Gametheory Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 Hi All, It seems that it is once again possible to pick up a site closish to Bfast for under £125K. Assuming its a half decent site do you guys think its possible to build a detached house for under £150K. I'm thinking 4 bed approx 2000 sq ft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky_FTB Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 It's a very open question and obviously depends on many factors such as whether you source the workers yourself or hire a contractor to organise everything for you, standard and type of finish, shape of the house etc etc. But if it's any help, i was quoted by a local well known and reputable builder, in the middle of last year - 2400 sq ft 2 storey house, fairly standard rectangular shaped, 4 bed, 3 reception, rough cast exterior finish, black roof tiles, oak doors+trim, 3rd fix electrical installation, heating/plumbing fitted and tested - all for around £115k. That was without garage and without kitchen or bathrooms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gametheory Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 Thnks Ricky. Apprecite your input. Yes take your point that it can vary enormously. I was thinking along the lines of what you mention - pretty standard house. So it does seem that its possible to build a completely finished house minus furnishings for £125K + £150K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NIOWEN Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 Hi there, we have just bought a site and are planning on building once our other house sells. Were not sure on how much it would cost so asked around. You can go timber frame or block construction. Timber frame is ment to be cheaper. With low labour costs we found block cheaper. Timber frame 4 bed 2500 sqr ft is £30k erected on site in 2 days, includes roof plasterboards and insulation. Mate put an add on belfast gumtree asking builders to quote per 1000 block. Most are charging £300 per 1000 block (30p per block) and blocks and cement is just under £1 each. Worked out he needed about 12000 blocks = £15600. Less than half price of the timber frame as you have to build blocks around it. He worked out it would cost £80-£100k to build a 4 bed 2500sq ft. We hope this is the case in a years time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smell the Fear Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 I wonder if your friend included all costs - his price is less than 40 pounds per sq ft, a price I have never heard mentioned before for a completed build-,it would barely cover materials. For a decent spec you would need to double that. Also need to think about finishes and external landscaping/fencing. I think there are a lot of people who think they built a house for a bargain price, when I see there house I generally think they haven't finished it yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smell the Fear Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 As a guide I have recently costed a large extension project ( 1000 sq ft) and it's around 70 per sq ft. excluding kitchen/bathrooms/ landscaping/ decorating. It's a good time to build as there is a lot of competition amongst builders, Negotiating is easy. On the other hand you need to be careful not to push them too hard as they will have no incentive to do a good job and will be encouraged to cut corners by rushing or using inferior materials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelfastVI Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 You have to remember when the jobbing builder leaves you still have a lot of work to do to obtain a finished house. You also have to allow for design, planning and building control fees. Connecting to the water, electric and BT. Discharging sewerage can be £5k on its own. You will have a garden and drive away and possible garage to add to this. The kitchen, fireplace, bathroom and tiling can add £20 to £40k depending on what you want. All in all I would allow £80 to £100 per sq foot to totally finish the house. If you want to make your house cheap to run you will not get it with a £40 per sq foot builder. Remember parts of this can be left or later years. As the posters above say labour costs are well down. Brickies were £1 per block now 30p is the going rate. Unfortunately the price of the block and mortar has went up which eats away a good bit of the saving. On Smell the fears extension he would have also paid 20% VAT on the materials (don't let anyone charge you this on labour). On New build you get this back on 90% of materials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gametheory Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 Thanks that was useful. I'd be happy with a 1700 sq ft house, so looks like I could have it all done to a reasonable spec for under £150K. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barl835 Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Its been awhile since I’ve been on. Going through a lot of post. Just to see if any catch my eye. Just about to get the completion certificate for my own house. I have kept a close eye on my building cost the full way through it. Hope this helps. 