Developing a secondary suite in a new home.

You can save money when building a new home, and offset the cost of your mortgage, by renting out your basement. However there are many requirements to meet in order to do this safely and legally.

A secondary suite is a rental suite inside an existing home. In this blog (and accompanying video) we look at a home that was built in 2020 - 2021 in Prairie Pointe. We are developing the basement of this home into a rental suite.

In 2020 a customer contacted us about developing a secondary suite. They explained they were building a new home and wanted to rent out the basement. Because they contacted us at such an early stage, we were able to work with the homebuilder to make our job easier.  

The home builder was very accommodating and was able to include things, that are legally required for a secondary suite, into the original build:

• A separate entrance for the secondary suite

• Ensuring the basement walls were properly sealed against moisture

• Placement of the plumbing to accommodate a kitchen and bathroom.

• Large egress windows

By having the homebuilder complete these tasks the homeowner was able to save money. It always costs less to build for these elements than to retrofit them later.

All of these elements are required by city code. As a contractor our job is to act as a go between for the homeowner and the city. We try to give the best possible use of the space to the homeowner, for their tenants, while staying inside the limits of what we are required to do by the city.

City code stipulates that only 33 per cent of the overall square footage of the house can be used as a secondary suite. As such on this project we could not use every inch of usable space in the basement. Rather we had to take that 33 per cent and make it into the best rental suite possible.

In this case that became two large bedrooms, a bathroom and a kitchen / dining / living area. The tenants and homeowners will share a laundry room that is legally separate from both suites. 

Again because we were able to draw up these plans for the suite during the building process we were able to locate plumbing stacks where the kitchen and bathroom were going to be.

We were also able to ensure the bedrooms and the kitchen have large egress windows. These windows let in lots of natural light and make the suite feel more open.

With home prices on the rise a secondary suite can be a good way to offset your mortgage while still building the house of your dreams.

By doing the process correctly you can ensure that you and your tenant are both comfortable and safe for years to come.

As always if you are interested in building a secondary suite don’t hesitate to give us a call.