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Hi. Please could somebody share the cost estimation spreadsheet. We are embarking on our self journey (remodel/rebuild) and I want to cost both option so that I am clear as to what can be achieved. Has anyone been to QS. Are they worth the money? The issue is they would need plans and plans would cost money and two option would cost more moneys so I want to see first I can pull of total rebuild, if not I will go down the remodel route. Would really appreciate any help you guys can provide. Thanks.

Hi I am starting on Selfbuild Journey. We recently bought a banglow built in 1960s on a very clayee place with existing foundations between 400mm and 1m. There has been no movement/cracks. Good old days..... but it wont pass the building regs these days and we want to build on top. Hence, starting again is the option we are seriously considering to future proof the house to some extent. The existing banglow is c180sqm and with extension we can go to 225sqm plus if we build on top the first floor and the loft, one can see the expected size. This is a great forum and it has been very helpful so far and now I want to start active conversation with you guys who have been on similar journeys. Is there anyone who can share the excel spreadsheet for the cost estimation. It will be a self managed project with core skills arranged with each of the skilled trade. I read somewhere on this forum about Abbey pynford for foundations involving Piles. They have been contacted and yesterday the ground investigation work was done (expect the depth of piles to be around 10/11m with slab and the void to allow for the clay movement. That would a significant spend. The reason I am describing this as an experiment is as I want to test getting material and fit out outs from manufacturer and the scale of the project is such as that in my experience manufacturer here or in Europe/China will happily provide the requirement. In other words what would be the bare cost of a house build taking all profits element within the supply chain and building contractor out. I am just keen to find that out as the build cost per sqm does not work in my head. I want to know the real breakdown. So procurement is where the true experiment sits. I have some contact in China supply chain so any procurement from China should not be an issue. My plan is ensure the structure is all based on BBA approved items so that it qualifies for the warranty. Key steps I have outline in my plans are as follows and I am expecting different skills are required for each of the key stages hence would source these: Surveys / planning work QS costing Warranties Procurement Foundation / ground drainage /Subfloor Underfloor heating DPM Brickwork/Block work/steelworks and insulation Timber work Roof work (clay tiles or sate -chinese/spanish) Windows Weather tightening Heat Plumbing and in house drainage Electrics first fix MvHR Drywalling (metal furring channels and then either tape and joint using plasterboard or MGO) trying to skip the wet plastering but enhancing the sound insulation Stairs and balustrade Bathrooms Tiling and flooring Kitchen including separate scullery Internal doors and skirting (composite skirting boards) Decoration Second fix electrics Lighting Patio Landscaping Epc (Any thing I missed -please advise) I dont envisage I would be able to do all in one go so happy to divide the project in phases if required. Would really appreciate any help/feedback/insight that can be provided.

Hello. Apologies for this far-from-novel question - I can’t find it directly answered anywhere. I’m aware costs have shot up lately due to covid/brexit, but I’m seeing (in self-build groups) people asking if £1200 per metre is possible for total build costs, and others shutting down the idea as ridiculous, saying it’s more likely £2k-3k. This is disheartening to me with aspirations of beginning a build in the next year or so - but also baffling - so these people are spending ~£300k on a 100m2 house, plus land costs?! Who are these people? I struggle to understand how this would even make financial sense, as in many places a house of that size would not be worth the ~£400k it would presumably have cost with land, and that’s leaving aside the fact people say self-building is supposed to save (30%?) on equivalent pre-built house cost. I’m looking to build a well-insulated rectangular 1.5 storey of max 120m2 (I had planned for basement, but heard this can be expensive in Scotland), no marble bathrooms, designer kitchens or massive glazed entrances, no dormer windows or other sticky out bits, but using natural plasters and reclaimed things where possible without compromising on u values. I am not a builder and will need to pay tradespeople, but do have a builder in the family who may be able to help a bit. Based in in rural central belt of Scotland. If anyone could shed any light on what I might need to do to get the costs down, it’d be much appreciated. Thanks very much!

