We need to knock down an old single brick and concrete extension which is utility/downstairs toilet and at some point was knocked through to make the kitchen a third bigger.
We moved here a couple of years ago and have patched it up, but it’s really not in a good state - cracks in the wall, cracks in the roof, old rotting windows, freezing cold etc.
Plan is to knock it down and to rebuild and make it bigger and double height so it would extend the width of the house and to reconfigure some of the downstairs layout to move the kitchen so it overlooks the back garden and to add a new bedroom upstairs. We will also need a new bathroom and a new kitchen.
We have a 1950’s semi and many houses around here have been extended recently so we’re not anticipating planning issues.
My question is where and when to start? We are about 2.5 years into a 5 fixed rate mortgage deal and will have about 50% equity when that’s finished. We’d be looking to extend our mortgage at that point to cover the costs of the work.
Is it too soon to start talking to architects and getting plans and planning permission sorted and the structural surveys done? We have savings to cover these costs.
Did you talk to your mortgage provider about additional borrowing at this point too, to get an idea of your budget? We’d prefer to do everything at once and move out for a while but would be open to say doing the more urgent work downstairs first and waiting to do the upstairs if we couldn’t afford both.
Could you share extension timeline and how long did it take you from starting the planning to starting the build? I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment with it and want to be realistic about how long things take.