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Redesigning layout of house?

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  • 05-11-2017 12:32am
    #1
    detoxkid
    Registered Users Posts: 621 ✭✭✭


    We are considering buying a relatively inexpensive house in an estate in a nice enough location - close to my work and where the kids will go to school. It is a 6 bed detached house which looks run down, dated and like it has always been rented. I'd like to basically gut the inside and get an architect to do up plans on the best design and layout for us. Could anyone help with how much it would cost to get an architect to draw up plans? Does the architect price how much it will cost to make the plan materialise or is this a separate service? We will have a bit of money to do up the house straight away, bit ideally I'd like to do it up bit by bit once we get a plan we are really happy with.


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    #2
    DancingHomer
    Closed Accounts Posts: 69 ✭✭DancingHomer


    detoxkid wrote: »
    We will have a bit of money to do up the house straight away, bit ideally I'd like to do it up bit by bit once we get a plan we are really happy with.

    Just be careful what you mean by 'bit by bit'. Some people think you can just do one room at a time, but this stuff has to be done in phases, and many of the jobs have to be done in the correct sequence. So, for example, you may have to live without floors, doors, skirting or a kitchen for a long, long time while you do plastering, insulation, electrics, plumbing etc. These inter-dependencies are the worst thing i've found about a big renovation.

    You need to sit down with whoever and write out the sequence of the work, not just the design and costs.


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    #3
    LirW
    Registered Users Posts: 4,825 ✭✭✭LirW


    Please be careful what you're doing with a run down house. We bought a house that needed work and planned a bit by bit-thing until we noticed more and more issues that need work ASAP. We are currently doing everything that's necessary plus the decoration that needs to be done after it right now and it's hands down the most stressful thing I've ever done in my life.

    You need to check the electrical and plumbing first, if that's in a state, that'll cost you a lot of money and your house will be in absolute bits, which means you need a builder too to work after them. If you really want to buy a DIY project, make sure to not only consult a structural engineer but also an electrician and plumber to inspect the status quo. The architect usually has visions and stick with them (I had to work with some in the past and I honestly don't have a high opinion of them), so I'd make sure that the above is inspected first, fixing all of that can easily set you back 20-25k without any finishes.

    These houses are cheap for a reason. If you're willing to live on a building site for a while, do it. But a Dermot bannon-like complete package starts at around 150k and believe me, you don't want to do a big job like that bit by bit, it makes you miserable.
    Since I worked in Planning I could do all of that myself and have a very good schedule but it's still unbelievably stressful, it's a life of Take-away, driving, being around, issues that you didn't expect and lots of headache.

    Sorry for that emotional post, even as someone who did planning building work as a job, it's tough when it's your own place and lots of people take more on that they really can and end up with a money pit because it looks easy on paper.


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