In this episode of SPACES, Dimitrius highlights how one of the biggest mistakes owners make happens before they hire a contractor, define a budget, or submit plans: they don’t fully understand what kind of project they’re actually taking on. And that misunderstanding can dramatically impact cost, timeline, permitting, engineering, and overall project complexity.

He breaks down the critical differences between:

• Renovations
• Remodels
• Additions
• ADUs
• Rebuilds

…and explains why these categories are not interchangeable.

Drawing from more than 20 years of experience, Dimitrius walks through the hidden structural, seismic, permitting, and systems implications that owners often overlook—especially when projects move beyond cosmetic updates into layout changes, structural modifications, or additions.

If you’re planning a kitchen remodel, addition, ADU, or small commercial tenant improvement in Southern California, this episode provides foundational clarity before you begin spending money or hiring a team.

Before You Build Guidebook Download

LYNES

If you enjoy our content, you can check out similar content from our fellow creators at Gābl Media.

Spaces Podcast Spaces Podcast website

LYNES // Gābl Media

All rights reserved

Mentioned in this episode:

To Build is Human

from the Gable Media Podcast Network and presented by Lines.

2

This is Spaces, the podcast where we make sense of the spaces that shape society.

3

I'm your host, Demetrius Lynch.

4

Hello, thanks for coming back.

5

And if you're new here, welcome.

6

This is episode 206, where I discuss one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make, not

actually understanding.

7

This is episode 206, where I discuss one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make, not

actually understanding what kind of project they're doing.

8

Not

9

not actually understanding what kind of project.

10

not understanding what kind of project they're actually doing.

11

But before we get into it, a quick reminder that you can find all of this information and

more in my digital download called Before You Build.

12

It's a strategic, pre-designed framework to help you avoid costly mistakes in common

projects, kitchens, ADUs, additions, and small commercial tenant improvements.

13

In it, you'll learn how to define your project scope,

14

what construction projects actually cost in Southern California, how to assemble the right

team, what project timelines to expect, and the most common and costly mistakes to avoid.

15

You can find it now at lines.studio slash store or follow the link in the show notes to

check it out.

16

Now, as I mentioned, one of the biggest mistakes.

17

Now, as I mentioned, one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make.

18

Now, as I mentioned, one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make happens.

19

Now, as I mentioned, one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make happens before they ever

hire a contractor, submit plans or even define a budget.

20

It's.

21

It's not actually.

22

it's not understanding what kind of project they're doing.

23

Now that might sound outrageous and a simple thing to understand, but there are so many

nuances in the process of construction.

24

This is actually quite common and it has massive impact on your budget, your timeline, the

professionals you'll need, permitting requirements, and ultimately whether your project

25

feels manageable or chaotic.

26

A renovation is not the same thing as a remodel.

27

A remodel is not the same thing as an addition.

28

And an addition is definitely not the same thing as rebuilding.

29

But homeowners, and honestly, some people in the industry, tend to use these words

interchangeably.

30

And that lack of clarity is where projects start to drift off course.

31

After more than 20 years working in architecture,

32

I found that one of the most important things you can do at the beginning of a project is

correctly identifying your scope.

33

Not just what do I want, but what category of project am I actually entering into?

34

It's important because each level of intervention introduces a different level of

complexity, different permitting requirements, different costs, and different risks.

35

And the problem is that many homeowners begin with a mental image from Pinterest,

Instagram, or HGTV without understanding the structural, regulatory, or financial

36

implications underneath that image.

37

You may think I'm just updating my kitchen, but if that kitchen update includes removing

walls, relocating plumbing, upgrading electrical, or changing the structure,

38

you may no longer be dealing with a simple renovation.

39

And once your project crosses certain thresholds, the entire process changes.

40

That's why understanding your scope early is one of the most important forms of cost

control.

41

So let's break down the major project categories because this is where clarity starts.

42

Renovation.

43

A renovation is the least invasive category.

44

This typically means replacing finishes, repainting, updating fixtures, replacing

flooring, or refreshing a space without changing how it fundamentally functions.

45

Think new countertops, new tile, new lighting fixtures, replacing cabinets in the same

location.

46

Generally speaking, renovations involve fewer unknowns, lower or no permitting

requirements, and a smaller team.

47

In many cases, a good contractor can successfully execute this type of work without a full

architectural team.

48

without a full architectural team or process.

49

Now that doesn't mean renovations are cheap, especially in Southern California.

50

But compared to other project types, they tend to involve less coordination, less

engineering, and fewer regulatory triggers.

51

Remodel.

52

A remodel is where things start becoming more complex.