2 story house 2500 Square feet 4 bedrooms 3 receptions Block house Dash finish All interior completed in solid oak doors, skirting, etc Solid oak staircase Under floor heating Solar panels Completed to what I consider a high standard throughout This included drawing up a set of plans and all associated costs that go with submitting them to planning, building control, etc (did not use an architect) Not including fireplaces No garage as yet No driveway No fencing or planting to date Will complete at later date Total cost was under £158,000 A contractor will take their cut if you go down that road but they can take away a lot of the stress and hassle that comes with it. As previous posters have stated the cost will depend on how high of a spec you want to work to. I tried my best to keep to as high as I could afford. Remember it does cost money to get a set of plans made up by an architect. There are lots of hidden cost that will always crop up during a build, some of mine are listed below. The above cost does include the following Water connection Electric connection The drainage might not be good so reed beds will be requested Septic tank (which I know I had to pay big money for since they wanted whatever waste coming out of it to be bottle as Ballygowan water) BT connection EPC test Hope this helps a bit. Any questions feel free to ask. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2buyornot2buy Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Really useful information there. Thanks a lot for sharing this with us. Is that the total cost minus the vat? Out of interest how expensive was the site if you don't mind me asking and how difficult was it getting a mortgage for a new build? My father has a site is be interest in developing. Eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barl835 Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Really useful information there. Thanks a lot for sharing this with us. Is that the total cost minus the vat? Out of interest how expensive was the site if you don't mind me asking and how difficult was it getting a mortgage for a new build? My father has a site is be interest in developing. Eventually. The cost is excluding VAT as you claim it back at the end of the build or the contractor does not charge vat I got the site for under £90,000 so all in it did cost around £248,000 for site and building cost. I will admit that I did not purchase the site out right and did need help from the mortgage company to purchase the site and then build. This did prove problems as all mortgage companies would not offer the mortgage unless I owned the site outright. I found my mortgage through a brokers. My experience was excellent with this one but not sure how other would fair out. Found me what I needed and made sure everything went smoothly. BM Solutions are the company I have the mortgage with (only company that will give a mortgage to buy and build site, at the time). I will admit I’m stuck with them for another 14 months only if I want to pay the massive penalty fees that come with it. Since I have completed so quickly I did contemplate paying these fees to get on a better mortgage but I was not saving in the long run. Hope the above helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_SUNDANCE Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Self build is something we have also been considering. The main priority would be finding the right site. Our idea of the house type would be story and a half and not very large in size. We have some ideas in mind if we found the right site. We would like to have reclaimed slates and sash type windows to add some character. Wondering how much more espensive these additions would be over modern slates and modern pvc windows. We did see a very good site last month and enquired if it was for sale but unfortunately it was not. It had actually been for sale a short time previously but when we called the estate agent it had already been sold. We knew a wealthy family member of an inlaw had bought it. It was 8 acres with an old disused house. He had princiapply bought it for the 8 acres of farming land and we hoped the disused house set on half an acre might be for sale but it was not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gavin123 Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Its been awhile since I’ve been on. Going through a lot of post. Just to see if any catch my eye. Just about to get the completion certificate for my own house. I have kept a close eye on my building cost the full way through it. Hope this helps. 2 story house 2500 Square feet 4 bedrooms 3 receptions Block house Dash finish All interior completed in solid oak doors, skirting, etc Solid oak staircase Under floor heating Solar panels Completed to what I consider a high standard throughout This included drawing up a set of plans and all associated costs that go with submitting them to planning, building control, etc (did not use an architect) Not including fireplaces No garage as yet No driveway No fencing or planting to date Will complete at later date Total cost was under £158,000 A contractor will take their cut if you go down that road but they can take away a lot of the stress and hassle that comes with it. As previous posters have stated the cost will depend on how high of a spec you want to work to. I tried my best to keep to as high as I could afford. Remember it does cost money to get a set of plans made up by an architect. There are lots of hidden cost that will always crop up during a build, some of mine are listed below. The above cost does include the following Water connection Electric connection The drainage might not be good so reed beds will be requested Septic tank (which I know I had to pay big money for since they wanted whatever waste coming out of it to be bottle as Ballygowan water) BT connection EPC test Hope this helps a bit. Any questions feel free to ask. Great information - can i ask for a few more details: 1) can you remember the cost for the septic tank and the utility connections? 2) how much was the solar panels and the underfloor heating? 3) how much did you spend on your kitchen, bathrooms and tiling? 4) how long did it take and how did you find managing the project yourself? Sorry for asking so many questions, but i'm considering this option at the minute and would find this info really useful. