"How difficult is this to accomplish with a split level?"

How difficult is what? What do you wish to accomplish?

"Ideally we were looking to purchase a ranch as our preference is a colonial style home"

A ranch is not a colonial style home.

Split-levels are usually at the bottom of the list for desirable real estate styles.

20+ years ago I had friends that looked into a full remodel of the one they owned. After they did the math, it made more sense to sell and buy a colonial 2-story house in the same town. Putting big money into a split-level still leaves you with a split-level.

Definitely a house style for the young, but it can also be hard for younger families with babies/kids and all those stairs.

My parents first house was a split-level with:

Basement: not large, one open room they split into storage, laundry and office

Ground level: foyer, den, spare bedroom, powder, covered porch and garage.

First floor: kitchen, living room, dining room.

Second floor: 3 bedrooms, 1 full bathroom

Third floor/attic: Was unfinished when they bought. They added a master suite w/full bath.

The house worked fine for them for many years, but they didn't love all the stairs and the way the floor plan was split up.

To me that floorplan doesn't fit a traditional split level which are generally an entrance into a split stairway and much less desirable and only has 2 levels (lower and upper level, although some can have an attic, but that is not living space). This doesn't seem to be that layout. A colonial generally is a 2-story house which can also have an attic (not living space) and a basement and not a ranch house. What is it you're trying to accomplish with this house. Do you want a colonial look exterior or what is that you want?

I had one. I loved it. With little children, everything was only half a flight away. In my two-story, everything is a full flight away.

The real question for you is, that is already a four-level house, which is what you say you want. What do you need to accommodate in there, how many people, lifestyle, etc? In your plan, my biggest concern is the size of the two bathrooms upstairs.

Thank you for the feedback and apologies if my post was not clear. We were looking to buy a ranch, add on a second floor for bedrooms and renovate the floor plan. So creating a traditional 2-story house. My question is how much more difficult and costly (or is it even possible) to accomplish this with a split level?

It is pre-listed as a split level, however we won't be able to get in to see it until next week. Houses in our area sell in less than 1 week so there is not much time to evaluate options. Really appreciate all of the thoughtful input.

If you want a house that looks like a traditional two-story, this won’t get you there, unless it is turned sideways on the lot. and then, it would have a really wonky interior.

"We are currently looking at purchasing a split level home in the Northeast for a full renovation and addition? "

I think the fact that the first statement ended with a question mark speaks volumes.

"We were looking to buy a ranch, add on a second floor for bedrooms and renovate the floor plan. So creating a traditional 2-story house."

This makes no sense -- why would you not just buy a colonial/traditional 2-story right out of the gate?

Raising the recreation Room level up to the garage level may be cost prohibitive.

You are probably better off tearing the house down and rebuilding to get what you want. Or buy another house.

Trying to remodel a split level into the floor plan you describe won’t be easy or inexpensive.

Split levels are notoriously hard to add onto. I was involved in a project that originally involved adding another level onto the one-floor half of a split level and every version was so awkward that they ended up tearing the house down and building a new one (it was a HCOLA area in a great school district, and at the time it made sense) .

There were houses in the development where a floor had been added to one side, there was even a house where a floor had been stacked on both sides. They were not pleasant looking houses at the end, and the one ended up with five levels.

How exactly do you intend on making a split level home into a 4 level home?

The picture below is what I consider to be a split level. It currently has 3 levels:

1) garage level on the right

2) living area level on the left

3) bedroom level above the garage

Are you considering building another level ABOVE level 2, making it 4 levels?

My suggestion is to add an addition to the right.

"A" would have a master bedroom. master walk-in closet, master bathroom, and den.

"B" would have a wine cellar and fly tying room.

Both "A" & "B" would be accessible from behind a shelve/door in the garage that would hold motor oil, windshield washer fluid, air filters, and other garage storage needs. In front of the addition would be a row of shrubbery that would conceal the view of the addition from the road and the kids.

Do not inform the kids about the addition. Ever!

Buy the house that someone has already torn down and built new. You really cannot do that with a modest budget. You would pay the cost of the home all over again, so you might as well double your budget from the beginning, and get something that's a better fit.

Why are you taking the most expensive and tortuous route to your desired end result? Are the available homes in such short supply that you are willing to spend anything to end up in that zip code?

i know this floorplan well, the house next door and across the street from the colonial I grew up in was this plan… Buy it, burn it to the ground, blast out the concrete floor or garage and rebuild will give you a four story colonial. and, most of the northeast, you will have to build on same foot print.

if you want a colonial, buy one… pay the extra.

am certain splits and multi-splits are less per square foot than a colonial on same street