Extension dream vs priorities vs budget!

[BudgetFudgeIt]

Hi. NC but regular poster. I think I'm in danger of getting my priorities lost so would really value a bit of objective input!

House needed fully updating when we moved in but has had very little done and has honestly been neglected by us for a few years: baby, both of us having depression, both of us having family bereavements, etc, etc.

I have inherited some money and was hoping to extend the kitchen and bedroom next to it: the kitchen doesn't have an external door (goes into either a coal store, then garden) and is about 30 years old and falling apart, and the bedroom goes into the conservatory so is basically a (very small) corridor with no ventilation.

However, the estimates mean we are 20k short. I was hoping we'd only be around 5-10k short and then aim to save the balance over the next 18 months-2 years.
This means that if we wanted to do the extension we'd have to both try to get promotions at work, save every penny for 3-4 years and put off all the other work that really does need doing (not just because we don't like it, but because things are 30 years old and threadbare, damaged, not working, etc). I'm also worried that we have 2 cars that are both over 12 years old (no option to reduce to 1 as we work different shifts in different directions), the boiler is 15 years old, the electrics were last done 30 years ago....

In theory we COULD extend the mortgage, but this would leave little for all the things that could start to break down in the next couple of years.

So, my much scaled-down plan is maybe to knock the kitchen and 3rd bedroom into one kitchen diner with access to the garden through either the coal shed or conservatory, and make our bungalow into 2 beds instead of 3. Is that a crazy idea? I don't want to jeopardise future resale value but at the same time this is my home and I want to live in it in a way that works for us.

Sorry - that was so long, but I'm confusing myself more and more all the time!

Got that a bit wrong, my scaled-down plan is actually to create the kitchen diner and knock the conservatory down, so that there are proper French doors into the garden. Sorry, bit tired .

That sounds good to me,would there be scope to re-add another room down the line if you could afford it,or would the layout of the new kitchen not allow it?

If you’re planning to stay put for the long term, then I’d knock through.

I wouldn’t contemplate extension work until you’ve got enough + contingency + a general ‘rainy day’ fund.

In future would there be potential to add a loft conversion and out another bedroom there?

Do what you can afford now and make the place nice to live in.
But try and avoid doing stuff in scaled down version which will need to be totally reversed down the line - think of the bigger picture.
I know depression is a complex illness but living in poor conditions can't help. A nicer home might help you both mentally.
Also doing major work where you are constantly counting the pennies will be very stressful - a scheme where you know you are not going to overreach yourself is sensible.
However if you are going to do the smaller scheme, do think about replacing your boiler as part of this. New ones are much more energy efficient

There's definitely potential for a loft extension in the future. The roof pitch is really high and the footprint of the bungalow is big enough that you could have a bedroom plus ensuite even without a dormer or two beds and bathroom with a dormer, and the hallway is big with two big cupboards so the stairs could easily be added in a way that looks natural rather than people having to stuff them in a corner of a room that I've seen before!

So by taking us down to 2 beds it wouldn't impact on future potential improvements to layout.

@BreakfastAtSquiffanys you are right. Sometimes we look around and feel sorry for our house as it's the reflection of us over the past few years.

We were saying before that we'd like to think about cutting work hours in the next 10 years so I know deep down that over-extending the budget could be damaging practically but also mentally.

Even though the house would be (and was to us) marketed as 2 bed plus diner (because the bed 3 goes into the cknservatory) I still worry that I would be losing a room that is currently used as a spare bedroom.

If it’s technically a 2 bed anyway then your plan sounds good. Adding money worries is not going to help either of yours mental health so best not to overextend yourselves. Create a nice kitchen dinner with plans to add a loft extension later if you need the bedroom space.

Do you need a third bedroom? Do you use it?

Houses are for living in. Your home. Make it right for you. It doesn’t sound as if the existing space is that great, what would the conservatory look like in another 10 years? And it sounds as if a loft conversion could be a real winner.

Make it work for you now especially if there is scope to put another bedroom in at some later date which I guess you may need if you want another child

Thanks everyone for your input. Lots of sensible advice which has been what I needed.

When I was thinking this week about how we were going to achieve the original extension it left me feeling so downhearted about the slog ahead and worried about not having any kind of safety net financially. Now, looking at this revised idea, I actually feel excited because we can afford this right now without any more expense, it still leaves scope for extending into the roof, and it means that we'll have enough money each month to start on all the small (and big!) repair jobs that need doing.

It would have been lovely to keep the spare room but we're too old to have another child and realistically we only have guests once or twice a year so we can always have DS bunk in with us for those odd weekends .

Thanks all...I'll hopefully be popping up on some of the kitchen design threads in the months to come .