Extension next spring - what to do when

[CurlyhairedAssassin]

We want to get a big rear extension done next spring but so far we only have a rough idea of what we want and the name of 1 recommended builder. Still haven't been to the bank about extending our mortgage but a quick online calculator says we should be able to afford around another 40 grand.

My main question is: what should we be doing about it all NOW and in what order? I'm feeling a bit lost and not lookig forward to all the stress and upheaval but we have been putting it off for 10 years and it just HAS to be done next year.

I take it we need to make an appointment at our mortgage provider ASAP to apply for the additional loan. Once approved, how long would that last for?

Then do we need to look for a builder before the new year or is it ok to wait till after January?

Lastly, I think this might come under permitted development but if it turns out we need to get planning permission then how long could that take?

It all seems too big and scary an idea but we have to get cracking.

We are getting a 2 storey extension next spring. We had already saved up the money. Then we got rough estimates from several builders which also helped give us a feel for what we wanted. The builder we liked best is coming round next week to discuss things in more detail and stay drawing up plans so we can have planning permission sorted out before the spring.

Just to warn you, we've had to wait 8 months for our builder. I think I'd approach a few recommended ones & ask about time scales.

Thanks. Oh shit - hadnt even thought of having to wait for a builder!

Approach builders now.
Find out if you need planning permission, if you do the process takes a minimum of 8 weeks after submitting plans.
Find somebody to draw up your plans.

I think you need to have a chat with a builder, what you might think should cost £40k might actually come in at £60k.

Once you have a ball park figure and an idea of whether you'll need planning permission, you need to speak to your mortgage provider and get plans drawn up. Note your lender will only lend against the current value of your house if you are remortgaging, I don't think high street lenders would offer a personal loan of your£40k (although I don't know). Once you have plans drawn up you submit them in order to get planning permission.

As others have said, if you know you have a start date in mind, contact huilders to see what their availability is.

Thanks. I am having problems finding someone who has had work done recently (well, got 1 name, but you're suposed to have a few, aren't you?)and am reluctant to just pick out of yellow pages. Perhaps an email round work might bring some further names. I'll give that a go.

The guy who drew up our plans gave us a few names of builders who he'd worked with in the past and we followed up references from the ones we liked after quotes. Might be worth doing things that way if (like us) you couldn't get enough personal recommendations?

If you know what you want, have the plans drawn up - including the layout for the electrics. Handing a copy of these plans when inviting builders to quote will give you a more reliable/accurate range of quotes. Plus, the more detailed, your specification at an early stage, the less 'add ons' you will have later. e.g LED lights and chrome switches. IME, if you don't spec it early, the quote will be based on the cheap stuff e.g halogen lights and white switches - any thing else means an uplift on the basic quotation which in hindsight is fair enough. Hindsight is a wondrous thing! HTH

Also seriously consider any driveway/patio works done at the same time as the groundworks since you will have a digger on site and the costs will be absorbed i.e will cost you more if you did the work at a later stage. Also, when you have scaffolding up, consider what other work on the house needs to be done where the cost of scaffolding can be absorbed at the same time. e.g painting, replacing guttering, etc

There is a lot to organise (as we discovered) - it took us six months from having decided on what we wanted and organising finance to getting work started.

If I was doing it again, I'd do it in this sort of order:

1. Get accurate preliminary plans drawn up (if you are confident you know what you want, its simple/obvious extension/remodelling and its not a listed building then use a draftsman/ architectural planner rather than an architect)
2. Get three builders (min) round to your place for initial meetings and chats, and to get an idea of costs. Ours (mid range) is costing about £1000 per sq metre in total (based on the total area being worked on, not just the extension)
3. Get confirmation from council that its a Permitted Development (our council charges £30 for the privilege, but i have it in writing that planning not required). Our architectural planner submitted the plans for this.
4. Get structual engineer's plans done.
5. Get building regs plans and specs drawn up (again, our architectural planner did this).
6. Get formal quotes from builders - this took us three months!!!

Choose builder and submit building regs plans to council.

