Kitchen Extension Need Step by Step Instructions!

mae

Hi

We have decided that we are not going to move house and instead we are going to extend our kitchen to an open plan kitchen/living room. We live in a detached house if that makes any difference re planning permission.

That's as far as we have got

So basically at this point I need to draw up a plan of steps to take and we are completely clueless.
For example:

I have no idea if to get quotes first or apply for the extra mortgage? I am very confident we can get the extra mortgage but at this point would only be able to apply with a guesstimate!

Do we apply for planning permission before we get quotes or after?

Who do we ask to draw up plans? Do we need plans before asking for planning permission?

What is the best way to find a good builder?

Should we allow one company to do the complete job or break it down and get different tradesmen?

Anyone with experience or expertise in this area if you have an idiots guide for starting and seeing through this process I would be so grateful.

I don't want to rush into this I want to know what I am doing (to a point!) before embarking as obviously this is going to be a huge amount of money.

Thanks

andrewf75

There are plenty of websites which will help.
http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/permission/commonprojects/extensions/ for planning. Check first if it is permitted development. Most likely it will be so you won't need to get planning permission.
http://www.house-extension.co.uk/
There are also books if you prefer that.
In terms of cost as a rough guide people talk about £1,500 per sqm, but I'd say thats a bare minimum unless you do some yourself or have friends in the trades.
Best way to find builder is personal recommendation. Ask friends, neighbours etc. Failing that look for adverts and invite a few round to quote. Some may want drawings first though.
Unless you know what you're doing its best to get one company to do it all. Won't be the cheapest way, but it will be the easiest as they will sort everything out - although you still need to spend loads of time researching every little detail to make sure you get what you want.

Doozergirl

You have to start the process by spending money, so I would secure the mortgage lending first, probably, unless you're desperate to minimise repayments.

Find an architect to design the extension for you. Let them know what your budget is for the build as I have seen so many plans that aren't economically viable - whether it's the homeowner's budget or the result on the end valuation of the house. Some people on here suggest looking for architectural technicians or a draughtsperson because they are cheaper, but our usual architect is full RIBA and not expensive, she works alone, from home.

You may or may not need planning permission, depending on the size of the extension. Permitted development rules are pretty lenient these days, as long as your house hasn't had them removed.

Once you have PP or PD confirmed, I would get building regulations drawings drawn up for quoting from. This should mean that any builder is quoting like for like.

You can hire a builder to do everything or project manage yourselves. If you genuinely don't know where to start even, I suggest you'll at least need the builder to manage the build. You can choose someone else for your kitchen layout if you want to.

Try to go for recommended people. Even if I don't know someone, I eill ask on a local facebook page and specifically ask for people who have gad work carried out, not people recommending themselves .

Go and look at their work and grill previous clients.

teneighty

What Doozergirl said.

I would just expand on the architectural designer aspect though.

Most good designers will offer a free initial consultation visit so you can ask them about Planning, potential layouts and pit falls such as sewers etc.

You should then get 2 or 3 or more fixed fee quotes for preliminary sketches, Planning drawings and full Building Regulations drawings and just proceed with each stage as you get permission and have agreed the layout etc.

mae

Thank you for the responses so far really helpful.

So my first mission is to find an architect, architectural technician or a draughtsperson. I guess that will just have to be a google search for my area as I don't know anyone who can recommend.

mae

Ok I have emailed a couple of architects in my area for a quote for design and planning.

I have literally no idea what the fees are for this type of thing so its all going to be interesting (scary maybe depending on prices!) and a huge learning curve.

DRP

mae wrote: »

Thank you for the responses so far really helpful.

So my first mission is to find an architect, architectural technician or a draughtsperson. I guess that will just have to be a google search for my area as I don't know anyone who can recommend.

your local council may have an approved list of architects for whom they fast track the applications process.

rosie383

mae wrote: »

Ok I have emailed a couple of architects in my area for a quote for design and planning.

I have literally no idea what the fees are for this type of thing so its all going to be interesting (scary maybe depending on prices!) and a huge learning curve.

Having been doing just exactly this over the past few days, you can expect quotes of between £900-3000.

teneighty

For a fairly standard single storey extension I would expect £750 - £1200 for full building regulations plans. That would include some preliminary sketches to explore different layouts and full Planning drawings as well. Anything more than that and you really should shop around and get some different fee quotes.

For that money I would also expect the designer to be a member of a professional institution and have full professional indemnity insurance. You might find someone who does it on the side in their spare time even cheaper but I tend to take the approach "pay peanuts, get monkeys".

DRP

I paid 650 ish for an architectural tech to draw plans for the Permitted Development neighbourhood consultation scheme, and building regs (and do all the submitting) for a single story extension (about 4.5x4m with vaulted roof).

edwink

This is just an idea for you. When we made the decision to have our kitchen extended we put pen to paper and made a rough sketch of what we thought we would like the extension to look like. By that I mean a French door here and a new window there type of sketch. Before the Architect comes round you can mess about with the sketch and change it as much as you like until you come up with what you feel would be the best design for you and your house. When our Architect came round we gave him the sketch and he based his drawings on our sketch. The only thing we had to change was the size of the Velux roof windows because of building regulations sizes etc.

When the building work was finished it was exactly what we had dreamed of having and the space and the way it was designed is exactly what we wanted for our needs in our new kitchen.

One thing to remember when having an extension now is that I believe all new walls must be around 15 inches thick whereas a lot of the original walls in peoples homes are around 9 inches think. (in our home anyway). So you will end up having a different thickness from where the extension starts from your original kitchen wall. To not make this too messy in with our new kitchen we followed on with our kitchen units and worktops by cutting them down at the back. So entering our kitchen you would almost not notice that the walls are of a different thickness. It is only when you open the last few cupboards at the end that you will really notice because of the depth of them plus the worktop does not have as much depth to it. Rather than jut the units and the worktop out because of the wall this kept them all in a straight tidy line. Hope that makes sense. So obviously if you do similar to us you would not be able to put a fridge or freezer in the extended part of the kitchen unless they jutted out.

Hope that is of some help to you. I know you are looking for information on getting quotes and the planning side of it etc. But thought this information would help you with the design side of it.

Don't forget also that often when a room is extended it can make the original part darker as you may be moving a back window further down the room etc. So always think of ways to bring more light in to it by maybe having Velux type windows as we have done. We have 6 in our single story extension roof and the amount of light they let in is amazing. We never ever have to put the lights on it the kitchen during the day, also this will save you money in the long run. It is well worth making the best you can of natural light if possible in your extension plans.

Good luck with it all.

Edwink