read what it covers before you sign, with us or with anyone else.

Mostly the ordinary South Florida list applied to more building: keep the roof and flashings inspected after storm season, keep sealant joints around impact windows and doors sound, keep drainage running away from the foundation, and service the additional or re-zoned HVAC equipment on schedule.

Keep the closed permit file and wind-mitigation documentation somewhere you can find it — your insurer and, eventually, your buyer will both ask.

It can. Increased square footage and rebuild value typically mean a policy update, and depending on how the roof and structural connections are built, wind-mitigation inspection results may change too. Have your agent review the completed wind-mitigation documentation once the project closes out.