Perhaps the sellers are using the other front room (with big window typical of a living room) as a bedroom?

Does your purchase depend on being able to add on?

Check with city hall about what might be permitted as an addition. Even a small addition would change the drainage which could affect the neighbors. Adding a few feet is seldom worth the cost.

The big windowed room is the dining room, with the kitchen behind it. We thought about switching the LR & DR, but then we'd be parading our meals through the LR every night. Seemed weird! The purchase isn't dependent, we're just trying to figure things out so we can hit the ground running when we close. The house is on 3.5 acres in a pretty rural area--we can't even see the nearest neighbor's house, so I think we're good on that front.

All that furniture in that living room is way too large, I would say to get size appropriate furniture and live with it a while until you get a feel for how you could expand the house, with a architect. It is adorable!

I notice several of your ideabook photos feature "bump-out" bay windows. Doing that in the dining area and installing a window seat so you can place a small dining table and chairs there will make the room seem larger. I don't think I'd try adding a few feet any other way. There are better ways to invest in this home, including furnishing it with smaller scale pieces that don't hog space. Upgrading the entry and door, as well as getting the landscaping under control would be other good investments. You may soon decide a portico is important to your comfort.

Talk to a contractor and tell them what you want to do. We were lost in space when it came to our addition until we met our future contractor. They will be able to give you an idea what can be done and for what budget. That, to me, is better than an architect. But you have to find the right contractor first! Good luck...it's a cute house :)!

Thanks, decoenthusiaste, but I'm talking about the living room! For reference, here's the dining room from the front door, looking into the kitchen. This is behind the big bay window on the right side in the exterior pictures above. The living room is on the left side, with the smaller window. That's the room we're trying to figure out.

And I agree with all of you--that LR furniture is way too large. We won't use a big cabinet like that, and we'll get airier-feeling sofa/coffee table/chairs. That'll help a little bit, but it's always going to be a small room unless we do something.

JudyG's example is just perfect--small-scale comfy sofa with chaise and shallow wall system all across the opposite wall. Keep things light colored. My only change would be a long coffee table/ottoman on legs to open things up or glass coffee table. This would be a lot less hassle than bumping out the living room so that you can see how the room feels without doing so.

I would suggest adding a small addition to the living room (like on the right side of this house). Nothing too big of course, but enough that it is worth it. I think a porch off of the front (to this side of my proposed addition) would really add a lot to the house. Best of luck, and hopefully I was able to help!

I'm thinking bay windows flanking the front door (both with window seats to increase seating without losing floor space) and perhaps a screened porch on the downhill side.

Ooo, JK, that picture is so similar to our house/setting--thanks! Is it from a post on Houzz? Would love to see more.

Decoenthusiaste, I like the idea of window seats.

You have plenty of room to expand, but don't do a bump out, go to the lot. That area can be filled in. Talk to an architect and have her/him draw up some ideas.

If you want simple bump-outs, decoenthusiaste's idea of bay window/bench flanking the front door is one that would give you more light, space, seating. Here's one type that seems to be a window bench on the inside:

Is this your forever house? If so save to do a full scale remodel in several years. If not Judy G's design looks to solve problems. Can you get original blueprints from the town hall? That's what I did to see what previous owners had done to my cape. I think yours was originally 4 rooms. What is now DR was LR with kitchen behind it and what is now LR was a bedroom. Just by the windows it is telling that the LR was not consider a main room. House posted by JK is bedroom, where picture window is is the LR.

If your thinking about pushing out the front walls for more you also have to consider about moving your cesspool if it's in the front also does the house have a basement

And also the foundation you have to think about too

jck910 it'll be our weekend house--we rent in the city. We expect/hope to keep it at least 10 years, maybe more. Interesting idea to see about blueprints! The major renovation was done by a writer & his dad in 1996, and he actually wrote a book about it. So while we don't have photos, we do know almost exactly what he did. When he bought it, it was 4 rooms downstairs, 2 up, 1 bathroom on the ground floor. He installed a 2nd bath & dormer upstairs, and a two-room office in the basement on the back side. He left most of the basic bones as he found them. But I think you're right about the DR being the LR originally. The family that built it raised 4 kids in that house--they didn't have room for a DR!

