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We are planning to renovate our 1960s chalet bungalow (cavity walls, reconstituted stone). Photo attached. Footprint is 11m x 7m; ridge is 3m long. Building is structurally sound and existing foundations are good enough to build a new two storey, timber-framed house on them. Before we get carried away with ideas, we would like an indication of the relative costs of three options: (i) Re-roof and re-do the existing dormers and probably remove both chimneys (this is base level option); (ii) Remove chimneys, convert hips to gable ends (with hipped or gabled dormers for better kerb appeal) to provide a bit more interior space; (iii) remove roof and chimneys, replace with timber-framed, flat-roofed timber-clad, first floor extension giving a lot more upstairs space (+ cosmetic alterations to give a contemporary look). I can work out demolition, flooring, walls, bathrooms, electrics and so on but have no idea about the roof and exterior wall elements. Just wondered if there was anyone on the forum who could give ball park range of figures for each option as a starting point for us?

Is anyone aware of any planning legislation that precludes the demolition-to-the-ground of a building (in this case barn) that's being converted? VAT Notice 708 Section 3.2.1 lays out the criteria under which new construction can be eligible for zero-rating. One type of qualifying building is where any previous building is demolished to the ground before new construction takes place. Whilst we're still going through planning, the previously-approved scheme included the description "existing buildings to be demolished". The barn in question is a non-designated heritage asset and the internal frame will likely need to be retained, however the most sensible route is to take it down, treat it, and re-erect it. If there is a point when no above-ground part of the building is still standing, then it seems clear that this is new construction and can therefore be zero-rated (otherwise why the provision detailing under what circumstances it's okay to zero-rate when there was a prior building?). However, is there some general planning rule or regulation that would consider it a breach of consent if a converted building was entirely taken down for some period of time? I've got a vague recollection of a potential main contractor telling me about a barn conversion that he was working on where they had to take down half the barn, build the new half, then take down the other half, and then build that and join it up. The purpose was so the original building was never completely taken down, but I can't remember if that was down to some specific planning condition on that site, or because of a general principle. Any thoughts? Ta in advance.

Hello, I have an old stable block which I would like to convert into an annex for friends and family to stay in (not been used for over 15 years). I searched for what type of planning permission I would need, and saw i could apply for Permitted Development if it wasn't self contained, so I didn't include a kitchen or utility room in the plans. The size of the stable block would still be the same (50ft x 19ft), the roof, windows and doors would be changed and put in different locations etc. I then contacted my Local Authority, sent in a plan i'd created. But they are not providing any pre-planning advice services at the moment due to staffing issues so am a bit stuck. The only advice they gave me it was OK in principle, but to submit a Lawful Development Certificate (LDC) via the Planning Portal. I'd be grateful if anyone could help me with some questions please; 1) What are the chances this change would be approved under an LDC? 2) Do you have to have professional plans drawn up? I've used a 3D package, Google Maps etc. 3) I've looked on the Planning Portal, but I'm not sure what option it would come under. Any ideas? 4) Is there anything else i can't include so my plan will not require full Planning Permission? 5) Anything else i need to consider? Thank you for any advice in advance

Hi all - I'm hoping to get some advice on the below! We are currently in the process of renovating our 1 bed basement flat in London (zone 2). We have received planning approval to remove the old conservatory at the back of the house and replace it with a flat roof structure which will house the kitchen. This involves altering the internal layout of the flat as shown in the floorplans. The footprint of the house is staying exactly the same, it is 600sqft for reference. To complicate matters, our flat flooded during the flash flooding in London last summer so it has currently been stripped back to brick as part of the insurance repair works and drying out process. The flat is now completely dried out and we have put the job out to tender. We have just received quotes from builders to put the flat back together as per the proposed plans. When we received the quotes, I literally fell off my chair. The three quotes were: £270k, £353k and £403k. I am honestly in a state of shock. I'm fully aware that London building costs are unlike anywhere else in the country and that the cost of raw materials has shot up this year, however, these are on another level. I could buy another flat for that last quote! All 3 builders that quoted were aware of the fact that part of this work will be covered by our insurance claim. However, the majority of it won't be i.e. the removal of the conservatory, the change of layout etc. Am I being totally ripped off because they are aware it's an insurance job? I can't understand how someone can physically spend that much money on a 600sqft flat when the footprint of the house isn't changing and we aren't building any new walls! Unless I was coating every ceiling in gold leaf! Any advice would be much appreciated!

