Everything You Need to Do Before Building an Extension

As your family expands, your home might not be as spacious as you remember it being when you first bought the property.

13:10 03 March 2020

If this has become the case and your growing family is in need of more space, then most people believe that their only option is to move. However, thanks to extensions, you can stay exactly where you are and simply build the space you need around you. Before you do this, however, there are several things that you need to do before building an extension, which we will explore below.

What type of extension do you want?

You first need to decide what type of extension you want. Do you want an additional bedroom? Or are you more interested in expanding the more communal areas of the home, such as the kitchen or living room? You will also need to consider if you would prefer it to be a single-story extension or a two-story extension.

Check planning permission

Before you get started employing contractors to create what you want, you need to find out whether you are allowed to extend your property. Get in touch with your local council with your proposed plans to see if you can make the changes.

Always find out a quote in advance

Once you have decided what you want and have the permission needed to carry out the work, you need to start getting a good idea of how much this extension will cost you. Ask a contractor to evaluate your home, look through your proposed plans, and provide you with a quote and how long it will take to complete. Don’t just rely on one person’s opinion, however. It is vital that you make arrangements for several contractors quotes to come around to ensure that you are getting the best value for money. If you are seeing similar figures for various contractors, this gives you a good idea of how much it will cost you.

Finding the funds

Moving forward, once you have a rough idea of the cost, you need to consider how you will fund the project. From the quotes, you will quickly discover that building an extension will require a large sum of money. While many people might consider remortgaging their home to get the funds, not everyone wants to affect their current mortgage, nor do they want to experience high-interest by borrowing a lot of money. Therefore, many people turn to alternative options.

One of the most popular ways of finding the money is to take out of the homeowner loans from Friends Capital. They will help provide you with the money that you need and work out how long you would like the loan for. This is why it is handy to know how long the process will take.

Pre-warn the neighbors

It would be courteous to speak with your neighbors before the extension starts to take place to ensure that they are fully aware of the work that will be carried out. Inform them of what work form the extension will take and how long it will be until it is complete.