Evening, So we are hoping to start getting an architect on board soon to get some plans drawn up, size of build and budget is high on the agenda the moment as are the cost of the preliminaries. Ideally our house would be: 200m2 ICF construction two storey dwelling £200,000 build budget, ex fees etc Vaulted ceilings 4 Bedroom House Master Bedroom with en-suite, walk-through wardrobes etc 3 further bedrooms capable of growth. Family Bathroom Remote or attached storage area/plumbers workshop? Attached 2/3 berth garage Attached hair salon / utility Open plan kitchen dining and living space Separate lounge room Ground floor wc Pantry/utility space Dry store of the kitchen Additional storage on both ground and first floors In an ideal world the build work completed would be done by the following people: Who’s doing what??? (in theory) Ground work: Me + Labourer / Chargehands Underground Drainage: Me + Labourer Foundation: Me + Labourer ICF: Me + Labourer Roofing full: Sub-contractor Windows/Doors: Manufacture install UFH/Boiler : Me Plumbing : Me 1st Fix electrical : Me Above ground drainage: Me External brickwork: Sub contractor (friend) External cladding: Me Internal joinery : Sub-con (friend) 2nd fix plumbing : Me 2nd fix electrical : Sub-con (friend) Dry lineing : Sub-con (friend) Me Plastering: Friend Decoration: Me Snagging: Me Landscaping: Over time / me Speaking with several lenders, (Buildstore / ecology) once we line up all our ducks its looking like we will be able to borrow between £250-£350k, the maximum we want to borrow is £280k as after all this is a loan we have to pay off before we retire, 30 years on a repayment with a general bank remortgage once its built Im going to be looking about £800-900 a month which is at the top end of what I would want to spend on a mortgage. Out of the 280k we would need 40k to pay off our outstanding mortgage on the plot, 40k contingency budget & 200k for the actually build. I've been looking into the cost of getting this project off the ground and what sort of money we need to put in from the start. Attached is my schedule and its looking like most of it is going to be needed to be paid upfront out of our own hard earned cash before the build commences, I am sure that we have missed some unforeseen cost's such as lending / broker fee's so any advice would be greatly appreciated if their are any hidden fees that I may need to add it would be great to know? and I am yet to be given an estimate for building regs plans yet? Another concern I have is about the land itself, we are in a local high risk coal mining area and although there are no pits nearby and we are building replacement dwelling, the neighbouring self builds and private developments have all had to have invasive ground investigation reports done and some bore holes drilled to check the land quality. I have had this priced up and am of the thinking it maybe wise to have this done first to ensure that we would be able to continue our build knowing that we will be able to afford the foundation type (strip or raft) as I cannot see us being able or wanting to pay 40k + for pile footings? After all we are not millionaires and this is not grand designs so we want advert the expensive why! moments and hopefully have a fairly straightforward build. Financially our project plan is Move up to ou

Hi All, Just joined and hoping i can offer some great advice and answer all questions cost and estimate related ! Thanks, TheQSguy

I have an offer accepted on a plot, subject to planning permission. To complete the purchase of the land I need finance along with my deposit. The broker I have spoken to said I need planning permission and detailed costings before they will lend against it (standard I assume). Does this need to be by a qualified person? There seems to be a bit of a circle here, I have a budget which I need to stick to, so I need to get the planning through with a design I think will be on budget, then get it costed and hope it comes out on budget. I then have to hope the mortgage company will accept the expected build cost. There feels like there are so many hurdles (probably more that I don't know about) which could trip up the whole process. I really don't want to be in a situation where I've got planning permission, paid all the costs, then for something to mean I can't complete the transaction. The contract says I have to complete within 7 days of gaining planning permission. Surely there is an easy way to do this and I'm over thinking it? It's stressing me out a little, so any help will be much appreciated. Sadly I don't quite have enough to buy the land outright.

I feel very frustrated with it all today. Barn conversions are not easy, massive understatement! I might just put a caravan on the plot and save myself the hassle. Im trying to spend as little money up front as possible, I've had my offer accepted on the land with a barn with PP, the only bill I'm racking up at this moment in time is the solicitor. I understand no builder wants to be out of pocket but I'm wondering how can I progress from here. To get a quote I need a plan, to get a plan I need architect to draw up the plan to my specs, to get him to do this I need a structural engineer to check the derilict barns foundations, walls etc. are sound enough. The original plans were obtained for the guy who I'm buying the land off, I'm guessing just a basic design to get it passed. But I'd like some alterations, en suite in master bedroom plus an extension which is still within the footprint and a window in the lounge to enable me to see my land not just a courtyard. Ive been told by my architect to expect £1,000 which has now jumped to £1,500 per sq meter plus services (electricity, water bio mass treatment unit), and then buy the kitchen & bathroom fittings plus landscaping etc. My architect suggests I pay £200 to the builders merchants to give me an estimate for all this extra work. Anyone who would like to help me make sense of all this please feel free, so sorry to rant on when you maybe all think this is the easy stage. Julie