Planning Granted - What Next

1922

planning granted last week, what should ym next move be. I obviously have copies of the drawings...what exactly should i do next?

working drawings, estimate, mortgage??

i'm undecided as whether i'll go with a builder or direct labour. at 3300sq ft direct labour might save me alot on an expensive project, but i'm rulign nothing out at the same time.....

Poor Uncle Tom

1922 wrote: »

planning granted last week, what should ym next move be. I obviously have copies of the drawings...what exactly should i do next?

working drawings, estimate, mortgage??

i'm undecided as whether i'll go with a builder or direct labour. at 3300sq ft direct labour might save me alot on an expensive project, but i'm rulign nothing out at the same time.....

With respect, if you're asking that question, then direct labour is not the route for you, imo, as you will need a PM. This will negate any saving you might have got from direct labour.

Having gotten a 3,300sq ft building designed and granted planning permission, I presume you have a lot of backround work done regarding, contacting your solicitor, mortgage broker, bank and what you can afford to imput in the build and what you can spend on finishs, furnishings and site works. So your next logical steps would be:

a) talk to your solicitor and choose who you will have looking after your build in stages for sign offs (Supervisor), and agree fees for same.
b) talk to BER assesor and take advice from same.
c) working drawings, full specification, tender package and request letter,
d) send out for tenders,
e) contact your bank or broker and put them on notice of start,
f) when tenders come back choose one with your Architect, AT, Supervisor, Solicitor,
g) work out contract payment schedule with your Supervisor, Solicitor and Chosen Contractor, sign up contracts, choosing an amicable start date.
h) send commencement notice to LA.

The playing field is set, sit back and watch the game unfold.

1922

well if i do go direct labour, i have a PM lined up already, but if this will cancel the cost compared to a builder hardly much point....but ya a builder might be best...have been speaking to a few people and gotten recommendations of different decent builders.....i understand they are approx €80 sq ft

i must meet my architect soon anyway for further discussion.....

Heatherview

Hi 1922
Agree with uncle tom's thread. Go and buy the Homebond Manual and have a good read. Brings you up to speed with the building regulations and most useful information for your project it's only about €50 or so.

Good luck with build
Heatherview

1922

thats sound thanks...what are the approx costs the moment, i know one builder doing projects for €80 sq ft and looks very good....

spent 3 years trying to get permission and realising the hard work is starting now

Poor Uncle Tom

Muffler started a thread recently about building costs in the different areas, should be helpful.;)

1922

Poor Uncle Tom wrote: »

Muffler started a thread recently about building costs in the different areas, should be helpful.;)

sound :rolleyes:

Slig

The best option IMO is to get a full set of construction drawings and specifications done.

Spend time with your architect/engineer discussing different building systems, levels of insulation and ventilation, electrical layouts, heating systems etc. Dont be in a mad panic to build straight away, you have 5 years. All your decisions should be made before the tenders go out to get the most accurate price and ensure that there are no extras at the end.

Plan the build and build from the plans

davgtrek

I think there is no reason t go direct labour now when main contractors are doing houses for <€80 per sq.ft.

There is only 1 benefit to direct labour and that a potential saving.
Potential being the important word here as you may hear a lot of people saying they saved 100k by going direct labour etc.etc but factor in an extended build time and their own input ( time off etc. ) and the headaches the saving is not huge.

at 80 per foot your looking at 265k v what would have cost you last year at 400k. that on top of having a very competitive market between good builders ( who would not have touched a small house like this ) last year and you have a very positive scenario for you.

The market is different now but when it was crazy I would have suggested you keep the comprehensive spec down to a minimum.( I produced loads of comprehensive spec books for houses and was the end result a better house. I am not sure but i reckon the book added 10-20k onto the builders tender as a safety net for him fearing what he nmay have left out etc. in pricing. The intimidation factor IS there in what may otherwise be a very good contractor who may not have dealt with a 10page spec on skirting boards and timber floors.... ) you mainly need to get a competent main contractor, give him good tender drawings and concentrate your spec book around the BER requirements ( this will focus you onto the important things to the build such as the heating system, insulation, air tight etc. )

The main thing to have right is that the tender pack that you send to 10 builders to price, contains the important..say 20 items of note...so that when you get the 3 cheapest builders you can compare like with like.

If you leave an important area blank. for eg insulation in walls.
they will all have priced 3 different alternatives and will not itemise it in their tender as it was not one of the 20 separated points to price originally.
In this case is the cheaper tender cheaper cause he specced lesser materials and cut corners or because he wants the job the most ???? you wont tell unless you can compare his 20 items against the other guys 20 same items.

because construction costs have shrunk.
1: get a competent architect/engineer on board who can produce a good tender pack.

2: go out to 10 good recommended local main contractors.

3: Make sure its a turn key solution. Include everything even if you dont intend doing it as the keenest builder will be keen with everything.
once its one of those 20 items you can always easily take it out and reduce your cost by a transparent amount.

good luck. you are entering the best time to build a house in 15 years....

sinnerboy

Would agree with this except for - 5 builders is more than enough to seek costs from . There is a law of diminishing returns . Going out to 10 was necessary sometimes during the boom as many were too busy to tender . you send out 10 and get back 2 ( happened to me more that once)

Good documents inviting itemized costs is the key - you are likely to get back 5 keen bids now .

mr_edge_to_you

just about to start building ourselves. we were weighing up the options for direct labour v contractor. we've decided contractor is the way forward. first and foremost i know nothing about construction. i would probably be fairly useless on the site. secondly we are planning to get married next october and we really want to be in our house for when we get back- a common issue with direct labour is the time frame! a good friend has been building a house for the previous 19 months and he's not quite there just yet. a contractor should be much shorter. thirdly- its over an hour's round trip to the biulding site should there be any urgent issues that require our attention. my workplace is further away again. i've shared an office with 2 guys who went the direct labour route - by god any potential savings that were going they certainly earned them. the hassle was unreal - the carpenter would ring because the plumber who was supposed to do something before he arrived didn't do it and then the carpenter had to come back to following day (week - more like it) to do his work.

think long and hard about it! there's no price on sanity!

1922

i would like to thank everyone here for their very helpful and knowledgable answers. with regard to signing over the land, i'm lucky in that my dad owns it and we are going about the signing over tomorrow, legal processes being what they are will take time though! so at the moment i am preparing a tender package with specifications i want. focusing on insulation in a big way....the price i get from builders will determine if i go with a builder or direct labour. a builder could still prove quite expensive for me....its like this, i'm 25, made approx 56k last year and have a mortgage on a rented property since i was 21....so really need to keep this build cost down. i intend to get the shell & roof done as quick as i can and tip away a bit aftre that. i'm not in a rush to finish this, therefore taking my time i can do it correctly. i also work shifts so taking time off isn't a problem really, and can take a days leave at short notice.

must say its exciting times. I battled with planners for the best part of 4 years and finally got there!!!

might run a few thimgs by ye...oil, wood chip or geo thermal....so far leaning to oil....wood or block frame....leaning towards block in a big way. UHF or rads, think rads might suit me better. probably go with timber between floors, its a story and half....long story short, need a good house built for as cheap as possible!! suppose thats everyones story!!!

muffler

Poor Uncle Tom wrote: »

Muffler started a thread recently about building costs in the different areas, should be helpful.;)

Here you go

I've bumped it to the front page anyhow.