Is it worth a loft conversion in an already large house?

glasgowdan

We're planning work and really want to get a feel for whether this will be worth it.

A 4 bed bungalow with a small family bathroom and two en suites.

Convert loft to 2beds plus a shower room, turn one bedroom downstairs into a big luxury bathroom, turn existing family bathroom into office or storage. Effectively making the 4 bed bungalow into a 5 bed with a really nice big family bathroom.

Can anyone give their thoughts on whether this work might add it's value to the house whenever sale time arrives? It means a big investment and much bigger mortgage for us.

kinger101

For me alarm bells ring.

(a) upstairs rooms in dormer bungalows are usually lacking in headroom. Particularly under the eaves. Unless you're a cast member from the Time Bandits, it's a problem.
(b) most people who live in bungalows are elderly, and have no need for 5 bedrooms. Particularly upstairs ones.

Given the above, most people after 5 bedrooms are looking for at least two proper stories.

I take the view that if you want to change the property, do if for yourself, not a future owner. And then only do it if it's a better option than just moving to another property (less hassle, less money). But a friendly chat with a local estate agent might be a good idea. I'm sure they'd be happy to advise on likely resale value.

glasgowdan

Thanks. The loft is large and tall so it'd be a full height conversion. Two rooms would be around 10x15ft each plus a bathroom, so the house would be a big family home rather than something for elderly people.

Doozergirl

Depends on whether the market is there for huge bungalows.

I personally agree with the previous poster. Most people looking for 5+ bedrooms would be looking for two full storeys.

Part of your plan involves turning storage (loft) into storage (ground floor) via expenditure on a loft conversion. Office, okay, but storage?

Part of the reason those people looking for five beds want two storeys is the loft for additional storage.

If it were a business plan, I wouldn't bother. Far too risky.

Davesnave

Also, take into account the ceiling height in the other sense: that of the maximum price normally paid for a property in your road/area.

I know it's for you, but resale sometimes happens earlier than expected for all sorts of reasons.

I'm renovating/slightly extending my bungalow, but staying on one level. I know that no matter what I do, the most I'm likely to sell it for is around £400k at today's prices, so my plans allow for a maximum total spend of around £380k.

I have friends in the village who probably spent £100k+ beyond their realistic ceiling price, thinking they'd never move. They have been on the market due to ill health for 3 years now.

Hoploz

Just do what is best for you.

Around here a bungalow is a rare treat. They have all been converted! But trouble is, when they are converted, they remain unsuitable for families more often than not. When we were looking we had to discount many of these not on principle of lack of loft space, although that is irritating, but for practical reasons. The majority of families, like us, have two children. Bungalows tend to have a large master upstairs and another smaller bedroom. We didn't want to be on a different level to one of our children! So unless you can fit 3 bedrooms comfortably upstairs, with at least one bathroom, ideally two, it isn't going to suit a lot of people.

Ozzuk

As this isn't being done for your benefit (to live in) then it's all about the figures. How much will the works cost? How much do 5 bed houses go for in your area? You need to decide if current value, plus the cost of the additional work adds up to enough of a profit for you. Your house will likely be worth less than a 'standard' 5 bed.

If you have to spend 50k for instance and the profit is only 5k then is it worth all the time and effort.

I nearly bought a bungalow last year with the vision to do exactly what you are proposing, however the ceiling price for the area didn't leave much room for growth and that was with me doing most of the work.

ellie27

Hi Glasgowdan, we are in Glasgow too.

We are in a converted 5 bed bungalow, 3 rooms upstairs. A previous poster mentioned about not having 3 rooms upstairs - I agree. We would not have bought this house if there were only 2 rooms upstairs as we all want to sleep on the same level particularly when the kids are young.

It sounds like a lot of work to do just to give yourself 1 extra bedroom, do you need an extra bedroom or are you just thinking of loft conversion for the sake of it?

glasgowdan

ellie thanks, what area are you in? Can I ask what sort of size the upstairs space is?

We don't need 5 beds; I think the driving force is me trying to make the house worth a bit more than what we'd pay for the works, for once I'm thinking of investment! Our family need 3 bedrooms, and it'd be nice to have two guest rooms so family can come and visit from down south. At present there's a dining room that can back up as a 5th room for guests so it's covered already. So this is all about 'nice to have' and trying to up the value of the house a bit.

It's a street that has had a few houses sold for higher than what we're paying for this one, so the area ceiling price is probably suitable. I'm not sure if we try to make 3 rooms upstairs we'd be left with any of them large enough to be a 'master'.

Someone else has suggested the following, which sounds like a very good idea to me:

"I'd be getting plans drawn up for the loft conversion and getting them approved by Planning and Building Control.

I'd then be getting a quote to put in a permanent stair to the loft and getting that installed with a temporary partition and door at the top. Total Outlay at this point circa £3 - 4k-ish. A small percentage of the purchase price.

Then, I'd stop.....and live in the house for a while. You've already had all the disruption to the main body of the house that the loft conversion would entail and you can now close a door on it and forget it for a while.
The loft space in the house as it currently stands would be an eminently usable space for storage if it had permanent stair access.
If you've been granted your building warrant and commenced the works it's valid from that point on and won't expire or require updating / renewal. If you decide to sell then you'll be selling with option of the conversion secured.

A lot of the loft conversion would be DIY-able from this point forward and you could take your time and do it as and when expenses allowed. I'd make it a long term project rather than spunking big money up front."

phil24_7

That seems like a decent idea and I particularly like the eloquent use of the word 'spunking' in the final paragraph! lol

ellie27

glasgowdan wrote: »

ellie thanks, what area are you in? Can I ask what sort of size the upstairs space is?

We are in Kirkintilloch.

We have a permanent, full size staircase up to the loft conversion.
At the top of the stairs there is just a hallway of 1 square metre roughly with 3 bedrooms off.

1 bedroom is master with full bathroom ensuite, huge dormer (dont think dormers this size are actually allowed anymore!) Other double bedroom also has full bathroom ensuite. 3rd upstairs room is a single room that fits a single bed and wardrobe and dressing table but thats it.