Cost of renovating and extending a 3 bed semi-detached house in Manchester

[honeylife]

Hi,

My husband and I have seen a 3 bed semi-detached house that we are interested in putting an offer on but it is a complete wreck!

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-71816079.html

The video on the listing shows how extensive the work is compared to the photos.

After paying the deposit, fees etc - we would have about £60k left in savings with the potential to borrow an extra £25k from the bank and maybe an additional £25k from parents which we will payback when we remortgage at the end of the 2 year fixed mortgage.

We would have to gut the house back to brick from what I can see.

We would also want a double storey extension to the rear, front and side to change the layout of the house so that it is similar to one of the houses down the road. The extension would be:

• 30 sq.m. on the ground floor
• 30 sq.m. on the first floor
• with a knock through of 1 or 2 internal walls on the ground floor.
• bifold doors to the rear
• new kitchen installed (happy with ikea units but may spend more on taps and worktop etc depending on budget)
• utility room
• ensuite upstairs
• move the new bathroom to front of the house

The property has a new roof but in addition to the extension, it looks like it will need:

• rewiring
• replumbing
• new double glazed windows
• new boiler and radiators
• new floorboards and carpets
• replastering
• new understairs wc
• new doors

To save costs we would DIY the decorating of the bedrooms and living rooms once it is completed to a plaster finish.

I would really appreciate thoughts on this project so I have an idea whether it is affordable or just a pipe dream!

How much would it cost and how long would it take?

• We would be living out of the property during the works.
• We don't have kids so have time to work on it in evenings and weekends.

Also anyone in the Manchester area who has the details of good tradesmen that they would recommend, please let me know!

We're renovating a 30s semi and have put on a smaller double storey extension than you plan, but also done a loft conversion. Stripped the house out and started again. We're probably somewhere around 160k at the moment.

Just for the extension, I don't think you'd have change from 100k

We did a side and rear double storey extension (48 square metres up and 48 down) in the midlands and the middling quote from builders was £130k to get it watertight. So that included footings, drains, brickwork, roof joinery and tiling. It didn’t include windows, doors which we purchased separately and plastering/electrics/plumbing. We debated a small front extension too but the costs were rising rapidly so we didn’t do that.

We were quoted 8-10 weeks and it took just slightly over that until the roof was on and windows/doors in so we could knock through.

The internals I can’t say how much they cost as we are doing a room at a time but it mounts up with plumbers/electricians/plastering etc in each room. Decorating and flooring is the cheap part for sure.

Ooh that’s quite close to me! I know a few good tradesmen and a great architect who I wish I’d used. What you need to be aware of is that people see a Didsbury postcode and think they can charge you Didsbury prices :) Not sure you’d get all that done for your anticipated budget.

Just out of interest have you looked in the Heatons as in my opinion It’s nicer than Didsbury and maybe slightly cheaper but not much these days ( biased as I live here but I went to school in Didsbury and I’ve lived in South Manchester my life). Just a thought !

Message me if you want any details for tradesmen etc.

Hi just pop in to say hello as you are also in Manchester.
House looks like a good deal for that area. Hope you get it.

We are mainly extending but also renovating.
I am struggling to find a builder at the mo as a lot of them are busy completing the backlog due to COVID, but you may have better luck when you have moved in.

Jus to say don’t underestimate the cost thinking we are in Manchester where labour is supposed to be cheaper. To give you an idea re cost:
My single storey extension of 18m2 plus some knock through, big patio doors, underfloor heating generated quotes from 40k to 68k, and that’s just building work, no kitchen no floors. Shell alone I suspect would be about 30k.

There are extension calculators online you can check and it is free. But I find it lower than all the quotes I got.

If you are able to put 105k in the pot for extension alone, you may be able to do it. With renovation added on, it will require a lot of diy to bring it under budget. If you are up to project managing the build yourself, you will be able to save a lot of money but it will take a lot of time, and may not be possible if you work full time.

Ask your local fb group for good builders they have used if you don’t have family or friends who know any but do keep in mind local recommendations may be given by builders friends and family.

@Tempnamelady agree with you on the didsbury price.

Another interesting thing I notice is where the builders usually do work May affect their quotes as well. The more expensive their usual area, the higher their quote.

Just to reiterate what others have said - we're not too far and its a really expensive area. Good builders are in demand (lots of people buy smaller houses then extend as it's more cost effective than buying bigger / moving up the property ladder). If I've understood your post correctly, you have a budget of £110k to do all the work.

I don't think there is any way you'll get what you want for that. We did a large double storey extension about 4 years ago and paid around £2k/sqm (plus VAT) although that did include windows / heating / plumbing - only for the extension though, the rest of the house was OK. We did all our own decorating, bought kitchen / bathrooms / flooring / bi-folds on top of that. I think prices have gone up since then generally but also because they're in demand now (lots of people are now looking to build additional space for WFH - 3 builders have quoted for more work in the last week and all 3 of them are unavailable for at least 9 months). You need to bear that in mind too - would you have anywhere else to live whilst work is ongoing or would you be prepared to live there?

You're talking about 60sq/m so I'd say at least £120k plus VAT for your extension before you start adding in the extras and the work you want to do to the rest of the house.

I don’t think you have enough budget for everything you propose to do. You could get the extension done but not all the renovating you list. Get a builder to come round with you & quote. Nice house in a nice area though - grew up in Didsbury.

We've just done something similar in Manchester! Rear extension, attic conversion, whole house gutted, electrics, plumbing, floors, decorated, one interior wall move, basement converted, new bathrooms and kitchens. Cost £200k

Also new boiler, windows, doors etc. And tools 7 months once we had planning permission, but about 6 months to get to that stage

Thanks for all the advice everyone. It sounds like it would be difficult to do with that budget.

@LockdownQ - How did you get all of that done for 200k??? Could you let me know the details of the people you used for it since I am in Manchester too?