Claire Larece septic tank is in the back. Anyway, given our meager budget, we're hoping to do more of a bump-out, where we don't need to lay foundation.

Two comments. I would not bump out the front because it would kill the pretty façade of the sweet cape that you love. I'd go to the left side, if at all.

Second, I suggest you live in the house for a while before doing any addition. You might find that it does make sense to switch the living and dining rooms as suggested above. Or that a small sectional with white paint, like mentioned above is all the change you need to fix the small living room. Especially if it is just a weekend house.

The roof line will limit additions to the front, while the gable ends would allow expansion. A bump out is all you can do on the front without expensive roof adjustments which take away budget for good things.

One way to gain space, depending on your climate, is to connect the screened deck accessed off the kitchen with a full / long and deep front porch that extends the width of the house and connects to the screened area on the right end. The windows at the end of the dining room could become a french door.

While a bay window will give you a neat seating spot, unless you use the space inside wisely (banquette seating for the table?) it won't help the house live bigger and it will darken the room - won't add more light inside as it moves your light source away from the exterior wall. You might consider solatubes or skylights as a way to increase natural light here.

Were it mine, I'd switch living and dining right off. I'd rather traipse thru - the house isn't so big that it won't really feel like one space anyway .. . .that way I'd have good light and space where I "live", because my outdoor area is adjacent to kitchen and with the addition of some french doors, it gives me circulation options most of the year. Since this is a weekend space, cooking and big meals won't be my primary focus.-

Also, as dining, the 10 x 12 space can accommodate a built in banquette along the end wall that would act as a second sofa . . .while gaining at least 3' by shifting the table away from the center of the room.

A farmhouse table and some comfortable upholstered dining chairs . they can be turned 180 degrees to participate in the living room space . . provides instant craft space, tablet space . . . this would leave room adjacent to the door for

some mud room / entry / storage casework or antique secretary or armoire that can do double duty.

I also hate having the entry door open right into the living room space, but don't mind when it is the dining room. Dining rooms look good most of the time, and living rooms look .er . .lived in, more often than not. It allows the rest of the house to keep on living while one person handles a visitor at the door . .. . .

That sounds nice @libradesigneye but can you tell me why adding a large bay window would take away the light source from the exterior

@debbiek you say you have 4 rooms on the ground floor......does that include the kitchen

Meager budget, Cape Cod, and an addition do not go together at all. Renovating on an island is much more expensive than the mainland. The supply chain and available trades are iffy and prone to time management issues because of the distance from the mainland. You are already in one of the most expensive locations in the country to have renovations done to begin with, without the added issue of being in an island.

I think you need to live there a few summers and save your money. You may not want to do anything at all after you experience it. And if you do, you'll have a better idea of what will make it work better, and a bigger budget to do it with.

Good ideas so far, especially using the house for a few weeks or months to see how it feels. As you live into it, you'll discover where you need to make changes and you may even be surprised. I don't see a driveway or garage, so wonder where main access door is. In rural areas (I live in a very rural area of North Carolina), most folks don't use the "front" door most of the time.

OK, I'm convinced, we'll live with it a while before doing anything to the house itself!

libradesigneye you make some really smart/compelling points. The seller is leaving behind the dining room table & chairs, and we don't have any LR furniture yet, so it would be easy enough to at least try moving the DR furniture to the smaller room. That banquette idea is intriguing for sure.

Claire Larece the ground floor has LR, DR, kitchen, bathroom, and spare bedroom/office. We've also considered opening the wall between LR and BR, but we don't want to lose the guest space. Trying to think of something flexible that would let light through--a glass wall with a door?

That wall would obviously add a *really* contemporary feel, but I like the idea of it.

Or I really love the way this looks:

christina405 there's a gravel driveway to the left--that's where I was standing when I took the picture at the top. No garage. There's an entry to the basement at the rear of the house, which seems to be the main way the seller got in & out--there's no pathway from the parking area to the front door.

(Sophie Wheeler I absolutely see why you thought I meant the house is actually on Cape Cod--I should've written "on a Cape Cod." This is in the Upper Delaware River area, about two hours north of NYC. Definitely no island-related worries!)

