What would you do with a large stone outbuilding?

caledonian_princess

I used to have a house with a similar set up - except we didn't have the shared garden so really didn't want to lose the tiny outdoor space we had. What we did was build a glass corridor from the back door of the main house to join it on to the outhouse. In there we made a utility room for the washing machine, freezer, sink, drying space and bike storage together with a spare bedroom and an ensuite shower room for guests. It actually turned out quite nicely, especially as we put french doors in both sides of the corridor. It was lovely to have them open when the weather was nice - one of those bringing the outdoors in things that all the tv programmes are always gabbing on about, we used the same floor covering for the corridor as we used for the courtyard.

tyllwyd

It does depend a lot on how fond you are of the building. From the plan you posted, it looks like it really dominates the plot of land that you have, so it seems crazy not to make use of the space in some way. Is your kitchen dark, or does it get enough light even with the building there? Just from the plan you've posted, I'd be inclined to knock down the front part to get enough room to sit out, then perhaps try to join the house and remaining outbuilding, maybe with a glass structure, so that it becomes an annex to the kitchen. The boiler might be in the way - but then again, maybe for a small cottage you could replace it with an efficient modern one somewhere else, and reclaim that space as well.

But it does depend on how nice the building is and whether it would be a shame to mess around with it, and how much money you have to spend.

RAS

I would start by talking informally to the local planners, they often offer a surgery, even if only once a month.

Wuld you be able to build a connecting passage from you back door to the out building, leaving a small enclosed courtyard?

Would they permit you to develop the building for residential use or just as a utility, boiler room plus break out space?

Or would they class this as overdevelopment?

GDB2222

The difficulty is not so much what to do as whether it will add value compared to the cost?

I'd be very tempted to glass over the courtyard entirely, incorporating the right-hand half including the boiler into the house and leaving the left-hand half open to the elements. I'd make 'proper rooms' in the outhouse.

By the time you have an architect involved, have obtained planning permission etc, this might cost £20-30k. No idea if it would add that much to the resale value.

On the other hand, you can fit the out-house out as a workshop for a few hundred Pounds, probably, and that might add quite a lot of value.

atush

Consider adding it to your living space, by linking to it at one or the other end of the courtyard, thereby making it an enclosed courtyard if you need the outside space?

GDB2222

I love outside spaces that are open to the elements at one side but covered over. That would be a big selling point for me. It also adds value to the outhouse if you can get to it in the dry, whatever the weather.

PalmerUK

A Bedroom would be nice, or office if you need one?

princeofpounds

If I was a purchaser, I'd want to know I could do something with it, so I would probably value outline planning permission of some kind, which is not nearly as costly. Remember not to apply for this years before you might want to sell up.

If I were living in it and not intending to move, I would want to incorporate it into the main house if the structure was good enough quality. I would use it to rectify any major deficiencies in the main house, and assuming that all the rooms in the main house were sufficiently good then I would personally make half into a utility space and larder (freeing up the kitchen to become a real social space) and, if there was room, putting a second bedroom in there (which could be used as a study if not required as a bedroom).

Great map by the way

lincroft1710

If you are considering selling in the immediate or very near future - do nothing. The cost could outweigh the possible selling price and you run the risk of alienating possible buyers who won't like what you have done.

If you are staying then you have already been offered a good choice of options by other posters

planning_officer

princeofpounds wrote: »

If I was a purchaser, I'd want to know I could do something with it, so I would probably value outline planning permission of some kind, which is not nearly as costly. Remember not to apply for this years before you might want to sell up.

Outline planning permission would be pointless for such a small development - and given the level of detail now required for an outline application in terms of indicative plans, which all have to be drawn to scale, it would be no easier and at the end of it you wouldn't have a full permission and you or a future occupier would have to go through the whole process again for the reserved matters not considered at the outline stage. Outline permission is normally only worthwhile for much larger developments - e.g. several new houses. Also, if you apply for it years before you sell up, then it'll no longer be valid when you move!

But you may well not need planning permission to convert this outbuilding into part of the main dwelling - yes you probably will if you are linking it to the main dwelling, but just to convert the outbuilding into additional living space - kitchen, utility area etc, then you don't need planning permission for that, provided any repairs to the building aren't so extensive they entail some rebuilding of it.