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wellington womble
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Posted: Thu Nov 27, 14 10:29 am Post subject: |
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Start again, but most likely on another plot. If you have money coming in, you can live where you are until it is at least vaguely habitable. You can design it exactly as you want it. You can have all the mod cons. - insulation, draft free, utility room, fitted wardrobes, efficient boiler, downstairs loo etc etc. but you can include any olde worlde features that you like - wood burners, pantries, porches etc etc. you can even leave some of it as phase two if you want, by planning initially. Things like solar hot water, backboilers and so on are a right pain to retrofit, but can planned for in a build.
I have both extended and built. I would build again, but I wouldn't buy a house that needed significant work. If you can't afford to buy where you are, then selling would produce a lot of cash, surely? It does depend on the plot, and how much of a hurry you are in, but you should be able to build significantly above what you can afford to buy off the rack. And you get a great house at the end of it (you will have to make some compromises due to cash, design and regulations, but you will still get an amazing house.)
I can't stress how much of a pain in the backside it will be**. You will laugh hysterically, cry, beg officials to be reasonable, rage about suppliers and trades, never speak to a brickie again, and swear to learn to plaster yourself because plasterers are so hard to find, but it WILL be worth it. You may say never again, but you will still have a great* house for you.
*not necessarily perfect. They say it takes three houses to get it right. We had significant renovations first, and then a new build. It was nearly perfect. We missed putting a window in on the stairs, I fought for (and lost) a pantry we should have had (and there was room for, in the end) and there were a few doors and things in the wrong place. The utility wasn't big enough and the dining room was too big. All the plug sockets were in the wrong place. But it was pretty near perfect) I would definitely do it again.
** it's not for everyone. It's a bit like moving house on steroids. Someone in your team needs to have the time and inclination to argue with officials, submit forms, book and wrangle with trades and so on. Unless you have a project manager, which is costly. And you will still have to do some of it. You will need to juggle where you are living, and possible live in a building site, or a caravan. You also need to have vision and be really good at visualising how you want space to be laid out and used. I can't emphasise enough how much hassle it is. But it doesn't last for ever, and it is worth it. You will also be asked to make decisions that are impossible to make, like where you want plug sockets in a brick shell with a ladder. And you will have to choose, and choose and choose. You will have to choose bricks, how bricks are arranged, drainpipes, patterns of bricks over windows, roof tiles, windows, doors, wood stain. You will make so many choices that by the time it comes to fun stuff like bathroom tiles and curtains you will not care a jot what colour they are. Of course, they are easier to change than brick patterns. But you will not want work done in the house for years, so you will live with them. So choose those now, before you get fed up. Just to be on the safe side! |
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