Free written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
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AfterFast, Reliable Home Additions & ADU Across Fort Myers Shores
Home additions and ADU construction in Fort Myers Shores typically run $45,000 to $130,000 depending on scope, and post-Ian rebuild work often adds elevation and flood-compliance costs that a standard estimate misses. If you live in ZIP 33905 and you’re weighing a garage conversion, a detached ADU, or a second-story addition, the first question isn’t “how much per square foot.” It’s whether the contractor understands Lee County’s substantial-damage rule and the Orange River flood plain the way someone who actually works here does. We do. Call (877) 610-1318 and Tom Barrett or one of his sons will walk your property and tell you straight what the county will require before a single permit gets pulled.
We’ve been out here enough to know that Fort Myers Shores is not Fort Myers proper. The permits pull through Lee County, not the city. The base flood elevation numbers changed after Ian. And the guy who quotes you a room addition without checking your finished floor elevation against the current BFE is handing you a number that will not survive the permit desk. That’s why everything we quote comes with scope in writing, allowances in writing, and change orders in writing. No surprises at the end.
Why Barrett & Sons Construction Is Fort Myers Shores’s Preferred Home Additions & ADU Company
We’re a name-on-the-truck operation, and it’s been that way since 1998. Tom Barrett founded this company, and his sons run crews across Lee County today. That matters in Fort Myers Shores because this community has been through something most contractors in Florida only read about. After Hurricane Ian tore through the Orange River corridor in September 2022, half the signs on the feeder roads were out-of-state storm chasers. A lot of homeowners here got burned. They signed with a national outfit that quoted one price on the phone, then handed them a different bill once the drywall came down and the elevation math showed up.
We answer our own phone at (877) 610-1318. A live person picks up, 24/7, not an out-of-state call center. Our crews are background-checked and uniformed, and Tom publishes his name, his address, and his license number so you can look him up before you sign anything. We also put the 90-Day Done Right Promise on every contract: if it’s not done right, one call brings Tom back. You won’t find that from a franchise dispatching strangers to your street.
Our Home Additions & ADU Services in Fort Myers Shores
Most of the work we do in Fort Myers Shores falls into four buckets. Here’s how we approach each one, with the local realities that shape the price and the permitting.
ADU Design & Permitting
An ADU in Fort Myers Shores starts with Lee County’s flood map, not with a floor plan. If your property sits in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area along the Orange River, any new living space has to meet base flood elevation minimums, and in many cases that includes mandatory freeboard on top of BFE. We handle the full design and permitting path: site survey, elevation certificate, county submittal, and the back-and-forth with the permit inspector. Tom likes the inspector. The inspector works for you, not for us, and that’s the way it should be.
Garage Conversion ADU
Garage conversions run $30,000 to $80,000 in Fort Myers Shores, and the spread is wide because of what’s hiding inside the existing slab. Many of the block ranch homes built here from the 1950s through the 1980s were poured without the stem-wall height current flood code expects. If the finished floor sits below the required elevation, the county may classify the conversion as a substantial improvement, which pulls into play the same elevation triggers as new construction. We tell you that before we quote, not after demo starts.
New Detached ADU
New detached ADUs in Fort Myers Shores typically start around $90,000 and can exceed $220,000 depending on size, finish level, and how much site prep the property needs. Site prep here is not the same as in Gateway or Lehigh Acres. We’re dealing with river backflow, compacted sandy soil, and a water table that sits close to the surface in the low-lying pockets off Palm Beach Boulevard. We plan for that, and it shows up as a line item in your quote instead of a surprise invoice.
Junior ADU & Interior Conversion
A junior ADU, or an interior conversion that carves a studio or in-law suite out of existing square footage, often runs $45,000 to $80,000 when the home’s elevation already satisfies current code. For older Fort Myers Shores homes that were built before flood-elevation standards, the structural work can push that number higher. We’ll tell you which camp your house falls into during the first walkthrough, before you’ve committed to anything.
If the scope drifts into interior work, we also handle Kitchen Remodeling in Fort Myers Shores and Bathroom Remodeling in Fort Myers Shores. A lot of the post-Ian rebuilds we do pull both of those trades into the same permit package.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Fort Myers Shores
We carry premium-brand depth across every trade because materials you can look up beat mystery brands off a van. On Fort Myers Shores additions we’re regularly installing GAF roofing systems and Schluter waterproofing in wet areas like laundry rooms and secondary baths. When a new ADU calls for windows or trim packages, we install brands you can research yourself before we ever set a nail. An allowance that isn’t on paper is a surprise waiting for a date, so every material selection is written into your scope before work starts.
