ToughButterCup

Get it out of the house as soon as possible.

It's not one of my choosing.@Russell griffiths made me change my screen name because he told me to '... toughen up buttercup... 'I felt so wounded, devastated, shattered, traumatised that I had to.... His fault, not mine.

I had you down as a clean livin' kinda guy. Jus' shows how wrong I can be.

Guesswork, in fact.

Is an architect appropriate at this stage of your project? Will a Planning Consultant do? Do you have to brief an architect? Will an Architectural Technician do? Consider doing some of the designing yourself or perhaps a CAD Technician Is an architect working for a house manufacturer appropriate for your build? Research suitable architects: websites, relevant journals Make a long-list of possible companies Check each architects credentials here Is the architect bankrupt? Check the architects Indemnity Insurance Make initial contact; listen Ask for examples of existing work; visit / drive by Company brochure Work up a brief. Consider budget and don’t forget VAT Will the architect of choice actually do the work? Does ecology come into the mix somewhere? Time scales. Refine your brief, and write up. One side of A5. Send it to the architect in advance of your meeting List the questions you want to ask, and refer to the list during the meeting Meeting: has the architect read the brief? Does the architect listen? Is the architect merely an “Educated Artist”? What does the architect think of as the scope of his / her work? Clarity about Extras and Incidentals Does the chemistry work? Ask for references. Visit / ring/ talk to them Decide

No. Here's our architect's pricing structure. And here's what I hope will be a useful checklist... a starting point for your own ideas. Good luck.

No. But be careful, as yo mamma say.....

Stairbox.

Have you asked an Insurance Broker for advice? If so, what was it?

I haven't given the garden much thought, apart from the regulatory requirements of SUDS. So our thoughts are turning to planning the garden. Anyone used a free garden planner that they would recommend? Thanks.

Hi, welcome. I am sure you will have lots of questions : thats why we have lots of sub-sections in the forum - its best to ask questions in the relevant forum because it helps people make sense of tha mass of information there is. To answer some of your questions here quickly: if the land is not identifiably yours, you won't get a mortgage on it - so get it changed to yours on the land registry tax liability -- hmm, in relation to what ? ring your planning office and ask. In general, it is advisable to appoint a planner to work for you. It is also essential that in everything you do in relation to the build that you follow a due diligence process, without fail. We're not experts who have the relevant PPI, just interested, helpful amateurs. ( Apart from @Onoff who knows everything ?.)

?

Vanishingly rare. My panic was founded on the mis-reading of your earlier post I mis-read that as ... in all cases you must provide a receipt. To be absolutely clear; Of those purchases which are based on an invoice, the invoice must be supplied Of those purchases where the only evidence is a till receipt, you need to provide the original till receipt. Further evidence may be required in the case of a till receipt - such as the supplier's VAT number Jumpy? Me? Naaaah

Precisely my MMP ( MondayMorningPanic .... there's always one) The confusion / panic / misunderstanding / question seems to center on the words receipt and invoice My reading is as follows Where there is a properly completed invoice That invoice needs to be provided. No receipt is required. Where a receipt is the only evidence of a purchase That original receipt needs to be provided. This is why I think that.... Here's the online form. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/828048/VAT431C_form_and_notes__1_.pdf

Yes, Dave, that's good, nay excellent advice. The reality is that if I know that later I can access the evidence on a computer at some time when I am not completely Christmas Crackered from selfbuilding, then thats what's going to happen.

So @jack's post ( and now @nod's ) above refers to purchases where a receipt is the only source of evidence.

Just checking : where a valid VAT invoice exists, no receipt is required to be presented as evidence is it? Tight sphincter moment if I have this wrong......

For a simple selfbuild any spreadsheet will do. Cheap, universally available, easy to share.

That's not paranoia. It's sensible speculation.

That's such a truism that I'm thinking it would make a good signature line for a self builder. The simple discipline of habitually questioning professionals' (contractors) statements is one step on the road to due diligence . My god I have regretted not following my own advice.

? posted in error....

You can say that again. For a start, Hydrated, hydraulic or non-hydraulic lime? The following table comes from https://www.lime-mortars.co.uk/lime-mortar/guides/lime-hydraulic-or-non-hydraulic Hydraulic Non-Hydraulic Cement (OPC) Breathable Yes Yes No Setting Speed Medium Low High Flexibility Medium High No Durability Medium Low High Labour Low High Low Cost High Medium Low Shelf Life Medium High Medium Why do posts about succesful lime pointing always involve '... an old boy ...' eh?

In addition to @SimonD 's helpful post above, this post describes my ascent of the same steep learning curve. ( Pssst.... features a reply by none othe rthan J Harris ?)

That token barrier would need enough force to risk being splintered , perhaps?

I'll second that. Trouble is you spend a million dollars to make it look worth half a million dollars. And, in the words of our local friendly Mr Plod " ...make it worth knicking...."