Loft conversions

[wilma-bride]

Has anyone had (or got) a loft conversion? We have got a designer coming round in a couple of weeks to see about having one in our loft space. Just wondered if anyone has had one and could give me some pointers on things we should ask - tips on what (not) to do?

 

[Goofysmate]

Sorry can't help but just wanted to say good luck with this

 

[crispywelsh]

OOOOOOOhhhhhhh sounds expencive that ,only joking hon.Not realy my thing lofts, but when he has been i will willing you my advice on the quote.Good luck a dodgy bunch these builders.

 

[natalielongstaff]

Good luck a dodgy bunch these builders.

very true

 

[Miffy2003]

Hi Joh

MIL & FIL did this about 12 years back. It's a really nice conversion

The comments they "wish they'd known before" include:

Storage space. Even though the builder gave them loads of space by creaing cupboards under the eaves, it's a LOT less than they whole loft was and can be hard to get things in and out of.

Stairs going to the loft - get the best carpet you can due to the amount of foot traffic.

Something from one of my friends:

Make sure you follow your council's required planning permissions so that you don't have a problem when you come to sell. They didn't, and they did

It's a great way to free up extra space Joh

Karen

 

[BONZO]

We've recently had a loft conversion done and wished we'd done it years ago!

Think about where to store any junk that currently lives up there - our garage is still redundant at the moment!

You may consider changing you boiler to a combi to avoid using space for a water / header tank.

Think about phone / TV points - easier to do during the build than after.

Consider putting a velux / sklight over the top of the new stairs (we did and a real boon).

Costs quoted to us ranged from 20k (cheap and cheerful) to about £40K for full design and installation.

 

[Goofyish]

Make sure that the design complies to all the relevant building regulations. There are very specific regulations for loft conversions, especially to do with fire safety, access (stairs) and head room.

I know people who have had it done and ended up with very expensive store rooms because the regulations hadn't been followed and the room couldn't be used as a habital room!

 

[florida sun]

Not a clue Joh, but just wanted to wish you good luck

 

[paulh]

Costs quoted to us ranged from 20k (cheap and cheerful) to about £40K for full design and installation.

Were looking at extending house and thought 20k would be fine,Lukily i`am in construction so cheaper for me.Did my last extension(doubled size of my old house)in 92 borrowd 10k used 5k for extension rest for our first trip to disney.
Paulh

 

[mark&sue]

We had a loft conversion a few years ago and were really pleased with the result. We have a new house which meant we had to apply for planning permission and the council knocked back the orginal plans. Ours is therefore not as big as some of the other enormous ones round here on the older homes.

Kirsty now has the whole top floor to herself with her own toilet. Its a bit dusty and mucky while the works are taking place and it didn't help that the workman came through our bedroom ceiling.

We were thinking of moving to a bigger house but loved the location of ours. This means saving on a lot of moving costs such as stamp duty etc.

I hope you are as happy as we are with ours. I will post a photo over the weekend to show you what it looks like from the outside.

Let us know what you decide


Susan

 

[wilma-bride]

We had a loft conversion a few years ago and were really pleased with the result. We have a new house which meant we had to apply for planning permission and the council knocked back the orginal plans. Ours is therefore not as big as some of the other enormous ones round here on the older homes.

Kirsty now has the whole top floor to herself with her own toilet. Its a bit dusty and mucky while the works are taking place and it didn't help that the workman came through our bedroom ceiling.

We were thinking of moving to a bigger house but loved the location of ours. This means saving on a lot of moving costs such as stamp duty etc.

I hope you are as happy as we are with ours. I will post a photo over the weekend to show you what it looks like from the outside.

Let us know what you decide


Susan

Susan, thanks for the info. I would love to see a picture. We are planning for the girls to move up to the loft as well when it's done. We also have a new house so I take it that means we might need planning permission too

We're like you, Susan, in that we love our house but we just need a bit more room and don't really want to have to move (given that we've moved house 5 times int he last 5 years )

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

Permitted development rights.

So long as you are only putting in Velux style windows, you do not need Planning permission for a loft conversion (Conservation areas, and listed buildings excepted) Doies not matter if the house is new or old.

If you want to come out from the roof, or change the roof height then you will need Planning permission.

Planning rules are quirky.

If you have a garage connected to the house, you can convert it into a room without the need for Planning permission. If, even if built with the house you have a seperate garage, you are classed as having used up your Permitted developement rights and will need planning permission for even a conservatory.

So, you can havce a situation of two houses next to each other. One with a connecetd garage can build a conservatory on the back (up to a certain size) without having to apply for planning premission and no input from the neighbour, and the neighbour with a detached garage, would have to apply for the same conservatory (and could possibly be turned down!)


here is a great guide for loft conversions:

http://www.stratford.gov.uk/files/seealsodocs/173/0005 Loft Conversion.pdf

 

[TraceyL]

Ours is a work inprogress at the moment

Windows in

Stairs in

new floor in

We have an old (1912) terraced house and the mess is awful (black mortar). The loft is now plaster boarded and the electrics are in (DH is now officially an electrician ). Plasterer is coming around in 2 weeks then when we get back from WDW we can start the decorating

 

[wilma-bride]

Thanks for those pics Tracey. Are you doing the work yourselves? How long has it taken so far? And, if you don't mind mentioning, how much is it costing?

