Given the current state of the UK housing Market, adding an extension to your property is becoming a more via alternative than moving to a new home. The fact that house prices are falling at alarming rates up and down the UK means that now is not a good time to sell your property. The only alternative for those looking to increase the size of their homes is to have a house extension built. It’s not a good idea to rush into on whether to have an extension built, do a little research. Remember that building an extension has a number of costs to consider, such as;
Architects fee’s – this can vary between £1000 - £5000 depending on services offered
Building control fee’s – this varies, but on average is around the £400. This covers the costs of the various inspections and administration
Increase in council tax - this is the one everyone forgets about. Once the extension has been passed, your council tax will probably go up, at least one band. This will lead to increased monthly outgoings for most home owners.
So why build a house extension?
Think about the reason why you need extra room, there could be a number of perfectly good reasons to build a house extension such as;
Planning a bigger family
Room to enable a home office
Space is needed for an elderly relative to come and stay
Extra room needed for entertaining guests
Increasing the value of your property
There could be any number of reasons why you want to increase the space in your home just make sure they are valid reasons before you set out on what could be a major project.
North London - House Extension Project
Planning permission for your extension
The size of your extension will have a major bearing on the scale of your project. A double extension will require planning permission and may be subject to various local council regulations. Have a look at your neighbour’s properties; see if any of them have had extensions, this will give you an idea of the type house extensions able to be passed in your area. Local councils like building work to be in keeping with the local area so it will give you an idea of the style you should keep avoiding disappointment. Make sure you ask neighbours with an extension who their Architect was. They may be able to help get your plans passed by your local council. Also explain to them what you are planning, this will help you head off any objections they might have, before they lodged with your local council. Alternatively you can get a list of Architects in your local area from the Royal Institute of British Architects. Once you have chosen your Architect, make sure you meet Him/Her to discuss the plans and set roles and responsibilities, this can help reduce misunderstanding. At the very least you Architect is responsible for drawing up the house extension plans and submitting them to your local council. Other Architects will offer project management services in addition to the above. This might be ideal if you don’t want to be very hands on, throughout the project.
Make sure you have the money to finance your extension
Given the problems with the economy at the moment, you would be forgiven for thinking that now is not the right time to splash out on a house extension. It all depends on how much savings you have or whether your bank is willing to lend you money and allow you to re-mortgage your property to fund the build. Either way it is vitally important that if you take on a house extension project, you keep a tight control of your budget. Make sure you include all potential expenditure, in the project budget. This could be;
Fixtures and fittings
Decorating costs
Relocation costs – (provide contingency)
Unexpected building work, i.e. moving drains (provide contingency)
Always allow around 10% of your total budget for unexpected developments.
Choosing a Builder?
This is the most important part of any house extension or building project. If you are major house extension, you could be seeing your builders every day for 20 weeks or more. This is why the best way to find a good builder is by recommendation. This way you have some idea what the builder/s is/are going to be like in terms of, Professionalism, cleanliness and trustfulness. You can also look (http://www.builders.org.uk/) who are members of the National Federation of Builders (NFB).
When you are getting House extension quotes, make sure you get three or more and try and get a fixed price quote.
You can never guarantee that you are going to have a good relationship with your builders, and even if you do, there will still be times that you have disagreements. So be prepared for these stressful periods, after all, once your beautiful house extension has been finished, such disputes will pale into insignificance.
Finally study your area, there is such a thing is “over extending” your property be careful not to break through the ceiling value of property in your area.
House Extension Project