Hi all, my husband and I have planning consent to convert an old coach house in to a home. We own the land/building and are awaiting our building warrant. Hoping to benefit from all of your experiences and to share our learning as we go.

Hi everyone, how to get the services into my conversion is giving me a headache. Background: the main stable is on a 150mm slab with 600mm foundations Hayshed: Has E shaped foundations (6m piles in clay/trees) to form a small extension, but allow for future enlargement. Best/ easiest is to bring the services up through the new foundations but I can't afford to fully convert this to habitable right now. BUT I need to move into the main stables to save money, so need to explore how the services should be brought in (as I don't think what John Wayne 'planned' was correct). See pic of the hayshed foundations as the builders left it? My questions are about how much an old foundation can be safely chopped. Electric: My main query is can the foundation be drilled (as another builder has suggested) through to bring the cable up vertically? There are metal bars in it and it seems like a mighty job, also the old building had cracks, so my instinct is to be gentle with her. Options: Could make some kind of waterproof kiosk on the outside (which will later be inside the hayshed) BUT still might need a lump of foundation to be chopped out. Or could build up the wall so it stands off? Water: The water connection can be seen going horizontally through the bottom of the wall so will need moving or some boxing in arrangement. As it stands, the water will need a joint in/under the insulation in the kitchen. The other builder suggested doing the major drilling thing with this too. There is a temporary water supply from next door correctly installed in the slab, would it be mad to use this for a while (maybe with a sub meter?) Sewer The sewer pipe can be seen incorrectly following the wall of the hayshed that needs to be changed. John Wayne drilled a hole through the bottom of the wall of the main stable (through brick, under the DPM) so there is no lintel, does that matter? Again, the run will be horizontal initially unless the slab is chopped away. Can anyone suggest how to vent it as we can't have a chimney (conservation area, article 4 directive). Thank you ?

Any Advice? Any Tips welcome. I'm about to embark on a cellar conversation. The basement is dug into the hillside, and is a 19th century listed building. So it's old. The cellar has an external door and 2 small windows to a small courtyard - so it's not entirely submerged. (Pictures attached). It does also get a nice amount of airflow. My plan is to build a stud wall, insulate and line the space will drywall, covering up some of the shoddy surfaces. I hope to keep the left brick wall for some character. The biggest concern is the far left corner (seen in pictures). At some point, it's clearly been very damp, but today and for the last few months, it seems quite dry. I'm no pro when it comes to fixing up spaces like this, so any advice is welcome. My worry is that by tanking this corner and then building a stud wall in front, it might cut off the airflow to that area and subsequently causes the damp to return. Would this be the case? Should I somehow integrate a vent for airflow to continue, or should I point all the damaged brick work and then stud wall? It's a hefty job, but I really want to turn the space around. If anyone has any advice, I'd really appreciate it. Thank you! Freddie.

Hi, I have just joined the community so thanks for letting me in! After a few months of looking into buying our final and forever family home and discovering the compromises that would have to be made regarding the size of garden, layout of the house, being overlooked by 10 other houses on the estate etc etc I have decided that self building could actually become a reality for me. I have always been a fan of Grand Designs but I have never thought it would actually be possible to build a home that I helped design and that fits the criteria of my family and I. Now after doing a bit of research I can see the possibilities, I just need to find a plot (the hard bit) and decide if I want to stick with my ideology of a solid brick built house or explore the many different types of timber framed houses and the varying options that they provide. I have my own business (not in construction) that is currently doing pretty well so I'm in the saving phase whilst looking out for a decent sized plot around Taunton, Somerset. I have an overall timescale from now of 36 months for the completed project, I'm not sure if that is being optimistic or not but goals and timelines are always necessary for me to complete anything! From a financial point of view I will probably need another 12 months saving in order to save enough for a decent sized plot to build a spacious 4 bed detached property with a nice sized garden, driveway and double garage. So the next 12 months will be spent on educating myself and doing as much visiting of show homes and exhibitions etc as Covid allows. Any advice on finding a plot would be gratefully received, I have signed up to Plot Finder and Plot Search and will be registering my interest with local estate agents. All other general advice would also be appreciated, I'm sure there are many pitfalls etc that I am unaware of so advanced warning from the experts on here would be gratefully received.