 

[TraceyL]

Yes - we are doing most of it ourselves & have been doing it slow time - until the stairs went in at the end of August that is.

2 x velux windows installed by roofer
Floor & insulation was installed by DH (advice taken from builders as to adequate methods, support & thickness etc)
The stairs were measured and made professionally - but installed by us.
DH is now a qualified leccy so we've saved there.
The rendering he's also done himself but we're getting a professional plasterer in (DH can do flat walls but not bumpy ones like ours lol !).
We've got all the required smoke alarms, emergency lighting, escape routes etc & the ceilings below will be modified with the recommended fire-proofing. Until all is complete in the 1st floor rooms - it is to be games room (we have all the leads put in for surround sound, projector, PC etc). The plan is for it to be a bedroom for our eldest DD once we are happy it is safe

We're looking at £5k atm but we haven't got building regs - even though all stages are 'legal'.

 

[PoppyAnna]

A number of friends have had them done, one has a master suite with walk in wardrobes and en-suite - they changed the roof line with a dormer that is french doors with a small balcony. This by far is my favourite, although I know it cost mega bucks.
Next door to me they also changed the roof line and added two childrens bedrooms with a shared shower room.
I have other friends who are hoping to extend in this way, I'm not sure I could go through it with two small children (we had the kitchen gutted and replaced which included some fairly minor building works last year, and that was enough!) personally, we would prefer to move.
I have controversial views on extensions and don't always agree with extending a house to include more and more bedrooms when the infastructure on the street outside can't handle the growth of the house and it's occupants. For instance, next to me was a very generous size three bed house (same as mine) it now has five beds, as well as extra reception rooms and bathrooms. We live in a very pretty cul-de sac with private garden in the middle, this house is now a carbuncle (IMHO) on the street and houses a family of four boys that are all hitting driving age, can the street/drives handle a possible six cars?
Although I do see the need for more housing so I suppose it's greener to extend than build more and more larger houses in rural areas. I also understand that ir's cheaper to extend than it is to move.
Flame suit on.....

 

[natalielongstaff]

I have controversial views on extensions and don't always agree with extending a house to include more and more bedrooms when the infastructure on the street outside can't handle the growth of the house and it's occupants. For instance, next to me was a very generous size three bed house (same as mine) it now has five beds, as well as extra reception rooms and bathrooms. We live in a very pretty cul-de sac with private garden in the middle, this house is now a carbuncle (IMHO) on the street and houses a family of four boys that are all hitting driving age, can the street/drives handle a possible six cars?
Although I do see the need for more housing so I suppose it's greener to extend than build more and more larger houses in rural areas. I also understand that ir's cheaper to extend than it is to move.
Flame suit on.....

i agree with you in a way a friend of mine is always extending her house and its starting to exceed what the house will eventually be worth imo she would have been better moving !!

 

[wilma-bride]

I have controversial views on extensions and don't always agree with extending a house to include more and more bedrooms when the infastructure on the street outside can't handle the growth of the house and it's occupants. For instance, next to me was a very generous size three bed house (same as mine) it now has five beds, as well as extra reception rooms and bathrooms. We live in a very pretty cul-de sac with private garden in the middle, this house is now a carbuncle (IMHO) on the street and houses a family of four boys that are all hitting driving age, can the street/drives handle a possible six cars?
Although I do see the need for more housing so I suppose it's greener to extend than build more and more larger houses in rural areas. I also understand that ir's cheaper to extend than it is to move.
Flame suit on.....

No need for a flame suit - in our case, the extension is to house our existing family. We don't intend moving again so it's not like we're making room for extra people in the house, just the ones who are already here. You could say the same thing about people having children - at the end of the day, we live in a 4 bed house and, essentially, could have room for a few more kids who would eventually grow up and maybe have their own cars. There isn't room on our street for 2 or 3 more cars so does that mean I'm not allowed to have more kids (I don't want any more BTW, just surmising)

 

[paulh]

We're looking at £5k atm but we haven't got building regs - even though all stages are 'legal'.

Just be carfull when you do come to sell With the new hips you will have to have passed building regs for conversion.The regs might ghange over the years so you might have to rip somthing out for the sake of £500odd
Paulh

 

[mark&sue]

Totally agree with you Joh about not wanting to move and if you can put up with the works it is well worth it. We were out working all the time the workmen were in so it really was not a problem to us.

Obi is right about permitted development rights. We all got what we wanted in the end and I am very pleased with the result.

I work in a busy housing department for the local council and overcrowding is a massive problem. I can only see loft conversions being a good thing to alleviate overcrowding, but I agree with you Joh in that most people who have loft conversions usually have them to make space for the family their already have. At work, we are currently looking to see if we can convert more council or housing association property to help people with their overcrowding problems as we have run out of larger homes to move them too.

I think it is a great idea and cheaper than funding a new home.


Susan