Is it the right time to extend?

[JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff]

We are 5 people in a 3bed house and it's a bit squeezed, esp since we have a boy/girl mix of DC. We had been doing the house up with a view to moving but not sure that is our best option anymore.

We have about £150k equity in property judging by Nationwide house price register and our mortgage is 10y fix at 2.29 from May 2022. We had previously thought extending would be so much expense it'd be easier to move, but I am wondering now if building costs might be about to come down, if there is less demand for home improvement work....

What is the most sensible move in your view?

If you have a 10 year fix, you can afford to stay put for a while and wait and see. It might need a year or 2 until building work costs will come down significantly, especially materials, and you will see how the housing market develops. It will definitely be easier to move, as living through building work is disruptive, but then with a move you might have all the disruption of changing schools, new neighbours, except you were moving literally to a bigger house in the same neighbourhood.

I must admit I thought this in 2008 when the world look like it was going to end and we replaced our central heating in 2009 hoping for a bit of a discount. It didn’t happen good Trades people are always absolutely booked up.

obviously the cost of materials is only go in one way inflation hasn’t stopped apparently it’s only just begun.

I'm not sure the costs of building work are going to come down though - materials are still going to be expensive, especially given costs of importing, oil price fluctuations and the exchange rate stuff going on. And skilled labour still in short supply as so many people left the U.K. because of Brexit.

There might not be such a long wait for a start date for it as some people will cancel planned work due to the cost of living crisis - ours has just moved a month earlier because of this. But the cost is still as high

Ah okay - interesting on cost - our NDN is a skilled tradesman and said the price of timber he uses was falling. I wondered if some other materials might follow suit. Labour costs post Brexit not such thing as live in deepest darkest SW which didn't have so much immigration in the first place....

I also just wonder if we would get so screwed trying to sell in 2023 that extending would be better anyhow!