Sequence of refurbishment and estimated costs in London

itsmehere

We are close to exchanging on a 1930s 3 bed house (London zone 5) which is in need of modernisation. We are planning to get the following 6 changes done as soon as possible but worried about the order in which we should sequence and rough estimates of time and money for each job assuming it would be done by tradesmen:

a. Full house Rewiring
b. Replacing existing boiler with a Combi boiler [currently it has an outdated gas central heating]
c. Replacing current galley kitchen with Modern kitchen [We want to do a rear extension (addition 18sq.m, make an open plan kitchen-diner with new fitted kitchen]
d. Add laminate flooring
e. Building a downstairs loo under the stairs [currently housing the electrics and storage]
f. Redecorating walls

Please advise on how to sequence and approx. budget for the above so to manage in the most efficient way and not to get stuck in redoing things. Also, we have a ballpark figure of 30k and are assuming all the above to be done in 12 weeks - Is this a fair estimate?

Hoploz

Are you going to be living there while the work is happening?

Re-wiring best done early as it is very disruptive and that is in every room.

Do you have builders lined up? Your timescale sounds achievable but only if you count the work itself. It could take ages to get plans done and find tradesmen if you haven't already done so.

Budget - 30k to cover a refurb, plus the extension on top I'd say.

itsmehere

Thanks for your reply Hoploz. No we will be continue to stay in our rented flat for the time being. We don't have builder lined up yet. So once we have everyone lined up, will 12 weeks be a fair estimate?

Also, how would you sequence the order of doing the above refurbs?

Cornucopia

If you're including the extension in that figure, then I would say it was optimistic. Otherwise doable, though you or a decent Project Manager would need to co-ordinate in order to stay on-track and deal with unforeseen issues.

itsmehere

Thansk. ok so with extension, how much would it cost us approximately? And how would you sequence it?

Cornucopia

I would say that the extension alone, done to a standard consistent with high property prices in North, West or SW London would be c. £30k, 6 weeks work.

That needs to be started first, then:-

- You can commence re-wiring the rest of the house at the same time.

- Once the under-stairs cupboard is clear of wiring, you can begin the toilet install. Will there be a significant upheaval for new drainage for this?

- Then the Central Heating (depending on whether the new boiler is going in the extension or in the existing part of the house).

- Then finishing the kitchen.

- Then flooring and decoration.

With suitable overlapping of tasks, I'd say 4 months was more comfortable than 3. The budget could be anywhere, especially given the huge variation in the costs of kitchens, boilers, and decorative finishes. I could see it easily being £50-70k including the extension, with a mid-price kitchen.

roger-w5

itsmehere,consider giving the complete job to a local building company. It will save you a few headaches !

dunroving

I've been doing something similar, but on a much smaller scale. I think the order you listed things would be the correct order to get them done. Messy things first (rewire and plaster).

I have "project managed" my renovations (think this is too grandiose a term for what I'm actually doing!), and learned the following.

Timeline can easily drift due to (a) underestimating how long it takes to locate, get quotes from, and appoint trades people, and (b) the availability of said trades people - good ones are booked way ahead. Even then, they may be booked for the specific week or two you need them, because you need them for very specific dates.

Drift in one area can have a knock-on effect on others.

Things run more smoothly if you can find people who either have multiple skills (plasterer/decorator business rather than separate plasterer and decorator), and if you have a team (or two/three people working on a task) rather than a sole trader. DIY SOS may not be the best example, but if you have 3 plasterers working simultaneously, the job will be completed 3 x faster than one person by themselves.

Good communication and treating trades people with respect is more likely to keep things running smoothly than being a hardass. You can be respectful but still businesslike.

One thing I am doing is acting as labourer. Obviously for health and safety reasons, most businesses can't allow you to literally work with them, but I have been doing a lot of bog standard jobs like fetching and carrying, cleaning up, etc., so skilled people aren't wasting time driving to the store or clearing up after them.

Hoploz

If you aren't living there then yes get a building firm to do the lot. Then you don't have the hassle of finding trades and then sorting out who can do the work at the right time (whilst in my experience you get a hit rate of about one in three at best in just getting a quote out of somebody)

The extension needs some plans though so this might hold things up a bit. Some building firms offer a design and build service too which keeps it in house and can simplify. If you're within PD rights you can start quicker but if you need to go to Planning it'll be two months from submitting plans to getting permission