Is an extension worth it financially?

bradie

I live in a 2 bed rural cottage with large garden. My neighbours moved recently and their extended (4 bed) home sold for twice what zoopla says our house is worth. 

We have been considering a 2 storey extension (we are the only house locally not extended, for now we have a static caravan at the end of the garden for extra space), but have held back as there is a possibility we will move some point in 2023 or 2024. 

Would it be worth investing in an extension? How do we find out about costs and potential benefits?

Financially is it worth getting outline planning permission for an extension, even if we dont do it?

[Deleted User]

Building materials (and labor) are through the roof. I would only do it nearer the time you plan to move. 

aoleks

start planning now, but hold back until the builders/materials shortage go back to normal levels.

to answer your question, yes, an extension is worth it's money and usually returns a very nice profit when you come to sell. having said that, only do it if you want to enjoy it, not because you might make a bit of extra money. it is a bit of a headache if done correctly. also, if you plan on selling, do not take shortcuts, especially with the paperwork.

TELLIT01

An extension may or may not be worth the cost. There is certainly no hard and fast rule that they will increase the property price by more than the building costs.  Simply seeing an extended property selling for twice the price of an unextended one doesn't tell the full story.  Quality of the build, internal design etc, etc, all need to be factored in.

daivid

Zoopla estimates need to be taken with a pinch of salt. The more unique the house, the longer ago you bought and more work you've done on your house the bigger the pinch.

Would your likely buyers be able to afford to buy and then add their own extension? If so your house may be more desirable as is, as a buyer could build exactly what they want. If your house is more likely to be bought by a FTB/ someone with a large mortgage you doing the extension may appeal as for many buyers getting a big mortgage is easier than a smaller mortgage and funds for an extension.

Doozergirl

You can do some maths to get a rough idea of whether it is worth it for you. 

Looking at your neighbour's Rightmove listing, what is the selling price and what is the square meterage of the property? 

If you divide the price by the number of square metres, what number do you get? 

Rosa_Damascena

aoleks said:

start planning now, but hold back until the builders/materials shortage go back to normal levels.

to answer your question, yes, an extension is worth it's money and usually returns a very nice profit when you come to sell. having said that, only do it if you want to enjoy it, not because you might make a bit of extra money. it is a bit of a headache if done correctly. also, if you plan on selling, do not take shortcuts, especially with the paperwork.

Is this likely to happen? Commercial prices follow Adam Smith rather than Sir Isaac Newton.

andre_xs

And compare your potential monetary gain with the potential loss of nerves going through such a project. It's quite an investment not only in money, but also in your time and potentially discomfort (your house may be to a large part a building site), plus the potential hassles of dealing with poor workmanship, claiming warrantees, other unforeseen problems, etc

Friends just had an extension build and the amount of trouble they went through is mind blowing. She lost loads of hair (literally) and had countless sleepless nights. Builders left a mess with loads of mistakes. One issue was that they were constantly swearing badly even if her kids were around. Company was a 'proper' larger local UK company. Of course it doesn't need to be like this (and maybe less likely in rural areas?), but maybe just something to consider.

benson1980

Agree with above. Builders can be utter grief and the last lot we had in for a £30k project (not extension but extensive landscaping) caused no end of stress.

Personally we don't know anyone that has ended up 'quids in' from extensions (Hampshire), especially if you want all the finishes done as well by the trades. In fact, whenever I've enquired as to costs (which are normally double what they thought it would be initially), you look at what the house would have been worth prior, plus what they spent, and it rarely makes any financial sense and they would have been so much better off moving if they wanted a bigger/better house, even when factoring in moving costs. No way would I do extension work on this basis, prior to selling in the hopes of getting the money back.

I don't see the benefit of getting planning as prospective buyers will have the neighbours extended houses to compare to in terms of precedent, presumably.

twopenny

There is a price boom at the moment because of peoples changed circumstances. I'm predicting this will change shortly as life changes again and so will many peoples circumstances 
One thing hasn't changed. Location and views make a difference. Also potential for development.
A 3 bed bungalow goes for around 300,000 here. One is on the market for 635,000. The views and location and grounds are spectacular.
I sold mine in need of updating for a lot more than expected because of it's location and views. Ripe for development. Instant buyers. Others in the street tried to match unsuccessfully because they didn't have this.
Save your money and nerves for the move. You could apply for the potential to extend? Can you guarantee it will be given? It's better to let a potential buyer check that out for themselves.
I'd concentrate on maintenance and making it appeal to your target market.

babyblade41

We had plans full a full ground floor extension passed, but our circumstances changed and found we would need  a bungalow in the not too distant future.

We are in a conservation area and plans went straight through with no problems but once Covid passed its height we decided that moving would be preferable to continue with an extension as A, we wouldn't stay long enough to really enjoy it and the thought of the disruption would be fairly intolerable .

We put our house on the market the end of November and the extension plans created a lot of interest as people could see what was capable and liked that all the ground work was done so ready to go pretty much 

I think if you are thinking of selling in the next 12-18 months then possibly look at getting the planning permission  in place and sell with it on rather than actually building it 

ETA not sure why a B with a closed bracket caused an emoji with sunglasses !!