53

A remodel changes the layout

54

function, structure, or systems of your building.

55

This is where you begin moving walls, changing room configurations, relocating kitchens or

bathrooms, or significantly altering how a space operates.

56

And this is often where homeowners intentionally underestimate complexity because visually

the project may sit, because visually,

57

the project may still feel small, but technically, it may require structural engineering,

electrical upgrades, plumbing redesign, permitting, and deeper code compliance.

58

For example, removing what seems like just a wall may actually involve load-bearing

conditions.

59

and to quickly explain.

60

If you follow the, and to quickly explain, you can kind of follow the path of the load.

61

From the top of your building, it goes down what's a post, the vertical member, down and

it eventually crosses a beam, which is the horizontal member.

62

And at the end or various points of that beam are more posts, those vertical members

again, all the way down to your foundation, which is the concrete.

63

and into the ground.

64

If you're moving walls around, you're breaking that transfer of the load from the top of

your building all the way down to the ground.

65

So anytime something changes, all of that has to be re-figured out of how to make the load

from the top of your building transfer all the way down to the ground.

66

The second one, beam sizing.

67

Anytime a beam has to span a certain length, the farther that beam has to go, the deeper

it's going to be, the bigger that beam is going to be.

68

And when that happens, you're starting to fight inches, half an inch, quarter of an inch,

16 of an inch, 16 of an inch to make that beam fit in certain places.

69

And it adds complexity because then you're blocking the way that you're

70

Your air conditioning moves through the building, you're blocking.

71

uh

72

you're blocking lighting paths and all sorts of other things.

73

So you have to be conscious of that as well.

74

Three, foundation implications.

75

Anytime you're changing that load bearing condition, where those, that load transfers, if

you have to add a new post, another vertical member, there has to be, depending on what

76

your foundation is, if it's a raised floor, for example, where all of the weight

77

is mostly transferred to the outside, or there's individual concrete pads that a post sits

on.

78

When you change your design and there's a new post location, you then have to add a new

concrete base for that post to go into.

79

And that's going to require you to tear up the floor in order to add that new post.

80

And number four, lateral seismic considerations.

81

To understand this, think of yourself wearing rollerblades or roller skates.

82

When you're standing there, your natural weight can hold you in place.

83

But if someone tugs you lightly, you'll start to feel a little bit of a movement.

84

And if they tug you hard, your upper body kind of lunges backwards.

85

That's kind of what happens during an earthquake.

86

The ground is literally moving.

87

So the building has to try to compensate and very old buildings are not designed to

compensate that movement the way that newer buildings are.

88

So if you're changing the building, whether it's an old building, whether it's an older

building with no seismic design,

89

or a slightly older building that has less seismic design, you're gonna have to redesign

your building, especially in the area where you're working on, to...

90

to compensate for that movement.

91

So you're essentially adding brakes to the wheels of your roller skates to prevent that

movement as much.

92

Now, once all that engineering enters the conversation, your project moves into a very

different category of coordination.

93

This is also where architecture becomes more valuable, not simply for aesthetics like most

people may believe, but for planning, coordination, code analysis, and risk mitigation.

94

Additions.

95

An addition expands the footprint or square footage of your building.

96

This could mean adding a bedroom, expanding a kitchen, adding a second story, or building

new livable space.

97

And additions are often where homeowners experience their first real exposure to the

complexity of building regulations.

98

Now going back to sort of the analogy, now going back to the structural analogies.

99

Now, going back to the structural analogies, I like to explain additions as a dog with no

tail.

100

You have this contained unit, your building, that's all designed as it is to withstand

that structural movement.

101

Then you add a tail to that building or dog, you think, imagine that tail starting to

wiggle and a dog

102

when their tail starts to wiggle, their butt wiggles too and their whole body starts to

twist because that tail is adding all of this extra movement that their body isn't quite

103

aligned for.

104

So when you have an addition, especially depending on how it's designed, it's essentially

this tail that's being added onto your building that's not designed for it to be there.

105

So a structural engineer has to come in to design it.

106

to tie into your building to withstand any separate movement to basically make it one

continuous building so it doesn't seem like two different things moving at two different

107

paces, at two different directions uh to.

108

to make it all one sound structure.

109

Now beyond the structural component, additions can also trigger school fees, soil report

requirements, fire sprinkler requirements, parking requirements, utility upgrades, and

110

energy compliance requirements.

111

And these thresholds matter.

112

For example, in some jurisdictions, exceeding a certain square footage may trigger school

impact fees.

113

Adding too many bathrooms

114

may require sewer upgrades.

115

Adding too many bedrooms may affect parking requirements.

