Converting bedsits back into a home - advise please

[Limpetsmum]

Hi
My husband and I are thinking of buying a large Yorkshire victorian property which currently exists as 12 bedsits. We want to convert it back into a home for us. The house is over three floors (plus a basement) and basically has 4 5mx5m rooms on each level. The house is approx 3500 square feet (4500 if you include the basement)
We will need new plumbing (new boiler), new double glazed wood framed sash windows (16 in total), new electrics (house currently has a meter for each befit), New roof (quoted 25k).
The house also has subsidence but we're told this is historic and non progressive (and we'll get a full structural report before taking on the property) - if this does not need underpinning if its a chronic non progressive problem we will leave this be.
Has anyone done anything similar? Even on a smaller scale? Any advise?
Any idea on costs?

Secondly if we do take on this project we would like to live in the house but we don't have an endless amount of cash and will probably aim to do one floor at a time - first sorting out a kitchen, bathroom, lounge and ripping out the small kitchens in 8 of the rooms - we will probably leave the attic for a few years before tackling it. Any idea of time scales?

And lastly, once we do actually start living in this house, I am concerned about heating bills as the house is very inefficient at the moment and I suspect we won't be able to get it much better (we'll double glaze, get a better boiler, but the attic has four rooms in so can't do much insulation there) - has anyone got any idea what our bills would be like for a victorian house this size?

Thanks for any comments and advise. I would really like to hear your experience, no matter how big or small your project was

K

This sounds like a "change of use" so you may have to bring it up to new build standards throughout including insulating all external walls - contact local building regs dept for their view

A friend did this and didn't have to pay vat on materials or labour - saved a lot due to vat regulations on conversion.

My parents did this. I would advise doing the main structural stuff before moving in.
It's easier to do whole house at one time rather than floor by floor as then if you pay for say electrician by day they can do all areas much quicker

So I would do all wall knocking down etc whilst living elsewhere, and finish kitchen. Then on one floor complete at least 2 bedrooms and a bathroom liveable. So then at least you have somewhere to eat/ sleep/ bath etc safely and comfortably ( can make one bedroom mte a living room and all sleep in one room at beginning)

Not sure if this is useful but we bought a large Victorian house 10 years ago off a builder -we tried to buy it initially but his offer was accepted over ours. It's a large Victorian house, was 4 flats and now converted to a house. He paid £330k and we bought it for £495, so £165k difference. We anticipated if we did it ourselves (purely guesswork) we would have spent around £100k. The house was totally gutted as in stripped back to brick gutted and re-done but retained period features. Sash windows were kept. He was a pro and had a team working for,him and it took almost 6 months.

thanks for all the comments. still debating to take on this project. will keep you posted if it goes ahead but currently finances not looking great :-(