1. Be prepared to wait for when your builder can start (not the other way round). How long you have to wait depends how long stage 6 takes - we added another 6 weeks on because the delay meant our preferred builder had taken on another job. However, we did limit the builders we invited to tender to those we knew could start this year. Two of the ones recommended to us were booked up for nine months!

Sorry, I can't advise on where to fit finance into all of that - if you've got a indication from the bank that they'll provide the finance, I'd say leave it till the end, as you don't know how long things will take.

Thanks all. Hugely helpful.

I have asked round work and now have a few more names, one of which sounds really promising (ie more than one person has said theyre good). The promising one also has a link to someone who could do the plans. So i have a few phone calls to make after a final discussion with dh about what layout we want.

That's a good point about a detailed spec. Although there probably isn't going to be the money to do any fancy pants extras and upgrades so will have to be basic spec for most things.

Good point about driveway or roof works too, i'll bear that in mind.

Don'twant: that is a very helpful list. Do i need both an informal initial chat and formal quote from all 3 builders? if there's one i particularly like at initial meeting whose rough estimate seems reasonable would it be ok just to get a formal quote from them first? And if we like the price then we could accept on that basis? (Ie without bothering with a formal written quote from the others? ). Or should you ALWAYS get 3 formal quotes?

How come it took so long to get the formal quotes in? That's a bit worrying - we'd better get cracking!

Yes I think we should be ok for the finance - got about 75% equity. So wont stress about that just yet - we need to get the builders and planner round ASAP I think.

How much of an exact idea do we need to have when discussing our requirements? Ie if you have a vague idea of layout etc but not sure what is possible, will the planner suggest things we might not have thought of?

Thank you all again, this is massively helpful. Getting no help from DH in starting it all rolling so I was feeling a bit lost!

What a useful thread.
We are just considering doing an extension to our kitchen.
Where would we find a draughtsman.
Yellow pages?

Any idea how much the initial plans cost?

Do you work ? I found an email to everyone in work was brilliant to get some personal recommendations. I was struggling to find builders or planners before I did that as none of my friends or neighbours had had work done recently.

I have seen some threads where people have found a builder and their builder has suggested someone who can draw up plans for them who they've worked with before. So maybe if you can have an initial quick chat with a recommended builder first they could suggest someone. Then get your formal full builders quote after the plans are done?

I do work,
All my colleagues rent.
It's quite expensive where my job is.
I will ask around though.

Find out if you need build over permission from your water company too - that took ages for us.

Woah, polkadot! What?! Uh-oh...... The new part of the kitchen will be where there is a current manhole cover on the back patio. Is that what you mean? We need to get permission to move it?

God, had not even thought about stuff like that. Thanks!

Information here. Obviously, each area has a different water company but if you google yours it will have similar advice. We had to pay quite a lot of money to them to get our build over permission and it came with some conditions that then formed part of the buidling regs for our property. You need to budget time and money to sort that out before you'll be able to proceed, (if you're allowed to at all. water companies can veto).

Does that count if it's a sewerage one?

Marking this thread for the future! :)

Ihatethecold I think you have to move sewerage manholes as you can't build over them. What if it got blocked or flooded etc. So I guess you'd need permission to do that.

The water companies own and have responsibility for all public pipes ie sewage and water not directly part of your property. They have the right to deny you permission to build over or near these pipes if they are in a poor condition or they need to access them. They can require you to pay for proff of structural soundness of pipes ie CCTV survey etc, and can make permission to build reliant on taking measure such as digging deeper or diverting etc. Can be expensive or make a project impossible. It's worth speaking to your water company first.

Thanks, polkadot. I dug out the drainage map we had from united utilities from when we bought the house and surveys were being done. Unfortunately it only shows where the public drains go in the road; it doesn't show where the private and shared drains are located. Some mention of historical reasons as to why that is all it shows. (1930s estate - would that be the reason?). So I guess there is a possibility that the manhole is for access to a shared drain for us and next door. Which could be more problematic. Hmmm.......

Will try and have a look at which way the pipes run at the weekend.

We have had to get a build over agreement from Thames water - cost including drawings was £600ish. You need a build over agreement if your new building is less than 3m from public or shared water main/ sewer/ drain.