Moving walls and rooms around - do you need an architect?

[Mountainsided]

Looking to buy a bungalow, and think knocking few a few rooms, rigging the layout and moving the stairs to the hall from the living room will make it more practical and sellable for the future. Just at the thinking stage now.
Do you get an architect to draw up plans? Or if it’s all internal stuff just find a builder/contractor?

Depends on your confidence and experience, and whether you know a builder you trust. Moving stairs (thought you said it was a bungalow?) makes me think you definitely need someone who knows what’s what - could be an architect, or a good project manager, or a very competent builder.

We got someone recommended by my builder to draw up plans and apply for building regs approval for removing weight bearing walls, he wasn't an architect. My builder advised which walls were weight bearing.
You definitely don't need an architect unless you want to use one to get more ideas on how to use the space.

Sorry dormer bungalow! Huge extended downstairs and small 2 bedrooms upstairs. Trying to work out possible costs pre if it’s worth putting an offer in. It’s been onnthe market for 6 months i think due to the unconventional layout. Don’t know any builders so think would feel more confident with architect/project manager input.
Although DH thinks it would work for us, it would still be difficult to sell on in the future.

Thanks mando. I’m pretty sure how we would use the rooms, I wasn’t sure what needed approval or not or how to find out about the walls being load bearing. I guess you are on some property shows people go round with a builder before putting an offer in? Is that a done thing?

Getting a decent builder to go around with you to see which walls may be load bearing (basically if the same wall extends upstairs) should give you an idea of what is possible.

I'm an architect, so totally biased about recommending you involve one One thing I would stress though, other than being certain where load bearing walls are, is when moving stairs you have to be very sure you have the requisite head height for the whole length of the flight and at the upper level landing, so be very careful when considering moving it.

Thanks! Will possibly involve an architect to look at anything that can be done with the front/upstairs windows so will do the downstairs as well. Wasn’t sure if j would be paying over the top for a service that wasn’t needed. I’m hoping that the stairs would stay where they are and just get blocked off from the living room and the wall opened up from the hall. But I can see that I think I will need an architect for that!

You definitely don't need an architect. You need a good builder that will advise. If you're doing much structural shuffling, you'll want an engineer. I think you'd be wasting money getting an architect involved...but I'm saying that as an engineer and engineers have a certain outlook towards architects!

We did an internal renovation project that was basically moving walls and used an architect-project manager. Only 3 rooms were impacted with wall moving but it was still a major project.
I would always use an architect now due to the good advice and project management. And as a project manager she had a great team of tradesmen to call on. Rather than a general builder she used specialists for each trade (plaster, plumber, tiler, woodwork, painter)
On discussion with the architect I found out that she likes to mix small jobs with much larger ones. The smallest project she had worked on was a bathroom remodelling.

Thanks @wrenika is it always possible to support/knock through a wall of its a supporting wall? It appears to be of the room above bad the wall in the same place? Good to know about engineers/architect differences

You don't necessarily need an architect; but you do need a good builder who will instruct a Structural Engineer to check it all out. The SE will give the you/the builder their report about where you can, or can't, knock down internal walls.

IIRC, those that can be knocked down will have to be supported by brick (or otherwise) piers at each end, plus steel RSJs (or suchlike) placed onto those piers (from one side to the other) to ensure the upstairs floor is still held up!

You need a structural engineer.

Easy to find, they will do you calculations for moving load bearing walls (should this be required).

They can tell you which walls are safe to remove easily.

They won't advise you on design though. You'll need an architect for this.

But, if you have a clear idea yourselves, it's much cheaper to get a structural engineer out as building control require calculations for any significant load bearing changes.