OK, cancel about island. Keep references to high COL area and living with it for a while.

Living with it, yes, but the COL ain't high there. That's why we're able to afford to buy ;)

Would you consider adding a deck or patio area so you could enjoy the outdoors when the weather permits--spring, summer, fall. In winter, enjoy your cozy space indoors.

Include a fire pit for cool evenings. That might be more enjoyable than having a larger living room. I don't see a fireplace inside.

The enclosed patio looks like the ideal place for a flat-roofed bump-out.

leelee There's a nice-sized deck behind the gate/fence on the right side, and a patio out back--with a fire pit in the backyard! I mentioned in my initial post that we're hoping to add a fireplace, but that won't happen unless/until we figure out what kind of expansion we can really do.

jbtanyderi I'm not sure I understand what you mean!

I'd be curious about the layout. Perhaps the basement offers some options for living space you haven't considered. Maybe the upstairs could be opened up for an open concept living/dining area.

decoenthusiaste I just did this super-rough layout of the first floor. Definitely not accurate in terms of measurements, etc, but it'll give a sense of how it all fits together. Behind the stairs, opposite the bathroom door, is the door to the basement. It's about 1/3 finished, a small two-room office-type suite with its own entrance. No bath, no heat.

Another vote for flipping the living room and dining room.

Hi Debbie, I live in the same style house. My kitchen is an eat in with a table and chairs and I have no designated dining room. It may be seen as a drawback, but we use the living room much more than I would ever need a separate dining room. Where you have your living room is a bedroom in my house.

Consider closing off the current LR from the entrance and creating a door to the current bedroom right next to the stairs. Make that bedroom your DR. and the current DR the LR. That puts the DR much closer to the kitchen, and gives the new bedroom access to the bath from just about the same distance. It's not ideal, but it's cheap, and improves flow a bit.

Consider installing a mini-split heat pump system and a water closet with a composting toilet to make the basement useful. All the guest sleeping should happen there, even if you just put in bunks and make it a bunkroom. Its a vacation home after all. That leaves the upstairs for the socializing. Is there a master bedroom in the attic for you where the previous owner added the bath and dormer? I'd try to create one if not. As for the main floor, I would open the kitchen and DR to each other as much as possible and add a great island with built-in dining table for as many as you can host during a weekend getaway. Then I'd combine the guest bedroom and living room. It will be too narrow to accommodate a fireplace - maybe you could invest the $$ in a firepit out back. These first two cottage looking pix seat 5. You'll have to adjust according to the sleeping arrangements so you can seat all your guests (assuming you'll open your cottage to family.)

Here are a couple of bunkhouse ideas...

Sharon we really do have the same house! I'd love to see more pictures, if you wouldn't mind. Our kitchen isn't big enough for an eat-in, unfortunately. It's a U-shape with a door to the deck on the far side and a wide opening to the dining room, and a hallway to the basement door/bathroom/guest BR off the other end. Not even room for an island!

This is looking out to the deck on the right side of the house, with the kitchen on the left and the opening to the dining room on the right:

And here's looking down the hall to the basement door (on left), guest BR, and bathroom (on right):

decoenthusiaste I love the idea of a big open kitchen/DR like that (I'm a food writer, and we'll definitely be having big dinners), but I'm not sure we could accommodate it. The seller told us the opening to the DR can't be made wider since it's a load-bearing wall. That same wall also divides the LR/guest BR. I suppose we could do beams all the way across the top between kitchen/DR and LR/guest BR, and take the rest of the walls down? That feels pretty expensive to me, but I have no experience with this stuff!

I love the bunkhouse idea. It'll be a hard sell for my husband & son, since they've been eyeing that basement space as a bit of a man-cave.

Well, if you have lots of folks who'll want to come and stay, you may be able to convince them that the bunk house is a smarter idea. You may have room for a sofa and TV down there, so it won't be a total loss for them.

If you have a son, like mine, they have friends who will want to come with . . that ought to make the man cave / bunkhouse combo seem perfect. - You can do full beds under twins so that couples or a family can be accomodated .. or a troop of boys.