So confused. How long does a house renovation take?

[reno22]

After 6 months of conveyancing we finally completed on our new house. It's very dated but has a great footprint. Since completion we've drawn up architecture plans , selected and planned (with detailed drawings) the new kitchen, bathrooms and utility room. The electrics and plumbing plans should be through this week.

My question is now that planning permission is had (and providing a builder is available- using a design and build company and they have lots of contractors on their books so should help with timescales right?) how long would you expect the following to take:

1- knock down a load bearing wall to create a large kitchen diner. Install new kitchen

2- replace boiler with new boiler and hot water tank
3- reconfigure 2 internal walls and install new bathroom and space for staircase to a loft

4- Dormer and hip to gable loft extension ( master room with small bathroom)

We'd want to paint and decorate as well but could do bulk ourselves if necessary.

I'm getting so panicked- we offered on Feb, completed in august and still haven't started building works.

Thanks MN

Really?? Oh dear, we're in west london. The D&B company we are using suggested that once all drawings and permission was had they have so many contractors on the books they'd be able to start the following week especially if we're not living there. Have I been lied to? Gaaagh, more confused/stressed.

Worse case I thought throwing money at it would move it along but seems like that won't be the case.

@reno22 whats in your contract with them? I’d have expected a price, a time line (at least high level project plan) and an estimated start date at a minimum by now

I think you have to accept it will take a year but once most of the dirty jobs are in you might be able to move in and live a bit camp style until all the materials for the final fix arrive.

The decision fatigue is real. So to avoid regret it’s good to take things at your own pace and not rush. We moved in a couple of weeks back and I am kicking myself to where I put a radiator in our hall. WHY! It makes no sense. I will forever be pissed off at that 😭 but at the time you just say yes. Because its difficult to imagine living in a wreck of a building site, and when looking off plan (and I work with plans daily!).

Building material delays are an issue but not unsolvable. Someone somewhere will have what you need. Just your contractor might not want to get them from there hence why we sourced our own.

Final fixtures are having huge delays!!! Our bath took 3 months to arrive, vanity 6 months and we haven’t even started the kitchen yet. Friends tell me they had to wait nearly a year from order for it to be made.

Our windows were restored on site so not an issue but for new would have been a 3 month wait. The doors we are now having made are also 3 months.

So just relax. You can’t live in a building site with a 6 month old. Sure there’s levels to that but pre-chasing/demolition you just can’t. The amount of brick dust that creates is beyond your comprehension and totally unliveable.

@Sandrine1982 no we haven't got contractors yet (at least I don't think so). The D&B company know we want to start asap so they are (supposed to be) doing the leg work. I'm calling again on Monday to see what's up. Currently the plumbing and electrical plans are being finalised to go into a SOW document so that the builder/contractors have everything needed to complete the works. We were advised that this was our best bet to minimise risk of cost and works overrun

@Roselilly36 we would give a key but also check in (me and or MIL) daily

@Isyesterdaytomorrowtoday we don't have a project plan (one hasn't been shared with us) I guess that will come once the sow is completed. A PM is being assigned to us next week so if the PP isn't shared by then I will raise

@PragmaticWench you are probably right. DH and I have discussed and at a minimum we want the knock through, boiler replacement/movement, kitchen/bathroom installation to happen before we move in, at least that way we'd have the ground floor to live in easily. Then the loft could happen at a later date (if necessary) while we potentially stay with in laws. It's just annoying because if I'd known all these delays from the start were possibly I'd have insisted on buying a house with the loft already extended. Technically we don't need it yet as only have 1 DD but we want it and think it's easier to do while she's little and not mobile.

It might be because I'm stressed but I'm feeling attacked by your response. I'll push it aside and answer assuming positive intent on your part.

• I'm confused about the timescales. We've been told so many different things and continue to hear different things. Never had in mind that could take a year (excl planning) for this.

-Given we already own the house it's a bit too late to be worried about if it's "doable". It has to be done.

-Given DD is here it's too late to be thinking about what we'd do if she wasn't... we offered before DD was born. Was a simple transaction- us (buyer) large deposit not needing a sale to fund transaction. Old lady seller moving into assisted care. Couldn't have envisioned 6 months to complete! DH and I own already and that purchase only took 10 weeks! Based on that we expected to complete before her arrival then worse case have everything done in 6 months given we don't live there. If we'd known it would take 6 months to complete then potentially another 15 months from planning to build completion we'd have potentially picked a different house or delayed putting our current home on the market.

