Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be seriously considering building my own house?

54 replies

ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 16:56

Am I completely out of my mind?

I'm not talking about restoration, I'm talking about properly buying a plot of land and building a house.

Do people really do this? I'm just starting to wonder how ill ever reasonably afford a decent house otherwise. It seems like you get a lot more for your money, and you get exactly what you want too.

Has anyone done this?

OP posts:
Original poster
ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 16:57

I'll not ill. Sorry.

OP posts:
BionicEmu · 09/09/2013 17:03

I haven't, but looked into it a while ago. You can basically buy many types of kit houses, saves a lot of money over architects etc. But land is horrifically expensive, so for us land+building costs = cost of just buying a house, so we never bothered.

riksti · 09/09/2013 17:08

We've been looking into kit houses. Basic logic seems to be that the cost of the kit house is 1/3 of total. 1/3 on land and 1/3 on preparation of land (plumbing, electrics), planning etc from what I understand designing and building your own is potentially even more.

(Ohh, and not sure whether the 1/3 rule applies everywhere or just where we are. It's been given to us as a rule of thumb by the local kit house sellers).

LegoDragon · 09/09/2013 17:17

We did this as we moved to a country, and in the soecific are we moved to, this was very much the norm and cheaper. Wood build construction skeleton, not sure exactly what you would do, as again, wood build as the basic formation was what was normal. I would say- it will always take longer than you planned.

Original poster
ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 17:25

Yes, it looks like land is anywhere between 40k and 120k depending on size, location and planning.

3 bed kit house is around 200k depending on fit etc.

You don't get a lot round here for 300k.

OP posts:
CailinDana · 09/09/2013 17:30

It's quite common to build your own house in Ireland. From what I hear it can be incredibly stressful. My aunt built her own house and it is really gorgeous. Mum's friend also built and it is a total disaster. You have to plan meticulously and know what you're doing.

Mogz · 09/09/2013 17:42

I would love to do this as I have a very strong idea of what my house should be like, but I doubt we'll ever have the budget.

marzipanned · 09/09/2013 18:04

We want to do this, but there aren't many plots in our part of the world and none of the ones we've seen have been quite right yet. I think if the ideal plot came up we would go for it.

I found this company who offer an end to end service, or bits and pieces as you wish, and some of the houses look beautiful: www.oakwrights.co.uk/

(I'm sure there are many others that offer the same service, just happened to see an ad for them in Country Living!)

intitgrand · 09/09/2013 18:07

well good luck with finding a plot.They are scarce enough Estate agents have business relationships with developers and want to sell anything that comes up to them.

EastwickWitch · 09/09/2013 18:10

I'd love to have done. You'll get exactly what you want.
Finding a plot & getting PP will be tricky though.

throckenholt · 09/09/2013 18:12

My dad did this when I was about 7 (until I was about 18 !!). He did it all himself - to even digging the foundations by hand because couldn't get a digger on site. DH and I also sort of did similar - in that we built a large extension (doubled house size) and gutted the original house - down to bare bricks. We also lived in it at the same time (I wouldn't recommend that !).

Depends how much you can cope with - eg living on site in a static caravan - coping with winter and lack of space. And mess - inevitably there is a lot of mess.

Best rule of thumb - think of a triangle with cost, speed and quality in each corner - you can have any combination of two but not all 3 - so if you want cheap and quick then it is likely to be poor quality, cheap and quality is usually slow, and quality and quick is likely to be expensive.

And I agree it always takes longer than planned.

I think you have to be very realistic (not get dazzled by the glossy pictures and tv programs) - be tough on your budget, and be patient and not get discouraged.

littlemissnormal · 09/09/2013 18:12

DP is currently building a house for someone on a plot of land in a village near us. They are charging him £7.5k to build the shell out of red brick including materials.

throckenholt · 09/09/2013 18:15

those oakwright houses are beautiful - I would love all that oak inside !

Original poster
ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 18:28

Yes love the oakwright houses, thank you for the link!

We live in Cornwall where, for a plot with PP, you're looking at about 80K. DH has 2 close friends on the town planning committee (small town!) and one of them has done a self build before. If nothing else, they should be able to advise what would be considered acceptable and what's not.

I was thinking of buying a plot of land, outright if possible, then finalising the PP over time, all whilst saving as much as reasonably possible over 2/3 years, so as to try to put down around £60k on an estimated build cost of around £200-250k.

OP posts:
Original poster
ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 18:29

It also helps that we want a 2/3 bed home, really nothing big at all. We have 1 DC and want it to stay that way. So no extra school/nursery fees coming our way in the future that aren't planned for.

OP posts:
StephenFrySaidSo · 09/09/2013 18:32

Op have you considered buying a house off plans in a new housing development? the earlier you get in the cheaper they tend to be and the more say you have in the final layout (to an extent of course) and finish.

Original poster
ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 18:35

stephen I have not. How does that work?

OP posts:
ethelb · 09/09/2013 18:39

I've seriously considered it. Only way I could afford a house. BUT you can't get a mortgage for a first build easily, if iat all, esp if you are a first time buyer.

Original poster
ziggiestardust · 09/09/2013 18:41

Oh really ethel? Is that so? I never knew that!

OP posts:
StephenFrySaidSo · 09/09/2013 18:42

i would start by seeing what contractors are building or planning to build in the area you want to live. ask about (your dh's friends in the planning committee might have some good contacts) amongst neighbours and friends, keep your eyes open for new signage going up signalling new developments and then just contact the contractor, ask to look at the plans to see if it interests you and if so then start negotiating.

Tinlegs · 09/09/2013 18:43

We do this. Allow 2 years from idea to hanging pictures. Planning is vital and can take ages. Get a good architect as they can do a lot more than just drawing a house. A respectable builder is vital....ours went bust half way through so get recommendations. Worth it but, unless you have unlimited money, you still don't get a dream house, just what you can afford.

BrianTheMole · 09/09/2013 18:44

I love to do that. But land is so expensive around here. I keep looking out for that bargain plot though. You just never know.

StephenFrySaidSo · 09/09/2013 18:45

i don't know if this still happens so much now but around 5ish years ago some contractors in my area (northern Ireland) were running schemes where they put up a percentage or a set figure of the deposit for your mortgage (through the bank they had the agreement with) if you were a first time buyer buying one of their homes. I've been away from the bank for a few years now though so not sure if these schemes stil exist.

StephenFrySaidSo · 09/09/2013 18:49

if you are keen on building your own house and finding a plot don't be afraid to approach land owners if you see a spot you fancy. lots of farmers/land owners will be happy to sell you a plot providing they aren't in a green belt zone. my dad's friend actually saved his family home by selling off the land a plot at a time. the farm was going under, he had to get rid but no buyers for a farm. he was approached by a local family looking to build so he sold to them and then word got round that he was selling up and other people got in touch with him. he sold all the land and now has lots of lovely neighbours Grin

FatPenguin · 09/09/2013 18:52

Wow at the Oakwrights houses Shock

I would love to build my own house. OH and I always say if we win the lottery we would buy land in Bath and design our own home.
If you are clear on all the costs, regulations/planning permission etc then why not?