Extension and renovation thread 2026

[needmorespace2026]

Looks like we are finally starting building on our extension in Feb. I’ve been mentally planning it ever since we met bed in over 10 years ago, and first met our architect in autumn 2024 so it’s been a long time coming

Wondered if there are others out there who want a space to share the highs and lows? Ours is supposed to be an 8 month build so maybe done by Christmas (famous last words!)

Thank you for starting this thread.

Very similar timing here and also been dreaming of this for a while now.
Started looking in summer 2024, found a property in Dec 2024 and completed Feb 2025.
Been engaging architects and builders for quotes, had a pre planning application meeting before submitting to ensure we're and on the right path. Hoping to get feedback around the end of the coming February. If everything goes to plan we hopefully start building in March.
It's a double storey extension; hopefully we'll be with most of it by the end of the year.

So far it's been OK. Architects could have been better but I'm looking forward to starting. How did you find it working with your architect?

Have you already chosen your builders ?
I chose mine last summer after lots of due diligence; visited projects they'd been working on and we will work well together.

We're in the south east, what about you?

We’re all n the south east too. Yes we have found a builder. It was hard work to be honest, most people weren’t interested in quoting. I think other people I know had more success with “design and build” type arrangements, I would probably try that route if I was starting again.

Hello- we have just started an internal reconfiguration - asbestos removal, turning the stairs around to make the upstairs flow better and creating a new bathroom from a chunk of a big bedroom and a standalone toilet. Also doing a new roof, solar panels and new kitchen/ bathroom. Fortunately we don't need planning, so just building control. We keep finding random pipes that need relocating but other than that it's going ok at the moment. I'm hoping to be completely done, including redecorating, by Christmas. I've used both the builders and roofers before.

Oh me too! Scaffolding has just gone up. We bought in October 24 and knew we had work to do. Unfortunately after we moved found out the roof was spreading (although survey said no evidence of roof spread). So since then been trying to get things moving for a loft conversion and structural work along with a re roof. We figured if we needed a new roof and structural work we may as well get a room out of it too.

We bought the house planning to add on an annex for my MIL to move into so it's all ended up on the same plans with the same architect and builder. So that is following on - we are at least not paying for that!

Hi @AllJoyAndNoFunwe are hoping to be done by Christmas too, famous last words! Sounds
like your house will be lovely when you have finished, it’s so satisfying being able to “magic up” a better space by rearranging.

Hi @Purplepepsisounds like you are making it into a positive. Will it be cold with the roof off in winter?!🥶

that said our heating broke in 2024 and we have been managing without as no point getting a new boiler before the build…

We are about to start major works too. We have a bungalow and are adding a new floor and roof plus side extension and reconfiguring the downstairs slightly. We have been told 8 months "done by Christmas" too 🤣

We met with the builder today and contract should be drawn up next week, we are giving party wall notice to the neighbours for them to sign this weekend. They have already agreed to this. Meanwhile we are packing up what we can and busy finding somewhere else to love for 6months.

Are you living there whilst work is being done ?

Hi @Odiebay - I am attempting to live in it but once the kitchen goes at the end of next week I think I need to ship out to MIL's for at least some of the week or live on sandwiches and shower at the gym (DH works away so he's out of the equation). I did put all the furniture from the affected spaces into a storage unit. Dh said "oh just pile it up in the sitting room" but glad I didn't as would be a nightmare and not sure it would have fitted anyway. The dust is also insane and gets everywhere.

I have major decision fatigue today. There are so many decisions that need to be made and I'm so scared of making the wrong one and then either wasting money or ending up with something I don't like. The extras (ie. work we didn't anticipate) are already adding up.

I know what you mean. We are emptying everything because I can't be bothered with the dust!

What kind of decisions are you making and what's the extra cropping up? This is the bit that makes me so nervous!

Can I join , we are about to start a garage conversion with shower room . Waiting for building regulations and emptying the garage . We have really good builder so speaking to him next week and hopefully start march . Probably going to be without a washing machine for couple of months

Welcome @loveev - emptying the garage always takes ages. When we moved I swear that took longer than sorting out the house.

@Odiebay our house is old and has been added to over time so it's mainly floor levels that aren't the same and random pipes which need either removing or relocating, plus just random stuff like when we removed one bathroom, it cut the cold water to the other, even though it would make no sense to have them plumbed like that.