• We live locally so do in-laws but we are at the end stages of selling our home.

@Sigma33 thank you for that. We are doing less than you (no need for full rewire or full re plaster. Downstairs cloakroom already present but we'll get modernised) but knowing end to end was 9 months and you lived in it during lockdowns gives me some hope that we could finish in (slightly) less time given we don't live there.

Your DD sounds older than ours so not sure if that's better or worse for ease.

That's useful to know. Ie it can be done - If they feel incentivised enough.
I hear what you say about being considerate of neighbours and id definitely ask them to. I've already given neighbours (2 doors down on both sides) my number to call if they feel the builders aren't being considerate as I can easily pop across in real time.

After writing this thread last night I decided to take things into my own hands. Left DD with the in laws and went to the house to do some prep tasks

• pulled up all the carpets and wrapped them ready to take to the tip

• took down the old ugly built in wardrobes and desks as well as and left over shelves ready to take to the tip

• borrowed a steamer from FIL. DH started taking down wallpaper.

We figure let's get as much of the the prep done before any builders are on site so it's one less point for delay.we'll take out everything but the current kitchen, bathroom and cloakroom so they have a clear canvas to start working.

Thank you everyone for your input. I guess we were a tad naive going into this but as many of you have mentioned the end result will make it worth the stress

I’ am astounded by Purples timelines!

We’ve recently done similar and it took ten months from breaking ground to moving back in.

We’re also, still doing, most of the painting and decorating a year later… We have a young family and I really cannot recommend doing anything oneself at all, it’s impossible with littles.

Good work OP 🥳

@reno22 wow that’s fantastic progress well done you! I tho I that’s the thing to do, is to focus on what you can control. Good luck with it all

@reno22 , I understand your frustration at delays before you’ve even got started. Our own project (SW London) started a full year late due to delays in finalising drawings and lining up a contractor. We are now in the last stages and hoping to move in by Xmas.

What I would say is:

• the prep work you are currently doing is probably pointless. Once we had moved out, the builders took our entire house back to bare bricks in half a day. It was simply astonishing how fast the demolition went. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn’t seen it myself. So, I really wouldn’t bother taking down wallpaper or rolling carpets away. This is not the best use of your time when you have a baby DD.
• I didn’t work with a DB company, so I can’t compare. But if you’ve had lots of delays with the design bit, I would strongly recommend you get an independent PM who will hold both the contractor and the design company to account, and will be fighting your corner all along the way. I found my own PM because I got so fed up with my architect/designer’s broken promises. It was one of the best decisions I’ve made. If you can afford it, it is invaluable to have a PM who is completely independent from other pressures and is there purely for your benefit.
• Builders like big projects. They prefer to deploy a team on a site for 6-9 months or more, where they can settle in and get into a routine, rather than doing multiple small projects. The fact your project is small (ie no ground floor extension) actually plays against you, as builders will try and fit you in between their larger jobs, and those will take precedence.
• I wouldn’t have allowed anyone to chose a contractor on my behalf without meeting with them myself, visiting some of their previous projects and speaking to their clients. Communication and trust are really important in building projects. Knowing that you are on the same wavelength as the builders is crucial. I wouldn’t want my contractor to think that their “client” is the DB firm - I want them to feel accountable to me. There was enough mutual trust with the contractor that they actually started the work before we had a contract finalised. If we hadn’t done that, we would have had to wait for their next availability, potentially months later. But that only happened because we got to know each other during the tender stage.
• I check on the building site several times a week, however I don’t check on the builders - I know they are working hard, and if they’re on a break/having a bbq when I pop around, that’s fine by me. But we also have a clear view of progress, and where we have relative to the programme, and so I trust that they’re managing their work in a way that they don’t fall behind.
• I found the waiting stage that you are now in to be much more stressful than the build stage. Once we got started, I felt a lot more in control and aware of what came next. We’ve still had plenty of stressful times (and it’s not over yet), but I’ve not been in despair as I was while waiting for months on end to get started while prices were going up every month. So at least that’s a silver lining…

Good luck OP. Pop over to the extension thread if you need to vent 🙂