Finding Space for Home Offices
This two-story home for a family of four needed to accommodate two, full-time, work-from-home spaces. We did that plus a kitchen remodel and new living area!
The Project at a Glance
BEFORE: The rear of this two-story house has a breakfast nook bump-out into the yard.
AFTER: Single-story addition tucked under the kids' bedrooms upstairs plus updated landscape design.
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Project Type
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House Type
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2 story, 3 bed/2.5 bath, over crawlspace
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Scope
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Whole Home Exploration: Offices, Kitchen, Living
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Location
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Ashcreek Neighborhood, SW Portland, Multnomah County
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Budget
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Timeline
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Project engagement kickoff, early 2024 - Completed, Fall 2025
Project Narrative
The homeowners have two young kids and have lived in this house, on a cute, dead-end street for a number of years. During the pandemic, they both started working full-time from home and eventually their jobs went full-time remote.
She had commandeered a corner of the upstairs primary bedroom for her office. He had grabbed a short wall in the dining room, in the space between the kitchen and the french doors leading to the back yard.
The home had two living areas: a formal seating area with a fireplace at the front, and an informal living area for family hang-outs with a television with a big, comfy, sectional couch.
The homeowners were also ready for an updated kitchen. The kitchen layout was unusual with an oddly angled peninsula (which housed the sink and dishwasher) that overlooked a three-sided “breakfast nook.” The nook served as a play area for the little ones and was hard to use any other way. Additionally, the original cabinets and drawers were starting to fail significantly, there was not enough storage space, and the prep areas were limited. As they prefer to cook most meals at home, this was also a priority!
Wants & Needs
- Two, full-time, separated, dedicated home offices for him and her each with a door to close and a window for views and natural light.
- An updated kitchen with a better layout, more storage, and room to cook together.
- A more pleasing and functional entry seating area.
- Better function and flow at the informal living room.
- Removing the noisy laundry located on the main floor adjacent to the primary living areas.
- More general storage for boots, shoes, jackets and other daily household items.
Code Alert
FAR (Floor Area Ratio) on this property constrained us to an additional 465sf of additional cumulative living space. This is a new zoning code limitation (2021) for Multnomah County and can have significant effects on any project looking to add habitable space.
A Few Options Explored
We went with option C.
What Did We Do?
After a few rounds of design iterations and deliberations, we chose a single story option that greatly expanded the main floor. We took over the space of the casual living room in order to straighten out the kitchen and expand it. In this space, we carved out an office space for him with a door and a new window, and we added a storage pantry to support the kitchen and home.
Next, we removed the bump-out “breakfast nook,” and this location became the new connection point to a sizable living area addition. For the addition, we maximized the allowable FAR (see “code alert” above) to the square inch! The addition contains an expansive casual living room with direct access to the deck and yard, a flex space for their piano and play room, and an office for her with a pocket door and two windows.
The addition, with natural light on four sides (North, South, East and skylight!), is very bright and open. We introduced a landscape designer to help create new order in their smaller backyard which resulted in a perfect outdoor space for entertaining and relaxing.
The new kitchen sink is set against a pass-thru and bar with the skylight overhead. This move alone created such a huge feeling of openness and workability in the kitchen, you almost don’t notice how much work space we added adjacent to the stove by expanding into the original living room. The pantry frees up even more room in the kitchen so that none of the storage feels cramped or inaccessible.
Both office spaces could easily be repurposed in the future for other needs and are a huge marketable win for the house!
Why did We Choose This Option?
- Changing the upstairs areas would have been chaotic. Remodel and addition options which affected the upper level meant a lot more construction activity was going to happen all over the home, disrupt the bedroom spaces for the kids, and require that the family move out during the construction phase, increasing the overall budget. We decided to leave the upstairs intact.
- Moving the kitchen was too resource-intensive and cost too much. It also did not leave the right space behind for offices and living areas. Keeping the kitchen in its existing location gave us more bang for the buck.
- The offices were the primary driver of need in this project but both homeowners were adamant that spaces small and efficient would meet their needs. Having walls and doors would be a huge upgrade to their current, ad-hoc work spaces. Home offices are a marketable win for the future value of the home.
Throughout the process, Amanda was communicative, transparent about costs, and consistently reliable. She also brought an outstanding network of professionals. After a competitive bidding process, we chose to work with her recommended contractor and landscape architect, and we’re so glad we did. Sarah, who collaborated with Amanda, was also fantastic and incredibly helpful on the interior design side.
Even during construction, Amanda remained engaged. She was available for questions, providing clarification, and stopping by to ensure everything was progressing as intended.
We couldn’t be more enthusiastic in our recommendation of PDX Additions. Working with Amanda was a fantastic experience from start to finish. You won’t regret it.
Credits
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Design
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Amanda Erickson, PDX Additions, LLC
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Interior Design Studio
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Sarah Leoni, PDX Additions, LLC
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Builder
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Derek Brown, Crystal Remodeling
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Engineering
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Grummel Engineering