Creating a carefully planned, well-built extension to your home is always money well spent, as it not only adds new useable space, it also adds value to your home. According to a survey by the National Association of Estates agents, 92 percent of agents said they believed that adding an extension can increase the value of a property. Phil says: “Treat planning an extension like you would a holiday. You would look through brochures to choose where you want to go and then start gathering information on the currency, temperature, good places to eat, activities in the area, and even how to say some words in the local lingo. The same applies to planning an extension. You need to look through the brochures or research on the Internet to decide what sort of extension you could have, and it is important to gather as much information as possible. It helps to learn the lingo as well to interpret the phrases builders, planners and architects use, so you can communicate with them about what you want and what you can do.”
What can you do?
Extensions can provide more space in a number of ways, such as an additional bedroom or bathroom, a loft conversion, an extension to your kitchen, or perhaps
a conservatory. Planning permission may be necessary in many instances, especially where outside extensions are concerned. In May 2013, the size limits for single-storey rear extensions were increased and this has given householders a renewed interest in this type of extension project. An extension or addition to your house is now considered to be permitted development, not requiring an application for planning permission, depending on certain limits and conditions. For example:
- No more than half the area of land around the ‘original house’ would be covered by additions or other buildings
- No extension forward of the principal elevation or side elevation fronting a highway
- No extension to be higher than the highest part of the roof
- Single-storey rear extension must not extend beyond the rear wall of the original house by more than three metres if an attached house, or by four metres if a detached house.
Obviously you will need to take your architect’s advice on these and many other conditions before proceeding with your plans.You can find further government information at: www.planningportal.gov.uk/permission/commonprojects/extensions/
Phil suggests you can extend your house in four directions: up, down, to the side, to the rear. Depending on your house and the area of your land, you need to work out the best way to add extra space that’s in keeping with the look of the house and without reducing your garden too drastically (if your plan is considered to reduce a garden space too drastically, local planners may turn down your application on the grounds of ‘garden grabbing’, and this is an aspect planners are becoming increasingly concerned about). Remember, outdoor spaces are precious, particularly in cities and large towns where they come at a premium.
The Loft
One of the most popular and practical extension ideas is the loft conversion. Gaining more room from your loft space can be relatively easy to carry out and can add considerable value to your home. For more information, see our feature on loft conversions (pp.120-122).
The Basement
Digging down below to create a whole new floor as a basement is becoming increasingly popular. However, this type of conversion can be both disruptive and expensive, so you need to be absolutely sure that the means justifies the end, which it often does in towns and cities. The digging and removal of soil usually has to be done by hand and so this can be one of the most costly aspects in achieving your basement area. In just this way, Phil decided to develop a basement area in his own home. He says: ‘The first question I asked was: will this work for me? If the amount you will be adding to your house is less than about £300 a square foot—the cost of the work to go under the earth—then it’s not worth it in monetary terms. I thought it was worthwhile financially, but value is not just about pounds and pence. You need to factor in the hassle factor of uprooting yourself and your family to move into a new home with more space, which could be the equivalent of your basement dugout.’
The Side Extension
A small side extension can cost less than £25,000, including all the building work, wiring, plastering and plumbing for the radiators. However, a large two-storey side extension to a big house could cost as much as £100,000. The amount of square footage gained might not appear to be that significant, but the improvement to useable space is huge, says Phil, ‘this is one of my favoured value-added options that makes a big difference to how the room functions.’
The Conservatory
This is one of the most popular and straightforward extension projects. The conservatory is rated as one of the three home must-haves, along with a new kitchen and bathroom, however, conservatories do fall under the same planning regulations as any extension or addition to your house. Today we are spoilt for choice when it comes to styles and cost but the important factor is that your conservatory should be in keeping with your house. ‘There is nothing worse,’ says Phil, ‘than seeing a fine house with a conservatory that sticks out like a sore thumb. There are a number of styles, from Georgian and Victorian through to gable—with steep pitched roof lending extra height and light—and lantern—a period version with two tiers that has a ceiling in the shape of a lantern.’
The Case Study: Mr Vesey’s Extension
Mr Vesey wanted to extend the ground floor of his property to create an extra room. This involved knocking down one internal wall and building a new external wall. The main project also included various smaller pieces of work, such as the installation of a new boiler and replastering throughout the ground floor of the property.
Planning permission—‘I left everything to do with planning permission to the builder, who was from a trusted local firm that we had known for a long time and had a very good reputation. An architect drew up the plans and I didn’t have to worry too much about planning permission. It took quite a long time to actually get the planning permission though.’
Building regulations— ‘Again, I was able to leave all the details of ensuring that the work complied with building regulations to the builder, who was adamant that he would deal with all of that. We submitted plans in advance, and then the Building Control Officer visited the property four times in total while the work was being carried out. The Building Control Officer spotted a number of issues with the work-in-progress—originally I planned to take down two internal walls rather than one, but couldn’t because it turned out to be a supporting wall, and then the ground underneath what was going to be the new room was newly-made ground, and the Building Control Officer made us dig a lot deeper than we had originally planned to make sure that the foundations were solid.’
What I would have done differently—‘Think about the knock-on effect of each piece of work. This was one thing we didn’t do—for example, because we were moving a boiler, we knew we’d have to replaster and paint one room, but then in the end we had to do most of the ground floor as it would have looked odd to do one room and not the one it led into.’
Top Tip—”Agree all work beforehand in writing, not just the bare bones of the contract, but discuss how both parties interpret the extent of each piece of work. We did this with our builder, and it avoided any stress or miscommunication at the end of the job.”
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