Double glazing window replacement quote / Potential value added to property value?

JayS90

Hi all,

I live in a ground floor 2-bedroom flat (built in 2003/2004) with one bathroom and a en suite shower room. We bought it in April 2020 for £275k.

The property has 5 wooden frame windows which I believe are double glazed and were most likely installed when the development was built. When the cold weather sets in we experience condensation and damp, resulting in mould in almost every room on the walls nearest to the windows.
The property is electric only and has storage heaters so I desperately want to improve our energy efficiency and am hoping new windows is a good starting point and will better insulate the place.
Noise is also an issue being situated near to a busy A road, and a big part of why I want to replace all of the windows with double glazed uPVC.

I've just got a quote from a company that seems to tick all the boxes, the person I've been communicating with has been great at discussing all the options and working out what we need in order to ensure the replacement windows are "like for like and in keeping with the development" (a quote from the managing agent and dependant on us getting permission to carry out the work).

Their quote is £3870 (£4644 incl. VAT). This is to supply and fit 4 white uPVC windows (three small ones and one average sized one) and 1 large bay window (floor to ceiling, made up of 3 sections). Toughened glass on all windows (due to being on the ground floor). Satin sandblasted privacy glass for the en suite shower room. All energy rated A.
Also includes a 10 year company guarantee, which is underwritten by an insurance backed guarantee with the GGFi, a FENSA Certificate with the products energy rating stamped on it, all rubbish disposal and any making good that may be required.

Is this quote fair?

Happy to provide measurements and/or photos of the windows if it helps at all. I also have a survey booked for Monday with Crystal Windows so that I can get another quote to compare.

Also, does anyone know if replacing the windows will add value to the property? A quick Google search suggests that it will, but I'd appreciate opinions as we are due to remortgage in the new year and it would be massively helpful to be able to add value to the property price as we are aiming for a 75% LTV mortgage product.

Any advice or guidance would be much appreciated - TIA! 

ytfcmad

Wont add value but it will help the property hold it's value.

Rodders53

"Like for like", to me, implies wooden frames with wooden frames.
Check with managing agent that UPVC will be acceptable.

Condensation / mould suggests lack of heating and ventilation. 
New windows are unlikely to fix that problem and needs separate investigation.

Triple glazed vs double glazed may reduce sound from road and slightly improve heat loss.  Not sure that 2004 windows ought to need replacement or will be a major improvement (other than reducing the need for regular repainting).

New windows won't add value, and upvc might even put off some types of buyers.

Toughened aka 'safety' glass is required wherever there is glass below a certain height.  Laminated glass on the ground floor may be more advisable (albeit more expensive) if the area is subject to burglaries?

kokolino23

We'll...you didn't mention your location and windows sizes but seems way too much. Shop around, I'm sure you can find something cheaper.
We've had a quote for 8 windows, between £2.8k and £5k.
Depends what quality you get as well, profile, glass, hinges, locks, etc.

FreeBear

Quote does seem to be a tad on the high side. But a full height bay window is not going to be cheap.

Check your lease - You may well find the windows are the responsibility of the leaseholder, not yours. In which case, they should be the ones getting the work done.

JayS90

Thanks for all of your replies! I'll respond below to your individual comments, please feel free to reply as I'm happy to discuss further as this is all very helpful 

Rodders53 said:

"Like for like", to me, implies wooden frames with wooden frames.
Check with managing agent that UPVC will be acceptable.

Condensation / mould suggests lack of heating and ventilation. 
New windows are unlikely to fix that problem and needs separate investigation.

Triple glazed vs double glazed may reduce sound from road and slightly improve heat loss.  Not sure that 2004 windows ought to need replacement or will be a major improvement (other than reducing the need for regular repainting).

New windows won't add value, and upvc might even put off some types of buyers.

Toughened aka 'safety' glass is required wherever there is glass below a certain height.  Laminated glass on the ground floor may be more advisable (albeit more expensive) if the area is subject to burglaries?

@Rodders53
There's another flat in the development with uPVC, and their windows don't even match the framing of the rest. I'll definitely check beforehand but regardless it would likely come up when applying for permission, so I think uPVC may be fine.

The current windows have vents at the top which we have open and we have our heaters on in the rooms that regularly suffer from condensation and mould, I think it's down to the windows not being energy efficient even if they were put in in 2004, will installing energy efficient windows not improve this?

I doubt uPVC will put off buyers given the state of the current ones.

kokolino23 said:

We'll...you didn't mention your location and windows sizes but seems way too much. Shop around, I'm sure you can find something cheaper.
We've had a quote for 8 windows, between £2.8k and £5k.
Depends what quality you get as well, profile, glass, hinges, locks, etc.

