Secondary Suites in Winnipeg
*Please note this was written and filmed in December of 2020. While we still do secondary suites none of the pricing contained in this video is current or relevant and this is provided as legacy content without guarantee of any kind.
You can earn passive income by building a rental suite in your home.
Rental suites in a primary residence are officially known as secondary suites. To build a legal suite is a complex process that requires multiple permits and inspections.
In this blog post we will cover the basics of developing an attached secondary suite in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
We had a client approach us a year ago to build a secondary suite in their home. We took on the project without appreciating all of the obstacles involved.
Although we have developed many basements this project is of a different scale of magnitude.
The first step in the process is to apply for your permits
Building
Electrical
Plumbing
A normal basement development requires permits. But it does not require the strict adherence to sound and air transfer protocols that the city will make you undertake once they see you are planning to build a secondary suite. You can find more information from the city here https://www.winnipeg.ca/ppd/permits/Residential/SecondarySuites.stm#3
A normal basement development is considered a part of the existing home. A secondary suite needs to be built as a separate entity from the house so that the tenant’s rights are respected in accordance with city bylaws.
On our project this meant
Putting in sound rated insulation and steel channelling before drywalling.
Having an HRV installed.
Closing off a stairwell from the main residence to give the tenant a separate entrance from the homeowner.
Installing a separate electrical panel for the tenant suite.
In addition to this we had to do normal things relevant to a basement development like installing an egress window and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
You can find the full list of requirements here
https://www.winnipeg.ca/ppd/Documents/Brochures/Secondary-Suites-Attached.pdf
What is this going to cost and what can you expect in return?
In this article https://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/how-secondary-suites-can-be-beneficial-to-winnipeggers-1.4819883, written for CTV in Feb of 2020, the journalist references an event she attended by a group called YIMBY (yes in my backyard) that advocates for infill housing. The presenter counselled homeowners to budget about $100,000 for a secondary suite that could fetch $1,200 a month.
The suite we at Clement Contracting are currently building has much less overhead than that. Through creative solutions we are building the suite for around $30,000. Once completed it is expected to fetch $1,000 a month
Now not all suites are equal. This suite is small and it is in a very old home in St. Boniface. We were hungry to take on this new challenge so we priced it very competitively. In the future we will not be able to complete all suites at this price if we hope to run a profitable business.
A word to homeowners and other contractors. You will have cost overruns. On a project like this it seems there is never an end to small time consuming projects and the material they eat. Things like 2x4’s and insulation, that are priced higher because of Covid shortages, have eaten into the budget.
Always take these things into consideration when pricing any project and allow for cost overruns in the original contract. It is important to have two-way communication between the homeowner and the contractor to ensure fair pricing and profit for both.
As Clement Contracting is a smaller contractor we do not have the overhead of some of the larger companies. We have a small crew that communicates directly with owner Cory Clement. Without an office staff or warehousing personnel we can leverage this efficiency to save our clients money.
Going forward we can reasonably say that we can build suites for between $35,000 and $50,000 depending on finishes and the starting point of the job.
We are about to start another secondary suite in a newly built home. The homeowner was able to get the builder to install needed items like an HRV and separate entrance. This allowed them to put these items on their original mortgage and save money on the suite renovation.
The homeowner had this knowledge because they contacted us before building their home. Cory Clement was able to counsel the homeowner on what they would need for a secondary suite, saving them money and time.
If you feel like this is something you might like to look into please click on the button to contact us. Secondary suite development is a process that should be attempted only with a knowledgeable and licensed contractor to ensure that going forward everything is done right and you and your tenants are protected physically and legally.