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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Loft conversion low roof, would you?

14 replies

mymonkeysmycircus · 05/10/2019 04:44

So last week I posted about the cost of a loft conversion in a house we're buying, thank you all for sharing your costs. We have quotes now (if anyone is interested!), it's around 30-35k for a velux and 40-45k for a dormer.

My new worry is the height of the ceilings! Currently with insulation in the max height is 2.1m, and we've been told the finished room will be around 1.9m. DH is 6ft 1 so will just about fit, but other male extended family might be stooping. This isn't a huge issue for us as we'd likely use it as a child's bedroom, but I'm wondering if we're setting ourselves up for a problem selling? I imagine we wouldn't see much of that 40k back in the house value?

OP posts:

ConfusedAndStressed95 · 05/10/2019 05:02

I cant see a problem with it average height for a man is 6'1 isnt it?

Toomanycats99 · 05/10/2019 05:48

Ours is about the same - still definitely worth doing. Cannot see how it would affect anyone unless they are buying the house and then it may only deter one person. Ours is decorated in light colours and has lots of windows so doesn't feel claustrophobic in anyway.

We got most of our loft conversion cost back in increased value but then I am south London / Surrey where house prices are fairly high.

AbsolCatly · 05/10/2019 06:15

We have one, very similar height 6'1" can stand but hair brushes the ceiling. It was done before we bought the house and we use them as bedrooms for DC. They have former windows, needed as the other walls do slope but both are good sized double bedrooms.

YobaOljazUwaque · 05/10/2019 06:29

Remember that whatever you have been quoted, àdd another 30-40% on top for what you will actually have spent when all is said and done.

Don't think of it as money you will recoup when you sell - you may well not do so. Divide the cost over the length of time for which you will really need that space, down to a monthly price. Does that seem worth it? Is it practically feasible that you could instead get a bigger mortgage and borrow more now to buy a property that doesn't need this?

SnowsInWater · 05/10/2019 06:37

If your are hoping to sell that house on with the room as an extra bedroom you need to make sure it meets building code. We did a loft conversion to turn a two bed house into a three when DS2 was born. We know the room wouldn't meet code as we didn't want to board in the stairwell all the way down three stories, though it was a perfectly safe bedroom with a suitable escape route. The house was sold with a "boarded out attic" whereas clearly it was more. It was priced accordingly and sold easily,

Waterdropsdown · 05/10/2019 07:46

We were going to have this height in ours (did the conversion a few years ago in a house we sold in June). We ended up lowering ceilings (a lot of extra work and hassle, but for us worth it) as we had viewed a house with low ceilings and really didn’t like it (both of us are tall). Can you ask the loft company to advise of a previous client with low ceilings who wouldn’t mind you taking a look?

mumdone · 05/10/2019 10:41

We had one in an old house my husband is 6’3 was fine.

Africa2go · 05/10/2019 10:47

We considered this, but didnt go ahead. You may have 6'1 in the centre / highest point but at least for us, quite alot of the space would have been lower than that due to the slope of the roof. I'd want to see diagrams / understand how much useable space i was getting before i committed that amount of money.

Original poster

mymonkeysmycircus · 05/10/2019 23:17

We could borrow more and get a 4 bed now but we (I) really want a period property, and these tend to be 3 bed victorian terraces. The 4/5 beds in the area are usually new builds on the edge if town, I can see why people like them but my heart is on a place with character

OP posts:

YobaOljazUwaque · 06/10/2019 07:18

Do you have to move right now? I think the market is quite slow at the moment because of all the Brexit uncertainty and it may be that a good characterful 4 bed exists but the current owners are sitting tight and not marketing it yet.

Original poster

mymonkeysmycircus · 06/10/2019 09:07

We really want to move now. I'm on mat leave, and moving now would give me comfortable time to find a job locally. We also have a buyer and would ideally like to avoid going on the market again.

If a 4 bed costed 40-50k more, it all comes out in the wash anyway? We'll have to use some equity and jump to a low ltv ratio admittedly.

We're thinking we'd do this in 5 years or so once DC2 (who currently doesn't exist!) is 3 and the free nursery hours kick in. We wouldn't desperately need a 4th bedroom now, and this allows us to move and pay a lower mortgage during the tight years of paying for full time childcare

OP posts:

BubblesBuddy · 06/10/2019 10:38

Why do you need to think about the loft when you are only expecting you first DC and a second DC is a thought, not a reality? Seems an unnecessary expense. Invest your money in something else (nest egg for DCs) and don’t do the loft unless it’s definitely going to get you a financial return. If you only have one bathroom, you will have too many bedrooms for the number of bathrooms anyway. Would you be better off looking at how the whole house could be improved to include the ground floor as well.

Original poster

mymonkeysmycircus · 06/10/2019 12:32

1st DC is here we're thinking about whether we can stay in the house for the next 20 years, we don't want to move again. That's why it's important a loft conversion is viable in a few years

OP posts:

VirtualHamster · 06/10/2019 14:15

Is the 1.9m literally the highest point, and everything slopes downwards from there? I wouldn't consider it useable living space if that's the case tbh

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