116

So what starts is we just want to add some space, can quickly evolve into a much larger

system, can quickly evolve into a much larger systems conversation.

117

And this is where having the right team early becomes critical.

118

ADUs, accessory dwelling units or ADUs.

119

deserve their own category because California legislation has dramatically expanded their

popularity.

120

A lot of homeowners think ADUs are simple, fast, or inexpensive, especially because there

are a ton of companies now promoting ADUs as a simple solution, prefab units, pre-designed

121

plan sets, and plans pre-approved by MUNAS and plans pre-approved by MUNAS.

122

and plans pre-approved by municipalities.

123

But the reality is ADUs are essentially small homes.

124

They require structure, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, energy compliance, and often fire

department review.

125

And each project site has its own unique challenges because they're small, many people.

126

So there's no real easy solution or easy reuse.

127

So there's no real easy solution.

128

So there's no real quick solution, easy reuse or pre-made.

129

or pre-approved way to quickly get to this, or pre-approved way to quickly deliver an ADU.

130

Because they're small, many people assume they should be cheap, but construction doesn't

scale proportionately.

131

In fact, smaller projects often cost more per square foot because kitchens, bathrooms,

permitting, and utility infrastructure still exists regardless of size.

132

So while ADUs can be incredible opportunities for rental income,

133

multi-generational living, or flexibility, they are still complex.

134

They are still complex construction projects.

135

Rebuilds.

136

A rebuild is the most extensive category.

137

This typically involves demolishing most or all of an

138

This typically involves demolishing most or all of it.

139

uh

140

This typically involves demolishing most or all of an existing structure or after a

natural disaster, then constructing a new building.

141

At this point, you are essentially entering new construction territory, even if you're

rebuilding like for like.

142

And I want to take a quick pause here because there's some misconception about.

143

And I want to take a quick pause here to emphasize a point that.

144

uh And I want to take a quick pause here to emphasize a recent project that I had.

145

And I want to take a quick pause to emphasize about a recent project that I had where a

homeowner had recently purchased a home and a portion of the building was unpermitted.

146

They intended to add uh solar panels to their house, but were flagged for that illegal

construction, even though it was done by the previous owner or some other previous owner.

147

they were still on the hook to correct that unpermitted work.

148

When I came out to visit, that construction was also poorly done and not to code.

149

So it had to be the most efficient way to do it was to demo the entire thing and rebuild

it exactly as it was intended to be, but up to code.

150

And there was a lot of misunderstanding about

151

The project costs, because it seemed so simple, it was probably about 40 to 60 square

feet, pretty small, but you're rebuilding, you're essentially rebuilding a new structure,

152

even though it's...

153

uh

154

just because you're essentially rebuilding a new structure the correct way up to code

structural requirements and all the permits that are involved.

155

So even though it was a very small portion, this was a rebuild.

156

So you're kind of building a new area no matter how small it is up to all the current

codes and all the fees that come with it.

157

So both in this small case and in a much more dramatic complete rebuild, that means full

permitting, complete design coordination, engineering, zoning analysis, energy compliance,

158

and extensive review.

159

And emotionally, this is often where homeowners realize this is much bigger than what we

originally thought.

160

So here's the key takeaway.

161

So here's the key takeaway from today's episode.

162

These categories are not just interchangeable.

163

So here's the key takeaway from today's episode.

164

These categories are not just interchangeable labels.

165

They are predictors, complexity, timeline, risk.

166

Complexity, timeline, risk, and costs.

167

And the earlier you correctly identify your project type, the better your decisions

become.

168

because once you understand what kind of project I'm actually doing, you can begin

aligning the right expectations, the right budget, and the right team.

169

And honestly, a lot of homeowner frustration comes from treating a remodel like a

renovation or treating an addition like a simple small upgrade.

170

Clarity changes everything.

171

That's exactly why I included this breakdown in Before You Build.

172

Because before you think about finishes, before you think about contractors, before you

even think about demolition, you need to understand the scope of what you're actually

173

doing.

174

you need to understand the scope of what you're actually building.

175

Inside the guide, I break down project types, cost expectations, team structure, and the

most common mistakes homeowners make early on.

176

So if you're planning a kitchen remodel, an addition, an ADU, or a commercial tenant

improvement, I highly recommend starting there.

177

You can find it at lines.studio slash podcast.

178

That's L-Y-N-E-S dot studio slash podcast.

179

Or there's a link in the show notes.

180

The clearer you are about your project at the beginning, the more confidence you'll have

throughout the rest of the process.

181

Thank you for listening.

182

Thank you for listening.

183

Thank you for listening today.

184

We'll talk again on the next one.

185

Thanks.