Recession and House Design

Katz83

So i have posted alot of questions here but it is great to get opiniions. We are in the last hurdle of our plan. Or architect has given us a house with four bedrooms. However it is very possible for us to knock off one of the bedrooms and just add it later on when we need to. I am just wondering would this be a good idea in the current recession or would i be mad. I will probably need the room somewhere down the line just not for the next maybe 10 years. All i will have to do is knock one small wall to add the room on. Im just wondering what would be the price of adding the room now or adding it in a few years down the line.

sinnerboy

The price of everything will rise when the recession ends so you won't build it any cheaper then right now ( I say that in the hope that the recession does not worsen ) . Build the full house but consider the sanitary installations - will you need all bathrooms and en suites functional on Day 1 ? Could you "survive" with one family bathroom ? . Fit them out later when you feel you have to .

paulocon

Katz83 wrote: »

So i have posted alot of questions here but it is great to get opiniions. We are in the last hurdle of our plan. Or architect has given us a house with four bedrooms. However it is very possible for us to knock off one of the bedrooms and just add it later on when we need to. I am just wondering would this be a good idea in the current recession or would i be mad. I will probably need the room somewhere down the line just not for the next maybe 10 years. All i will have to do is knock one small wall to add the room on. Im just wondering what would be the price of adding the room now or adding it in a few years down the line.

Speaking from experience - do it now if at all possible. The cheapest and most hassle-free time to do it is during the build.

Katz83

Yes that what my boyfriend thinks The house is just under the 2000 square feet. 1995. Was just worried with all these new taxes coming in but we plan in trying to get the house right first time so that would mean keeping the four bedrooms. We are hoping to finish the house for 200,000 going direct labour. Looked in to underfloor heating but not sure about it yet. Thanks for your input into my bedroom delima.

paddy147

Build as big and as much as you can now.

Prices have come down,but will rise again in the future.

Build NOW.

Better to be looking in at the bedroom,than looking for it to be built,in the futrue

DOCARCH

Also just bear in mind planning issues with regard to the OPs query.

Planning is not a moveable feast. The first condition of your planning possibly says something like 'the development must be carried out in accordance with the plans submitted'.

If you decide to build something smaller, i.e. omit a section of that granted planning - in this case a bedroom - for somebody to sign off/certify that the build complies with the planning permission granted, you may need further approval from the local authority.

Something just to watch out for/consder with your architect/certifier.

I would suggest that you would save much less than you think by omitting the bedroom.

Katz83

well we are only doing up the plans at the moment havent got planning. Does anyone have any idea as to what it might cost you now say to build the room or say what it would cost if you were to do it in a few years.

DOCARCH

Katz83 wrote: »

well we are only doing up the plans at the moment havent got planning. Does anyone have any idea as to what it might cost you now say to build the room or say what it would cost if you were to do it in a few years.

That's the million dollar question! There are a lot of inherent costs in building/getting the builder on site so certainly building the extra bedroom now will cost you significantly less as part of the bigger job than getting in a builder at a later stage to add a bedroom extension.

An example of a recent extenion I tendered that was approx. 30m.sq. - I was told by one QS who was pricing that really it would cost no more to make the extension 40m.sq. So we took him/the builder up on the offer!
I wouldn't like to hazard a guess at an actual cost but if it were me, I'd go for it!

imitation

I'll agree with the rest, do it now if you can afford it at all or resuffle a few things ( its alot easier to put in a granite worktop in a few years than another room !)

2sounds

+1 Currently renovating old farmhouse. Funny I was looking for something the other night and found a print out of the tender returns we got in about 2006 for our build and the cheapest was about 500k. negotiated a contract with current builder for just over 300K. Build it now - or sooner rather than later.;)

jinghong

your experience says wait then no? if the trend is towards lowering prices.
labour will continue to get cheaper in the future folks
I would factor in the cost of the mortgage burden which you will have to pay
what is the probability you need it?
I wouldnt build it if I wasnt convinced the need would arise: gauranteed expense now compared with possible expense in the future? you need good odds there
Is there an increased risk of you defaulting on youe loan if you lose your income in the next 10 years?
Is there a good chance you will need / want to move for work reasons? What if fuel becomes much more expensive and doubles in the next 7 like it has done in the last 7 (that sounds like a high probability doesnt it?) and you need to move closer to work and sell the house
Finally, think about the cost of heating, painting, flooring, finishing etc
A more common idea in the future will be build the smallest house possible, possibly removing the need for ANY central heating system.
Some rooms do not need to be 'in the house' and can be built remotely, more cheaply

So I'm not saying dont do it, I would weigh it up though

Quazzie

My advice would be to try get prices for both and then calculate the difference in Mortgage repayments over the years.

For example you say you want to build the larger size for €200k. If the smaller size only costs €185k then what affect does having €15 less of a mortgage equate to over 10 years? If it costs you €25k in ten years time to build the extension then would you save more than €10k in mortgage repayments over the next ten years.

These are all figures pulled from my head but its worth doing the math and coming to a conclusive answer as to whether its a good idea for you, and not just in general.