Reply to: Loft Conversion – what is a fair price?

[OwlHoot]

We bought a bungalow with 6 good sized rooms, and paid £60k on top for a full-house refurb including new electrics, windows, heating, replastered all walls & ceilings and added a dormer on the back.

The dormer added a gallery landing, 4 more rooms, including an en-suite & walk-in wardrobe for the master bedroom, and an additonal wc for the other bedrooms, as well as doors into the front eves for storage. ..

Crikey, that's not a bungalow - It sounds more like a Roman villa

[Grinder]

We bought a bungalow with 6 good sized rooms, and paid £60k on top for a full-house refurb including new electrics, windows, heating, replastered all walls & ceilings and added a dormer on the back.

The dormer added a gallery landing, 4 more rooms, including an en-suite & walk-in wardrobe for the master bedroom, and an additonal wc for the other bedrooms, as well as doors into the front eves for storage.

Money was saved by building the rear wall of the dormer immediately on top of the back wall of the house - this was all agreed with building control. No steels were used, other than flitch-beams, which sandwich a 12mm steel filling between 12 inch wood beams.

The builder calculated all the loadings and checked them with an engineer. One new support was added - a concrete-block post that lies within the wall, from a (1 cu metre) hole under the ground all the way up to the trailing edge of the dormer (nearest the ridge).

Its a great house; definitely worth the trouble. We didn't live in it while the work was done though.

[OwlHoot]

Live in a detached bungalow – only 2 beds, so I would like to convert the attic to another room. Ie, turn the bungalow to a house……

Looking for stairs up, dormer window, and the needed re-joisting to support the floor.

Anyone had this kind of work done? Did you regret it?

FFS, what kind of guy under the age of 70 would buy and live in a *bungalow*?

The very word brings to mind images of pipes and slippers, and some old timer who "can't manage stairs" pottering around in his tiny back garden grumbling that it's all getting too much to maintain at his age.

[orac]

30-40k

Deffo near 40. Staircase, support, change roof, dormer

[worzelGummidge]

This is one of the house upgrades where you never get your money back. If you like the house then fair enough but don't think of doing it because you would like the extra space AND it will add value to the house.

[voodooflux]

Would love to have 2 plus en-suite, but the roof is sloping to the centre from all angles, so not much head space, hence the dormer to give access for an occasional bedroom.

Could look into dormering the front and / or side as well, but this would be fairly structural to the roof, and costly.

Will defo get 3 builders in to ensure I have all options looked at.

£25K min sounds a lot for a room!!

We had our loft converted into two bedrooms and a shower room, with a dormer at the back. Total cost for construction was around £35K.

[BrilloPad]

Why don't you just move to a house FFS?

Prefrably one on about 100 acres where there are no neighbours for you to upset.

[MrNoMotivation]

Don't think either is a requirement in a bungalow loft conversion, only if a third storey is being added to a 2 storey house.

Difficult adding a 3rd storey to a 1 storey house. Long stairs and some large pillars.

[Archangel]

a) fire door at the top/bottom of the stairs - single room in loft.
b) fire doors on all room in the loft

Don't think either is a requirement in a bungalow loft conversion, only if a third storey is being added to a 2 storey house.

[MrNoMotivation]

Live in a detached bungalow – only 2 beds, so I would like to convert the attic to another room. Ie, turn the bungalow to a house……

Looking for stairs up, dormer window, and the needed re-joisting to support the floor.

Anyone had this kind of work done? Did you regret it?

Is you old?

[MrNoMotivation]

Why don't you just move to a house FFS?

I agree. You could always buy an S2000 + caravan instead ;->

[ASB]

Another problem can be the age of the bungalow. It becomes a construction issue rather than planning but building regs only use to call for footing adequate for a bungalow, thus you need to ascertain whether the foorings can take the additional construction. Less of a problem with newer properties since building regs were updated to mandate footing which were capable of supporting an upwards extension.

[b0redom]

I've been quoted £32k and £28k for a loft conversion on my house - 1 room, ensuite (with a rear dormer).

[FiveTimes]

Would love to have 2 plus en-suite, but the roof is sloping to the centre from all angles, so not much head space, hence the dormer to give access for an occasional bedroom.

Could look into dormering the front and / or side as well, but this would be fairly structural to the roof, and costly.

Will defo get 3 builders in to ensure I have all options looked at.

£25K min sounds a lot for a room!!

Don't forget architects might be needed and they cost.

Get quotes from builders, but also from specialist conversion firms.

We had 2 extra room and an ensuite done - 10% deposit the rest on completion.

[DimPrawn]

Would love to have 2 plus en-suite, but the roof is sloping to the centre from all angles, so not much head space, hence the dormer to give access for an occasional bedroom.

Could look into dormering the front and / or side as well, but this would be fairly structural to the roof, and costly.

Will defo get 3 builders in to ensure I have all options looked at.

£25K min sounds a lot for a room!!

Why don't you just move to a house FFS?