Hi guys/gals, I’m a newbie on here so hope I’ve put this in a relevant place. Next March/April the loft conversion and rear extension are kicking off on my 2 bed end of terrace bungalow. Me and my brother will be doing about 70% of the work, I’m and Electrician and also can do plumbing, getting in a friend to do the roof and rear dormer (as it’s a truss roof). so getting to the point, me and my brother will be removing all of the existing tiles and bringing down all trusses and existing joists. Tell me if this sounds hopeful, but I was looking at getting a 20M x 15M tarpaulin and covering the entire roof, and just putting in a temporary ridge to let the water slope off. This will have eyelet holes and be fixed to external walls. Firstly, would you recommend rear and front scaffolding at eaves height to remove the tiles/roof (if so, any idea on costs)? Or could we just have a movable tower hired? secondly, I need to talk to my chippy friend about this really, but would we need scaffolding for the new timbers being installed? I was thinking that the ceiling joists would be installed from wall plate to wall plate and then that would give us a floor to stand on for installing the rest above? Once all in I can put down the breathable membrane to make it water tight. thankyou in advance for any advice. Here is a picture of the plans just to give you an idea.

hi I am sue. My sister and I are planning to convert her large house into 3 flats so as to sell two, pay off her mortgage and for her to live in the third. She has claimed and received a self build exemption for one flat but my research suggests she will not be able to supply any of the 3 forms of evidence required at the end of the self build ( vat letter, self build warranty or self build mortgage) as none of those seem to be available for conversion of a house into 3 flats... has anyone had any experience with this? The Cil is about £20,000 and is making us think twice about whether the project is viable.... love to hear from anyone as this self build exemption looks like a nightmare. thanks sue

Hi all, I have a barn to convert in the Lake District and am considering timber frame within the walls to save on costs and time. Considering Scotframe and other companies but would appreciate any ideas or comments that anyone has? thanks

Appreciate that this is old news but the Yorkshire Post (Yorkshire's National Newspaper!) ran an encouraging article in the farming section of Saturday's paper. https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/relaxed-barn-conversion-rules-are-economic-boost-to-rural-areas-land-valuers-say-1-9080408

Our current house is a cool, drafty colander. And to finance Salamander Cottage, we need to sell the colander. [The sublime built next to the ridiculous] So I'm putting Repair-and-Replace plan together. Trying hard not to look at the cost. Done my due diligence , thanks @Ferdinand, @Onoff, @JSHarris , @Crofter , @TerryE and others. EPC for the current house is likely to be X, Y or probably Z. To top it all off, the main heating system is a multi-fuel stove that enchants everyone who comes in and settles down on the sofa. Heats all the hot water, a good few rads and a cat. Bless it, the fire needs daily maintenance and has never yet performed well when there's a blocking high-pressure system. We'll never sell with the current set up. So out with the old and in with the new. E7; never get our money back. Oil; just don't like it. Illogical? Maybe, but that's it. That leaves LPG. Calor are fitting tanks free. Salamander cottage is 20 meters away. Any reason I shouldn't use Calor for both properties? Too simple?

Hello, just a quick introduction from me. Female with an offer accepted on 2 acres of land with a derelict barn on site with planning permission granted. I have lots to learn to guide me through this process of checking this barn is viable before I exchange contracts. Finding a decent builder to guide me through the process of the rebuild and hoping to gain support for all those decisions along the way within this forum. I'm hoping then to be able to help others with my gained knowledge. Julie