Hi @Odiebaysounds like we are on the exact same timeline, shall we have a race?!

We are also locking in drawings and contract at the moment and I am obsessively discussing everything with chatGPT. I really recommend it, it will not get bored with discussing the exact spec of your roof light for three hours until you feel you have checked all
aspects of the decision! plus it loves my taste or so it says ;-)

Trying to distract myself from panic about potential nightmare scenarios by focussing on the paint for the front door

Haha we can try!!

We are still waiting to hear from the neighbours and waiting for the contract. My builder seems a bit wishy washing with the payment terms so think we are going to have to insist on a proper schedule and paying invoices for supplies/materials ourselves. Instead of sending him large chunks of money with no guarantee!

@odiebaywe are also very much at that stage, sorting contracts etc. Our architect is doing our contract and setup and admin including verifying payments as job is quite complicated and expensive (our extension is actually bigger than our house :-0 ).

Interesting. Was that included in your architects price form the start? Or is it an extra service they offer?

No it’s an extra service. It does cost a few thousand pounds TBH but in our case I just felt the exposure to risk was too great without professional oversight.

its called contract administration if you want to look into it - to be honest AI convinced me I need this but now we are the contract stage I am sure we do indeed need it. It’s a standard thing for architects to offer but not everyone would use it. We weren’t originally planning to.

Just read an article in the Times about Chris Rokos and his £175m renovation of Tottenham House - it's going to take 7 years just to fix the conservatory and he has 350 builders on site - feeling a bit better about my budget and timelines now..... although Chris probably doesn't have to live in his.

Hi renovation buddies, how is everyone getting on? I have spent the week manically preparing everything for our builders- took the week off work to get it done.

Cleared out the garage and lifted and replanted a lot of plants in the garden that were in the firing line. Lifted all the ornamental gravel and stored it in a bulk bag at the end of the garden. The back patio (which I still need to lift and store) became a sea of mud. I renovated this house myself 10-15 years ago (slowly!) and it was a weird feeling to be undoing all my work - it was quite nice and “just right” before but way too small now we have kids.

Builder probably not starting for a couple of weeks now but I definitely feel we have passed the point of no return.

Well done on the prep work @needmorespace2026. That sounds like a workout. Our landscapers started this week- 2 weeks early- as other jobs have been washed out. Shed base is down and new hedge planted, and all the stumps and ivy cleared.

Builders are about 3-4 weeks away from finishing the first phase of the house. We are definitely in the "messy middle" where delays in one thing knock on to another. Builder inspectors are coming Tuesday and then the builders can cover the steels and plaster but electricians need to chase some wires first as doors have changed position so switches need to change too. I have major decision fatigue. I agonise over every little thing. Switch on the left or right of the door? Arggghhh! I don't know! Plumber also needs to basically replumb the whole house which wasn't in the budget.... and the macerator is illegal (secretly happy as means can replace with a proper loo and justify it to DH).

Have decided to park decor decisions for now. Everything needs stripping first and that's gonna take ages anyway.

Oh, and I have moved out. I'm Airbnb surfing- fortunately live in a tourist town with zero winter season.

Wow sounds like moving out was necessary @AllJoyAndNoFun, but also like it’s all coming together? I have been prepping on the basis that the builders will inevitably wreck our garden 🤔 but hopefully your lot are staying out of the newly landscaped bit!

And yes to decision fatigue. Ours is still all on paper but I had a few phase a couple of weeks ago of agonising over the size and spec of every window and door (chat GPT is good for this!) before the drawings were finalized. I think I spent about 16 hours on chat GPT talking though every detail (windows, lights, heating zones, WiFi points….)

Yeah- the landscaped bit is away from the house- our house is a bit odd in that it is L shaped and sits in the back corner of a wedge shaped plot with all the garden in front. We are creating a new parking area and storage shed so that we can get the cars off the bit of land that actually gets the sun and make that into a nice terrace/ extend the lawn. That's very much Phase II though and is not getting done until all the building and roofing is done as dont want all my planning to get wrecked by scaffolders.

Thanks for reminding me I need to think about heating zones. At the moment all our radiators are on one thermostat which I move around to control where is getting too hot or cold!