What is wrong with people who go on Grand Designs?

[RobynRB]

Seriously, time and time again it's the same thing. Why do people feel they need to build a house the size of a cinema complex and then moan when they run out money. Most of these things could be 10-20% smaller and you wouldn't even notice. Don't these people understand that materials like wood and concrete cost money so buy less of them and the house will be cheaper.

Speaking of which, last night was a classic case... we haven't got any money, but we bought this copper bath for our bedroom and this (frankly disgusting but I'm guessing ridiculously expensive) gold and black marble for our kitchen.

It struck me the reservoir building was big enough to build a reasonable house in, maybe with a smaller extension to the side. It certainly looked twice the size of my three bedroomed house on it's own.

And of course five minutes after they started they announced they were having a child. What brilliant timing...

I'm confused that they paid £275k for 2 garages then something like £30k for another one? That makes no sense?

I spotted that!

It was £15k for the other one!

I saw it today and agree with lots of comments, the basement bedrooms seemed a horrible idea with no windows. And yes the windows in the finished building looked like single pane/non opening ones.
The 2 garages facing the street might have been sold with planning permission, (or potential for a house) the one behind it might have had no access/renovation potential so might not have been as desirable?
Tbh it would have been a lot easier to buy a 3 bed flat and then revamp/ design their own tiles for the floor. It said they were thinking of the girls at every stage....but I didn't really get that from the programme....(Although admit it's probably heavily edited)

Planning permission

I’m just watching the repeat now, having seen the neighbour's tweet from a day or two ago that she was devastated at suddenly having this vast red monstrosity appearing slap bang in her eyeline at the bottom of her garden.

I’ve just caught up on the red house. This whole blended family thing. If you’re going to blend a family surely the priority is the children and their wellbeing. No? So why would you conceive of putting them down in subterranean airless windowless bunkers. And then they (understandably) object so the mum bangs on about how child centred she is by creating them a mezzanine. Why wouldn’t the parents plan to put themselves down in the bunker? Did I miss the part where they showed their own marital bedroom!? It is probably too embarrassing a comparison when you’ve spent this much money and the girls still don’t have their own rooms or any proper bedroom at all. That metal stair case gave me the heebie-jeebies. Where was the handrail? I’m not even going to start on those basic tiles. And why pop off to get married if you’re tapping friends/family for cash? That’s so not a good look. Those poor girls will probably be super grateful to escape to uni and get their own rooms with a bed, door and a window. Simple pleasures.

I thought the tiles were a bit underwhelming considering the cost/effort....

I knew I'd seen those sort of tile patterns somewhere before. They're the same as Lego Mosaic tiles:

Omg yes. Lego! That’s it.

Maybe Lego was the inspo.

You were not alone in your thinking😂

And a wedding in France when you're supposedly on your uppers desperately trying to finish a house. 🙄

Firstly the Moroccan tiles were hideous, but then so was the rest of it. I bet the neighbours love looking out at that red monsotrosity, well I say red. It already looked like it was fading... of course Kevin thought it looked fabulous, but he would.

I think it was another case of an architect being motivated by trying to win a architectural prize rather than trying to build a realistic family home.

GD has put me off from ever using an architect as they seem so out of touch with the realities of actually building a house, i.e. costs, timescales, etc. They seem to live in a parallel universe.

None of the problems faced with the awful red house were a surprise to someone like us who's watched most of the series and also other architectural series such as George Clark's. All the problems were entirely foreseeable. Has there ever been a "digging down to create a basement" that was done on time, on budget and without serious problems? No, can't think of one at all. They always turn into a nightmare and nearly always done wrong so need remedial work! Similar with metal framework - most suffer problems with either foundations/footings in the wrong place or the metals not being planned/manufactured correctly to fit. As for costings, they seem to always go way over budget, and no, it's not just recent hikes in prices due to Brexit/Covid, they've always gone over budget for the past decade of the shows!

Being unable to find a contractor/builder is always the red flag. Presumably the reputable/reliable firms realise the problems etc so quote "high", i.e. the right figure to do the job properly. The homeowner never wants to pay the "right" price so they spend months finding some dodgy builder who'll do it closer to budget, who either beggars it up or just disappears!

I recognised the architect husband. He's been on TV before.

The Ugly House to usually even Uglier House one, I think.

Really 😮

It's series 3 episode1 of Ugly House to Lovely House.

What I don't understand is what EXACTLY were the issues with the steel and concrete. WHY would that happen? Did they buy cheap so they therefore didn't meet spec?

The house isn't too bad, I think they're a sweet family. Girls seemed lovely

I'm sure they could've bought a 4 bed house for 700k nearby

I'm sure they could've bought a 4 bed house for 700k nearby

I don't think they could have got a 4 bed house in the area but they might have got a 3 bed flat.....and been able to actually live in it....and have opening Windows!! They could have even put lego tiles in it!

Just watched this. Very insightful.

It’s made me wonder if, when the budget gets blown by out of the water, whether the clients get sucked into a type of Stockholm syndrome.
The increased costs have so much impact on their financial future , and the way it will curtail all the rest of their lifestyle choices, that it brainwashes them into loving the final result.
Despite the fact it was not what they had asked for, or what they felt comfortable spending.

It's the sunk cost fallacy which makes people throw good money after bad. Not that I think they had much option once they'd dug a gaping big hole.

In the end the floor space was way too small. And no amount of imaginative thinking building into the ground with no real room for light boxes or up into mezzanines was going to make up for it. The high ceilinged rooms just seemed less built for a human to feel comfortable and at home.

Sadly they thought they could architect their way out of too small a plot. They just couldn't afford a home in that area and sadly put too much faith in the skills of the architect. Very sad and sone weird judgement calls. Those poor girls.

I watched it too and was gobsmacked at the increase in budget. Budget always seems to go west but 150k to 350k seems way beyond what could be explained by fancier worktops or tiles/finishes.

I wondered if the design had every been created to fit the budget or if the architect just designed for the ask and they rejigged the budget to fit or whether it was unplanned overspend and they thought the original design could be done for 150k?

I do t understand why, when they are massively over budget. They still spend a fortune on custom made things. Or really high end stuff, when cheaper would do.

I’m sure a lot is down to editing and retakes. I don’t think I’ve ever seen really unhappy owners at the end which suggests a brave face rather than being happy.

just finished watching the red house episode. They are insane! What a pair of idiots. Fussing about over tiles when they don't even have bedrooms and have to crowdfund to finish it.

That poor girl saying " I will go where the wind takes me" without even having a bedroom of her own. In the middle of GCSEs or A levels. The girls are lovely. My DC would not have been so kind to their parents.

Meanwhile smug Kevin says "No pain, No gain" and buggers off back to his no doubt supremely functional house.