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R + R Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 anybody starting to build today will find that nearly all materials have increased in the last couple of months, some substantially thanks to the government for their aggregate tax and unexpected inflation rock on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelfastVI Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 anybody starting to build today will find that nearly all materials have increased in the last couple of months, some substantially thanks to the government for their aggregate tax and unexpected inflation rock on! Unfortunately insulation has almost doubled again (even the type not made out of oil). I guess its a sign of its success. Anyone building now will be likely to over specify insulation (which I would encourage). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_SUNDANCE Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 I saw an advert on the tv last night for a self build exhibition in the kings Hall this weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barl835 Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Great information - can i ask for a few more details: 1) can you remember the cost for the septic tank and the utility connections? 2) how much was the solar panels and the underfloor heating? 3) how much did you spend on your kitchen, bathrooms and tiling? 4) how long did it take and how did you find managing the project yourself? Sorry for asking so many questions, but i'm considering this option at the minute and would find this info really useful. Cheers Sorry Gavin about taking so long to get back, in the process of setting up the internet in the house. I see what I can pull out here when it comes to cost 1) can you remember the cost for the septic tank and the utility connections? £2100 or £3000 for the septic tank that may include or may not include reed beds I have to find the receipt to confirm sorry about that 2) how much was the solar panels and the underfloor heating? The plumbing came just over £13000 thats underfloor, bathroom, etc. The solar panels cost £2450 which I applied for a grant with and got an extra £400 off so total £2050 Solar panel-£2050 Total Plumbing-£13000 3) how much did you spend on your kitchen, bathrooms and tiling? £5500 for kitchen plus utility, £2150 for tiling and £4500 for tiles 4) how long did it take and how did you find managing the project yourself? It is not easy. Can be very stressful at times. I had a good friend who was looking over my shoulder to make sure I did not do anything wrong. Hope this helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gavin123 Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Sorry Gavin about taking so long to get back, in the process of setting up the internet in the house. I see what I can pull out here when it comes to cost 1) can you remember the cost for the septic tank and the utility connections? £2100 or £3000 for the septic tank that may include or may not include reed beds I have to find the receipt to confirm sorry about that 2) how much was the solar panels and the underfloor heating? The plumbing came just over £13000 thats underfloor, bathroom, etc. The solar panels cost £2450 which I applied for a grant with and got an extra £400 off so total £2050 Solar panel-£2050 Total Plumbing-£13000 3) how much did you spend on your kitchen, bathrooms and tiling? £5500 for kitchen plus utility, £2150 for tiling and £4500 for tiles 4) how long did it take and how did you find managing the project yourself? It is not easy. Can be very stressful at times. I had a good friend who was looking over my shoulder to make sure I did not do anything wrong. Hope this helps Cheers - it def helps! I tend to find that a lot of people think you can build a good sized house for around £100k but from the details you've provided this shows that is unrealistic. I've been told that paying a quantity surveyor is money well spent as you can get an accurate estimate of the build cost and it allows you to identify areas were you can cut back on (if needed) to allow you to complete other tasks. I'm faced with the choice of buying second hand, which would be the easy option as I can move straight in, but having to modify the house to suit my taste, or build and have a year or more of renting and stress, but get a house that would be done to my taste and would prob be bigger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barl835 Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 Cheers - it def helps! I tend to find that a lot of people think you can build a good sized house for around £100k but from the details you've provided this shows that is unrealistic. I've been told that paying a quantity surveyor is money well spent as you can get an accurate estimate of the build cost and it allows you to identify areas were you can cut back on (if needed) to allow you to complete other tasks. I'm faced with the choice of buying second hand, which would be the easy option as I can move straight in, but having to modify the house to suit my taste, or build and have a year or more of renting and stress, but get a house that would be done to my taste and would prob be bigger. For the kitchen I never included the price of the appliances or worktops. Its up to yourself what you want to pay there. I found getting prices off 3-4 different people when it came to each job, tiles, kitchen, etc and putting them off each other help put the price down. The lowest kitchen price compared to the highest price had £10,000 of savings. You could cut the price of the house way down by going for lower specs. I'm not saying my house is the top end, its the way I want it to be. I hope all goes well for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.