A Complete Guide To Planning A Home Extension
Planning a home extension requires an awful lot of planning, careful consideration, budgeting and experienced architects, designers and builders to complete. In many instances, planning permissions and building regulation issues must be addressed in advance before any work can even begin. Despite this, extensions are more common than ever, with many people deciding to improve the space of their existing homes instead of moving somewhere else. In this article, we provide a thorough and complete guide to planning an extension, to provide you with the best possible insight and understanding of how to make the most of your extension and what you need to consider beforehand.
Why Extend Your Property?
Making the decision to extend your property is about more than just size. The truth is; most of the time, we truly love our homes and the thought of leaving, or moving to pastures in search of extra space, can often leave us with a tiny hint of regret. If your house is feeling on the small side, but you either don’t want to move or simply can’t afford to, extending your existing property will provide you with additional space, value and comfort to the home you know and love.
Planning An Extension
Although you probably have a clear idea of what you’re looking for in your extension plans, when making important early decisions about your extension plans, you’ll want to make sure you have the best possible recommendations and design choices before any work is due to begin. You can source designs and ideas from a handful of different sources, including:
● Architects
● Architectural Technicians
● Specialist Designers
The trick is, to carry out as much research as possible on potential architects you can work with to realise the ideas in your head, bringing them to life in a safe, efficient and cost-effective manner. Speak to past clients, read online reviews and testimonials and choose an architect or architecture firm that most closely aligns with your personality, ethos and design preferences. Whilst there’s no legal obligation that suggests you must use an architect in the design of your extension, the truth is, you stand a far greater chance of a successful build with one than without.
Key Considerations
There are several key considerations one must make when planning a home extension, including budgeting, choosing the right architect and deciding on the initial design. Below, we run through the most important questions you need to ask yourself when sourcing the perfect architect for your home extension.
Budget
Having an estimated budget is of the highest importance when planning an extension at home, not just to ensure you don't spend beyond your means, but also to help get as much value as possible from the budget you’re working with. Deciding on a budget means you can have honest conversations with your architect or builder, determine the costs and make the most of your extension. In the earliest stages of planning your extension, you should consider getting quotes from a handful of local architects, to provide yourself with information and evidence of average costs and determine the most reputable and affordable architectural designer for your project.
Time
Whilst there’s no exact timeframe for how long your extension will take, it’s important to remember that no matter the complexity of the work required, it’s going to take a little time to complete. This does mean that for particularly extensive works, you may have to find temporary accommodation, should your budget allow, with many extensions taking anywhere between 1-6 months to complete. This doesn't even take into account the time needed to approve planning permissions, receive quotes and agree on designs, which can take several weeks or more to be approved.
Planning Permissions
Not all extension works or construction projects at home will require planning permissions to carry out, such as loft conversions, but it’s essential that you double-check with your local planning officer and your architect for whether these permissions may apply to your planned extension. Sunrooms, single-storey extensions and loft conversions are all examples of extension works that often won’t require additional planning permissions.
Building Regulations
Although most extension works won’t require planning permissions, it’s extremely legal that they will require building regulations approval in order to prove that they comply with the necessary and expected standards. Building regulations are designed to set out minimum requirements for fire safety, energy efficiency, damp proofing, ventilation, structural integrity and more to ensure that any extensions, conversions or bathroom work that includes new drainage or plumbing is in line with current regulations. The Building Regulations set out minimum requirements for:
● Structural Integrity
● Fire Safety
● Energy Efficiency
● Damp Proofing
● Ventilation
Although not applicable to the majority of repair works, with the exception of window replacements, underpinning and rewiring, any new building work, installation or alteration must comply with Building Regulations. Common examples include:
● Home Extensions
● Loft Conversions
● Internal Wall Removal/Structural Alterations
● Bath/Shower/WC Installation With New Drainage/Plumbing
● New Heating Appliances
● Chimneys
● Altered Openings For New Windows
Neighbouring Properties
When planning an extension, it’s vital that you keep your neighbours on side and informed from the earliest stages of planning and development. After all, extensions and construction work on a property can cause significant disruption, noise pollution and dust, often taking months to complete. Naturally, your neighbours might be a little upset, particularly if they haven’t been informed, so in order to keep the peace, you should keep your communication as open as possible.
In similar terms, when planning your extension, you will need to consider how these alterations will impact your neighbouring property, as this can clearly have an impact on the value, ethics and accessibility of their own home. A few considerations you’ll want to keep in mind are as follows:
● Parking Arrangements
● Will The Extension Cause Overlooking?
● Will The Alternation Cause Daylight Reduction?
● Who Is The Owner of The Fence/Hedge/Trees Between Properties?
Extension Insurance
A key part of planning an extension is to inform your home insurance provider of your plans. Home extensions will naturally alter the potential rebuild cost of your home in the event of damage or disintegration, meaning home insurers will take these factors into account when pricing your insurance premium. After all, the building works themselves can put the property at risk of damage, so covering yourself with the appropriate insurance is necessary.
Inform your insurance provider of your intentions and discuss whether your current policy will cover the extension first, this may result in an initial increase in your premium but left uninformed, your insurance provider could void your policy in the event there’s a problem with the property in the future. Your insurer will also need to be informed if you intend to stay somewhere other than your property during construction/renovation works, which is highly likely in the event of extensive renovations.
Integrated Design & Associates Ltd - Planning Application Assistance Across the West Midlands
Looking for a domestic property extension? At Integrated Designs & Associates Ltd, we have over 27 years of experience operating architectural design services in Birmingham, across the West Midlands and the rest of the UK. As such, we should be your choice for architectural engineering whether your project is commercial or residential.
For constructive help, guidance and support with your planning applications, With many years of industry experience, our experts have a wealth of knowledge, and expertise in handling all types of planning applications and have built an excellent reputation for both the quality of our work and the quality of our customer service.
Get in touch with our team today.
