bmj1

Hi all, Just wanted to say hi. Quick intro: We bought a house that needed all the works (loft extension, rear extension, side extension, garage conversion), essentially the cheapest and least developed detached house on the street We applied for planning permission to extend, taking footprint from ~2200 sq ft + integrated garage up to ~4000 sq ft. Then we got some advice from architects + builders, and everyone guided us to demolish and start again, partly due to VAT savings (first big surprise/learning) So we then applied for planning permission to demolish and rebuild, which we achieved about 9 months after we originally completed on the house. At our architects guidance, we hired their recommended QS, and conducted a tender. Costs came back eye-watering... (second learning: pick who runs your tender carefully and be comfortable they will ensure you get value for money, trust your gut!) So we re-tendered ourselves, selected a main contractor (who is local, and came by recommendation), and his team started on the foundations 6 weeks ago We're hoping to be out of the ground in the next couple of weeks I just wanted to say hi, super excited by the project. And excited to learn from the group on here.

I have literally just been through this. London based property, very close to our two neighbours (1 meter on each side) Went out to tender, QS included demolition. 4 main contractors bid on the tender. Demolition price ~£35k. I then tendered the demolition myself as got impatient and wanted to get on with it (while I re-tendered our project without the QS), done for £16k direct to the demo company of my choice, they were excellent Notes: I organised the utilities (gas/elec/water) moves myself, but this was a good thing as it took some time (in particular electric) It also forced me to figure out the locations to move gas/elec supplies to Had to put the hoardings up (£1700), and our subsequent main contractor redid these, so burned that £1700 Also ended up investing some additional time on coordination, but it wasn't that much Demo guys didn't completely finish the demolition, they left a little of the foundations by the boundary wall (to avoid collapsing the next house.) Expecting £1k - £2k of extra demo charges from our main contractor in due course (to manually break up the concrete) Conclusion: Given the high cost + time saving for us, was a no-brainer, and no regrets Just keep in mind that anything the main contractor isn't happy with after the demo job, you have to take responsibility for