Neil Samuels

Yes we have done that with this and our previous house but I've done them as we went along, but we are interested in buying a 'wreck' and rebuilding it now that our children have all left home it will make it a bit easier. It's just it seems to be the perfect 'time' for us to do a self-build which we've always wanted to do and I will have more time after this summer so it's something we really want to do but perhaps we will go down the renovating route if we cant find the right plot/development.

We are looking to stay in the south/south east/east simply for distance to children and ageing parents! We regularly used to travel to Loughborough to visit my daughter at University and regularly saw the land/house prices are not only better value but there is so much more available, but the 'family ties' are probably going to keep us further down here I'm afraid. To be honest we were disappointed with Graven Hill! The plot price is not a problem but then the cost of 'their foundations' are ridiculous! They quoted £40-70.000 for a 3 bed plot on top of the plot price of £250,000 so in my opinion it makes the it a bit too expensive. But it was when we drove around the site that we both saw the actual scale of each plot (v small) and how close some of them are together that made our minds up. Don't get me wrong, some of the houses are great and the concept is great too but the figures and plot size put us off I'm afraid.

To be honest we were disappointed with Graven Hill! The plot price is not a problem but then the cost of 'their foundations' are ridiculous! They quoted £40-70.000 for a 3 bed plot on top of the plot price of £250,000 so in my opinion it makes the it a bit too expensive. But it was when we drove around the site that we both saw the actual scale of each plot (v small) and how close some of them are together that made our minds up. Don't get me wrong, some of the houses are great and the concept is great too but the figures and plot size put us off I'm afraid.

I'm Neil, a Plumbing & Heating lecturer from Kent and myself and my wife are looking to do a self-build within the next year or two! We have rebuilt/refurbished our current and previous family homes and now that all the kids have left home we think it's time to do what we've always wanted to do and self-build our next home. We are ideally looking for a plot in Kent/Sussex but tomorrow we are going to look at Graven Hill to see what's going on there and see if it's suitable for us. I am particularly interested in a timber frame, pre-insulated/SIPS type that can be erected and weatherproofed and then I would complete all the interiors and services. Although I worked for many years on construction sites, like so many I'm very keen to keep the cost down so any tips are greatly appreciated.