Common Home Additions & ADU Problems We See in Fort Myers Shores Homes
- Flood-zone elevation triggers hidden inside a simple addition. Homeowners call us for what looks like a straightforward room bump-out, and the first site visit reveals a finished floor that sits 14 to 30 inches below the county’s updated BFE. That turns a $60,000 job into a $110,000 job because the existing structure must be brought into compliance as part of the permit.
- Hurricane Ian damage that was patched, not repaired. We still find roof-to-wall strapping that failed or was never reinstalled after Ian, and wall cavities where moisture sat behind drywall for months. Storm-hardened framing details and mold remediation are standard scope items on nearly every Fort Myers Shores project we touch.
- Unincorporated Lee County permits, not City of Fort Myers permits. Contractors who worked in Fort Myers proper pre-2023 often misprice jobs out here because they miss the county’s stricter substantial-improvement thresholds and the mandatory freeboard that now applies to what looks like a routine addition.
- Older block homes with no stem-wall height to spare. The late-1950s-to-1980s housing stock in Fort Myers Shores was built before modern flood and wind-load codes. When we tie an addition into an older CMU wall, we’re often rebuilding that wall section as part of the job because it was never reinforced to current standards.
Pricing for Home Additions & ADU in Fort Myers Shores, FL
A room addition in Fort Myers Shores runs $45,000 to $130,000. A detached ADU starts around $90,000 and can pass $220,000 for a two-bedroom unit with site prep on a low-lying lot near the Orange River. Garage conversions land between $30,000 and $80,000. Junior ADUs and interior conversions typically fall in the $45,000 to $80,000 range. The wide spreads are real: two houses a quarter-mile apart can carry completely different elevation requirements based on the county’s post-Ian flood map revisions, and that single factor can swing a quote by tens of thousands of dollars.
Every estimate we write in Fort Myers Shores includes a free second opinion on any written bid you hold. No trip charge inside the county. And we offer a permanent 10% discount for seniors and veterans, plus $40 off any repair over $200. Call (877) 610-1318 to schedule your free estimate. We’ll put every number on paper before work begins, and if the county comes back with something different, you’ll get a written change order before we move a single nail.
We Also Serve Cities Near Fort Myers Shores
Our crews regularly work the corridors along Palm Beach Boulevard and State Road 80 into Gateway, North Fort Myers, Lehigh Acres, and Fort Myers. If you’re just outside Fort Myers Shores but dealing with the same Lee County permitting office and the same flood-map math, give us a call at (877) 610-1318. We’d rather tell you honestly what we can and can’t do than waste your afternoon. Our Home Additions & ADU team covers the full metro, and this work out here is what we know best. When you’re ready to price a project in Fort Myers Shores, we’ll walk it with you.
Serving Fort Myers Shores, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Fort Myers Shores area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Home Additions & ADU in Fort Myers Shores
A live person answers (877) 610-1318 any hour of the day or night, and because our crews serve Fort Myers Shores locally, we can usually schedule a site walk within a few business days. No trip charge inside the county. After the walk, your written estimate comes back on the timeline we agree to, not a vague “whenever we get to it.”
Yes. We work throughout the 33905 footprint, from the streets along the Orange River near Palm Beach Boulevard to the newer pockets further east toward the Caloosahatchee. If your property falls inside a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, we’ll pull the elevation data and tell you what Lee County will require before you commit to a design.
For storm damage, water intrusion, or a structural issue that’s actively compromising your home, call (877) 610-1318 and Tom or one of his sons will answer. We prioritize Fort Myers Shores residents dealing with post-storm or flood-related problems, and we’ll get someone to your door quickly. Planned additions and ADUs get scheduled on a normal construction timeline with permits pulled and inspections signed.
Home additions and ADUs in Fort Myers Shores often run higher than the same scope in Gateway or Lehigh Acres because of the flood-zone compliance work. The county’s post-Ian elevation requirements can add $15,000 to $40,000 to a project that would not trigger those triggers in a less storm-exposed neighborhood. We’d rather show you that math than hide it. That’s why every quote includes written scope and allowances.
Every completed job carries the 90-Day Done Right Promise, written on the contract. If something isn’t done right, one call brings Tom back to make it right. We stand behind the work the same way we did in 1998, and we don’t hide behind fine print. Call (877) 610-1318 for a free estimate and we’ll put the promise in writing.
Written by Tom Barrett, Owner at Barrett & Sons Construction. Tom founded the company in 1998, and he and his sons serve Fort Myers Shores and surrounding Lee County communities with the same name on the truck and the same standard on the job.