@kokolino23
The property is based in Beckton, E6. Window sizes are:

Small Bedroom: H 115.4cm x W 58.7cm
Kitchen: H 99cm x W 57.9cm
Living Room Bay (Three Sections): H 209cm x W (1) 90.5cm (2) 95cm (3) 91.5cm
En Suite: H 99.2cm x W 56.9cm
Master Bedroom (Two sections): H 115cm x W (1) 112cm (2) 60cm

FreeBear said:

Quote does seem to be a tad on the high side. But a full height bay window is not going to be cheap.

Check your lease - You may well find the windows are the responsibility of the leaseholder, not yours. In which case, they should be the ones getting the work done.

@FreeBear
We are the leaseholders, and the responsibility for the windows rests with us. The management company has confirmed this, permission has to be sought from the freeholder prior to work being carried out.

I did think the bay is likely pushing the cost up a fair bit. Here's a photo:

JayS90

I've just had Crystal Windows (https://www.crystalwindows.co.uk/) round, their quote is:

Material cost - £4900
Fitting - £1225
VAT - £1225
Total: £7350 incl. VAT

10 year guarantee. A+11 energy efficient windows with secure multi point locking, 4mm toughened glass both side, 20mm argon gas filled sealed unit, 70mm multi-chambered uPVC frame. Includes survey, supply, installation and removals.

Much more expensive than the previous quote. Opinions welcomed regarding this quote and any comparisons to the initial one I mentioned.

Also if anyone has any recommendations for a company that operates in South East England please feel free to send them my way!

kokolino23

You can post the job on MyBuilder and get some quotes through there. Even though is London, seems too expensive to me.
Just search around for glazing manufacturers in the area, they tend to be cheaper.

greenface2

Not overpriced too much for 7 frames inc that bay . Lami glass  has better acoustic values than toughened too . what is like for like ? style or colour because ive based it on white at London prices . Crystal quoting 4900 material are born liars . Materials will be less than 2 k easy . I'm North west and depending if its a simple fit I could do that for about 3000/3200 . ( I don't want your work)  

JayS90

kokolino23 said:

You can post the job on MyBuilder and get some quotes through there. Even though is London, seems too expensive to me.
Just search around for glazing manufacturers in the area, they tend to be cheaper.

@kokolino23
Thanks for the advice - I'll check out that website and make a post, no harm in gathering more quotes. I must admit however I am dubious about quotes that are *too* cheap, if you know what I mean? The way the building curves where the bay window is situated means that there will likely be the need for the appropriate support bars to ensure the structure above isn't compromised or the concrete develops cracks - what I'm trying to say is I want to make sure I get a fair quote from a competent supplier/fitter and not just the cheapest.

greenface2 said:

Not overpriced too much for 7 frames inc that bay . Lami glass  has better acoustic values than toughened too . what is like for like ? style or colour because ive based it on white at London prices . Crystal quoting 4900 material are born liars . Materials will be less than 2 k easy . I'm North west and depending if its a simple fit I could do that for about 3000/3200 . ( I don't want your work)  

@greenface
That's good to know, thanks so much for your insight! I'm going to ask the guy who provided the first quote about laminated glass and see if I can get a price for how much extra it may cost.
The managing agent wasn't overly specific about what like for like meant, so I've just had to assume style and colour. But I believe white uPVC should be fine, and the first quote has been done based on matching the windows as closely as possible to the current ones - in terms of framing, which windows actually open and the ones that do are all top hung opening. The only major difference is that the lower sections of the bay won't be individual panes in a quadrant as they are currently, they'll be separated by georgian bars to give it the look as if they're four panes.
I did think that Crystal Windows quote was a pile of rubbish, thanks for confirming it!

JayS90

Update: Crystal Windows (the more expensive quote) called me a couple of days after their sales rep was round, I told them it was far too expensive and magically the price dropped to £5200 right there and then! A sneaky sales tactic if you ask me, provide an inflated initial quote making you feel like you've got a deal when they drop it to something more reasonable. Certainly not going to bother with them.

I went back to the company who provided the initial quote and had a lovely chat with the owner, he answered all my questions about the bay window structure/support, laminated glass, energy rating, ventilation, and georgian bars for the bay.

We've decided to go ahead with his company. We'll discuss laminated glass with the surveyor when he visits, but I don't think it'll be necessary as I think double glazing will be enough and the price difference is likely something we won't want to shell out for (currently we have barely any acoustic protection hence why it feels like we want lots of it).

Thanks for all of your comments and advice!