House Extension Planning – 10 Things You Need to Know

HOUSE EXTENSION PLANNING – 10 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

With the benefit of over 40 years of trade experience in the business of building house extensions, we present our 10 point guide on Things you need to know about building a house extension.

Feel free to contact us at Diligent Developments for more helpful information and guides.
What’s Your Available Budget?

This is probably one of the most fundamental questions – and it’s usually the rst thing we have to ask our clients.

So before you do anything (and ideally before you call in your architect) sit down and decide exactly – or if you can’t be exact, come up with a good idea – of how much you have to spend.

Don’t forget to include extras such as your architect’s fees and the costs of your planning application if necessary.

What Do You Want To Achieve With Your house Extension planning?

Are you looking for a new living area that the whole family can enjoy, an extra bedroom for a new arrival or a home office?

What you want to use your extension for and what you want to do in it will determine what kind of alteration you make to your home.

What Do You Want To Achieve With Your House Extension?
Are you looking for a new living area that the whole family can enjoy, an extra bedroom for a new arrival or a home o ce?
What you want to use your extension for and what you want to do in it will determine what kind of alteration you make to your home.

What’s Your Available Budget?
This is probably one of the most fundamental questions – and it’s usually the first thing we have to ask our clients.
So before you do anything (and ideally before you call in your architect) sit down and decide exactly – or if you can’t be exact, come up with a good idea – of how much you have to spend.
Don’t forget to include extras such as your architect’s fees and the costs of your planning application if necessary.

How Long Will It All Take To Complete?
House extensions don’t happen overnight – and even getting planning permission and building regulations approval can sometimes take months. So be patient, and expect some upheaval and interruption to normal family life while the building is going on.
Once you do decide the best time window for you property extension to be built, the secret is to plan it ahead as far as possible.

Do You Need Planning Permission From The Local Authority?
For some house alterations such as and single storey extensions to the side and rear, or certain types of conservatories, you may not need planning permission. But you are well advised to check all local planning regulations and requirements first before making any de nite plans to proceed.

Check with your local authority planning for more information.

Do You Really Need An Architect?
You will need the services of an expert if you are planning on making major alterations to your property, and in fact part of the planning application may have to include plans produced by a quali ed architect and other consultants such as structural engineers.
You will need to factor in the cost of an architect and, if required, an engineer, to your overall spending plans.

Will Your Proposed House Extension Impact On Your Neighbours?
This is a particularly important. Do you share a party wall or boundary wall with your neighbors, and will your alterations potentially damage their property?

There is also the social aspect – your plans may impact on their quality of life during the construction period, so it’s wise to keep your neighbours fully informed of your intentions.

Are You In A Conservation Area?
If your home is in a conservation area or is it a listed building, there may be very strict controls governing what alterations you can and cannot make.
You may not know if you’re in a conservation area, so check with your local authority for more information.

Where Is Best To Locate Your House Extension?

This choice is where the customer always knows best.
Where you put your house extension is the next decision.
The most common option for simply gaining extra space either is either a single storey or two storey extension, for which you may want to build out to the side of your home. Consider current planning regulations for the available build size as each property has different rules regulations to adhere to.

Want A Good Builder?
Now your in the right place. Unless you’re an experienced building contractor yourself, the likelihood is that you will need to get a professional building rm in to do the work – even if it’s a smaller job like a house extension.
We pride ourselves on referrals and our local reputation. Word of mouth is golden to us at Diligent Developments, and is often the best indicator of a quality building contractor.
What’s Your Schedule?

Plan, Plan and plan some more Set yourself a strict project schedule for works. The chances are that it will over-run, so always factor in contingency timings. Consult with your experts and building contractor to constantly monitor and review your working schedule.

What’s Your Schedule?
Plan, Plan and plan some more Set yourself a strict project schedule for works. The chances are that it will over-run, so always factor in contingency timings. Consult with your experts and building contractor to constantly monitor and review your working schedule.