Overview
We purchased in August 2017. We renovated for 16 months and moved in December 2018. We loved the location and knew the house had so much potential. However, that would involve a significant renovation project. We both love a challenge and wanted to create a home designed by ourselves. The house was very tired, old and in need of a serious modernisation. We started visualising and planning our renovation / house interior & design.
We have literally changed the full house from top to bottom which includes:
Full Re-Wire
Replaced all plumbing, relocated / replaced all radiators
Replaced / relocated boiler
Knocked down internal structural walls
Removed gas fires / Installed log burner in the front living room
Plastered all walls
New parquet wooden flooring
Replaced existing bathroom
Extension – Rear & Side
Rear extension forms an open plan living / kitchen / dining area which has large pane of glass, 4 x panel Bi-Fold doors, 4 x pitched Velux windows
Side extension forms an extended hall area, downstairs shower room / toilet and a utility room. Utility room & shower room feature pitched Velux windows
Exterior work includes:
New block paving driveway
Exterior render work refurbished
Full garden transformation
Budget and Timescale
The internal renovation / extension took a total of 16 months. We never lived in the house while this work took place - we stayed with family. The driveway was completed after we lived in the house for around 12 months and then the garden was completed this year (6 months after the driveway). In total the full house, extension, interior & exterior has taken 3 years.
The budget for the house was around £60k but we went over by around £10k. We were not living in the house and were fortunate enough to live with family so this really helped us save.
What was the most expensive part and what was your best bargain?
Our 4-panel aluminium Bifold doors were probably the most expensive part of the renovation. They were around £3.5k but we absolutely love them. You can’t beat a nice summer day with the doors open. It makes the garden feel part of the house. We also splashed out £500 on a coffee machine but coffee is essential when you have 2 young boys.
The best bargain was probably our parquet wooden flooring. It’s solid oak and really good quality. It covers most of our downstairs (hallway, front living room and kitchen area). In total it was expensive, but the price per Sq/M was very competitive - people always comment on our floor.
Were there any obstacles you had to overcome during the project?
Overall everything went to plan, however, the extension took a lot longer than we expected. The builder was very good but perhaps quite slow. I think this was down to them having multiple jobs on at the same time and as we were not living in the house, I think we were maybe slightly further down the priority list. It was a mad rush to get into the house before Christmas 2018. We purchased in August 2017, the extension / build started just under a year later and was just about finished when we moved in later in December 2018.
Do you have any tips for someone looking to do something similar?
Our advice would be to definitely create a mood board to try and visualise how you want your house to look / feel. Try and think about how you will live in the house and how it flows.
An example; we don’t have a door separating our hallway to the rear of the house, we wanted the house to feel as open plan as possible, so this helps as it connects the front and back of the house.
If renovating, do as much as you can. Our house was stripped and ready for the builders to start. We had to remove the garage and sun room in order to accommodate the side extension. We knocked this down ourselves and removed all the rubble. This saved money and allowed the builder to start work on the foundation on day one.
Comments