Renovating
It’s a common occurrence – you’ve found the property of your dreams but it’s falling apart and renovation seems like the answer. But will the renovation be worth your while?
We've put together some top tips and general advice on what you should consider when you're looking at properties to renovate.
How to Assess Renovation Opportunities
Expand all
Collapse all
-
Are they structural or cosmetic? Cracks in plaster walls and masonry can look extremely worrying but are frequently only cosmetic. Knowing whether they indicate more serious structural problems can be very useful in making your initial verdict on a renovation project. Isolated cracks, eg a crack in a single brick or a stress crack in a plaster wall next to a window or doorway, are unlikely to be structural. Where cracking is more extensive and follows a pattern there is likely to be a more serious cause. Look for signs of movement in the building. Typical causes are subsidence (which may mean underpinning beneath the walls) or the failure of the floor or roof structure. In a very old building, however, the structure may be perfectly stable despite twists, bows and warps and attempts at repairs may do more harm than good.
-
Old buildings without damp are the exception, so do not be too concerned about signs of damp as they can always be solved. First you need to identify the source of the damp and then solving it involves simple and inexpensive repair or replacement. In an old brick building, a damp proof course can be created by injecting silicone into the bricks both inside and outside the building. For the average three bedroom terraced house, this is likely to cost around £300-£400. Don’t forget the cost of redecorating as this usually involves hacking off the plaster below one metre and then re-plastering. A good plasterer charges around £150 to £200 a day. See Tip 7 as you may want to combine damp proofing with complete re-plastering.
-
Tell tale signs that a house needs rewiring are easy to spot. Look for an old-fashioned fuse box instead of a modern consumer unit, old fashioned round light switches, round pin plugs or old wires. Rewiring a typical three bedroom terraced house will cost from £2,500 to £3,000, including removing the old wiring, lifting and replacing the floorboards and installing a new consumer unit, but excluding and making good (eg plaster and decoration). The job should take a pair of electricians five to seven days.
-
Adding central heating is easily one of the most cost-effective improvements you can make to a house and will always add more to the value of a property than it costs to install. Adding a wet radiator, gas central heating system to a typical three bedroom terrace house will cost £2,500 - £5,000 and should take a plumber eight to ten days.
-
Many old houses were built either without bathroom facilities or have since had them added on the ground floor. Installing a new bathroom at first floor level is likely to cost around £800-£1500, with a basic white bathroom set from one of the DIY stores costing around £250-£350. You also need to consider the drains and where they will run which could add to your costs. Creating the stud walling for a new bathroom out of an upstairs bedroom is likely to cost £1,500-£2,500 including finishing and tiling, but consider the implications of possibly losing a bedroom to make space for a new bathroom.
-
Dry rot is a fungus that will destroy timber very quickly. It even penetrates brick walls to get to more timber. Dry rot loves moist, poorly ventilated conditions and is usually found in the roofspace or under wooden floorboards. Dry rot is easy to identify – the spores send out fungal strands along the timber and through or along any wall. These strands can become quite dense. The first sign of dry root is often its distinctive musty smell when you lift a floorboard or even just the carpet. Getting rid of dry rot will cost around £1,200 for treatment by a specialist firm. Repair costs for replacing any damage are in addition to this and can be extensive. The best way to prevent a recurrence is to improve ventilation and eradicate any damp. Don’t forget to add on the cost of re-plastering where necessary.
-
A term that is likely to be applied to most buildings in need of renovation. It sounds benign and therefore inexpensive to put right, but it can be a catch-all term for problems ranging from the need for a bit of clearing and redecorating, to a total re-plaster throughout. Sometimes it can be more cost-efficient, and probably time efficient, to re-plaster completely. Re-plastering the walls and ceilings of a three bedroom terraced house will cost from £3,000-£4,000 and will take a gang of two plasterers 8-10 days.
-
Woodworm is a common pest in damp timber that can cause major problems if the damage is extensive. However, in most situations the damage is superficial (providing the holes are 2mm or less) and the problem can be eradicated using pesticides. The problem can be more serious if the woodworm has managed to get into less accessible areas of the structure that cannot easily be treated. Before paying for any treatment, make sure the woodworm is still alive and has not already been eradicated – look for signs of sawdust around the holes. Pesticide treatment will cost from £600-£1,000 for an average house.
-
Replace your original windows with caution as they can be an inherent part of the building’s character and therefore its value. Original windows can often be repaired and this may cost less than replacing them with new windows in a sympathetic style. In many areas, however, replacement windows are a must for all buyers and will add considerably more to the value of the property than they cost. Make sure you pay attention to the style and proportions and which lights should be opening or fixed. Decent PVCu double glazed windows will cost from £200-£400 each and the same again for fitting. You can get cheaper versions but don’t stint on the quality.
Renovating an old property can be a great way to get your dream home and climb the housing ladder, but it can also be a minefield for the unwary.
Underestimating costs, buying property without a survey and ignoring rules and regulations are just some of the common errors people make during renovations, but they can all be easily avoided. In this article H&R Editor in Chief Michael Holmes highlights all the prevalent mistakes renovators make; helping you to avoid them.
Read the full article
Book Tickets Now for the Homebuilding & Renovating Shows