How to make more space in newbuild, any creative visionaries?

[Frazzled252]

We have bought a house in the south east, that is very far from our dream home but we panicked a little as TTC and don’t want to move once pregnant.
The house is…eugh. It’s a David Wilson Buckingham style home, and although it’s 2100 something sq ft it feels really small. I worked out that as it has an attic floor the ground and first floor would be circa 1500sq ft which is why it feels really small. So trying to work out how to live with it until we can move.
The garden is typical new build and tiny so I’m not sure an extension would work. Theres a double garage I would like to convert but I think there’s a rule we can’t change it for a few years until the new builds are all finished.
I have an elderly parent that would need to stay sometimes and can’t manage the stairs. I could use an office room as a bedroom but then there’s no shower and the downstairs wc is too small to make it into a wet room. I am genuinely at a loss at what to do. The sale has been completed so too late to back out. We are stuck.
Anyone been in a similar situation/have any ideas? TIA

Ruddy hell, that's a price for the shower room. I've just renovated a house myself and have done most of the work myself using salvaged stuff where possible. My whole bathroom only cost me a grand.

Just checked, you are correct. That seems bizarre because as you say….ewww 🤢

I would still go with the lift option. Crazy that a house has 5 bedrooms, but the proposed solution is to give over some of the already crowded ground floor to provide accommodation that is sitting unused on the next floor up.

@Hairshare 's idea of moving the washer/dryer to an upstairs bathroom makes the shower/utility/loo idea even better.

Thank you this is also a really fantastic idea. In my head it seems so disconnected but looking at the floor Plan it does really make
sense. I was thinking about knocking the dining room through to the lounge but would have preferred it wider too but nothing can be done about that. But the double door thing is a fantastic idea. I agree the kitchen family room is a no go it should just be a kitchen/kitchen diner

I don’t know why but having the washer dryer uostairs seems so weird. But is a good idea. We definitely have more space to play with upstairs than down. Genius ❤️

Actually I wouldn't bother to knock the wall down, which would mean quite a bit of making good, retiling etc. I'd just have a nice walk in shower off the kitchen, and keep the downstairs loo as it is. The walk in shower would be a good place to hang washing when not in use.

I had thought about a stair lift aswell but think the stairs are too narrow and also bendy, they increase in price with bends so would cost a small fortune 😢

The good thing about the washer dryer upstairs is it's right there where you take your dirty clothes off and where you strip the sheets off the bed.

Having a washer dryer upstairs makes so much more sense, as you don’t need to bring your dirty laundry downstairs and take it all back up again.

If it’s a feeling of space you want downstairs I’d knock the dining room and kitchen together and block off the lounge/dining room door so you get a cosy lounge with more usable wall space, and a big spacious family space to cook and dine together. Perfect for homework with kids later on.

Thank you another idea that never occured To me until I posted this is the walk in contained shower idea. I haven’t seen any before but sure they exist. That would mean minimal knocking through etc which would help while we’re on warranty as I think any building work they could use to invalidate it. Thank you ladies you are all amazing
🙌🏻

depending on what the upstairs layout is like, you could install a straight lift (not a stair lift) to allow elderly relative to get upstairs

https://www.stannah.com/our-homelifts

(I think other companies may be cheaper but this has good pictures)

Yep. That’s the price. It isn’t just slapping in a shower cubicle, it’s a lot of work to do what is proposed. As well as knocking down the wall and blocking up a door, there will be alterations to plumbing and electrics, drainage etc, the new sanitaryware, tiling, new flooring, repairs and decorations.

13 years ago we had a grant for providing a wetroom for our daughter. We were moving in to a new build and said to the developers to do the minimum that was required to get habitation for one of our en-suites. It’s a tiny room, and the shower, WC and WHB were already in, most of the tiling was done. The total cost for turning it into a wetroom was £3,500. Standard inflation would make that £4,900 today but with the hyperinflation in the construction market it could easily be the equivalent of £6k.

We had our other en-suite renewed in 2020. (DWH construction, they hadn’t connected the shower drainage properly so a simple job of replacing a shower door meant we ended up having to replace the whole shower. 🤦🏻‍♀️) It cost us £6k

I deal with these kinds of projects in my work life (quantity surveyor). You would easily spend 10k on this work.

you don’t need a dining room that can be spare bedroom. Or sofa bed in lounge.
the parent staying will have to ‘have a wash’ rather than shower.
you could also consider getting hot tap shower fitted in the garden - not very dignified for an old lady but might be fun to have

Not a stair lift, a through floor lift. There are loads of different options.

Adding a shower downstairs will also cost a small fortune.

If you spend, say, 10k making your home suitable for your visiting parent, how many nights in your closest hotel would that cover? It might be cheaper to go to a spa every other day while staying with you even.
You’d be adapting your house to the needs of someone who doesn’t live there, needs that may change with time.

Don’t put in any kind of lift or stairlift for a temporary guest - they can instantly devalue a property (because the great majority of people don’t need them.

Or could OP change the utility room into a wet room and make the downstairs toilet the utility room?

Yes you can, as long as you have hand washing facilities and adequate ventilation such as a window or extractor fan. The 'two door' rule was abolished years ago.

I really envy people that have the skills to renovate. I am lethal and it would cost me triple to get someone in to repair my handwork 😂😂😂.

Makes sense as we viewed houses in London also that had (the only) bathroom in the house downstairs right next to the kitchen! We did wonder how it had been approved

I think it makes more sense to have the washer dryer upstairs. I had a friend who had a lovely set up on her landing. We bought a newbuild house in a panic too but
three years on we love it. I hope you come to love yours too once you make it your own x

Oh I love my David Wilson home! I converted the garage into an annexe, it does technically break covenants. I sought written permission before exchanging - their response was probably yes and they asked for detailed plans. The sales team said since I am not noticeably changing the appearance from the road, they really don't care, so I just built the annexe (after getting planning permission but without submitting any plans to them). There was absolutely no fuss from David Wilson. The annexe is fab, I put in bi-fold doors and a window looking onto the garden, changed the garage door to an electric one keeping some space for storage. Also for inspiration try looking at Instagram accounts from people with the Buckingham, with my home I've found this very useful for ideas

I came on to suggest @FluentLemonFatballidea is taking down the wall between the kitchen and dining room and opening up the back of the house.

Also second a Murphy bed for the study, as it has a proper mattress and folds right away, so you could use the room when you don’t have guests. There’s a show on Netflix, tiny homes or something, which has amazing ideas and used murphy beds a lot.

Love the idea of keeping the loo, and just putting a shower in the utility area. Much more cost effective. If you put an extractor fan in, your washing will dry quickly when it’s not in use. I reckon the shower would be useful too with kids, dogs etc - ours are frequently muddy. Upstairs washing machine makes total sense with clothes and bedding all being upstairs.

Think the house will look great

Thankyou. I think the downstairs will feel small regardless of what we do, but I’m gonna have try and get used to it. That, and start buying lottery tickets and keep everything crossed so we can get somewhere more spacious.

Do people really think this is a small house?!