Renovating an old house cost?

fixxation · 19-08-2006 4:45pm #1

Hi everyone

We're thinking of purchasing an old end of terrace house in Dun Laoghaire that is in need of complete refurbishment/modernisation - it needs central heating added, re-wiring, new windows, an attic conversion, a few walls to be knocked down, proper plumbing installed, some old fireplaces removed, and a brand new bathroom and kitchen.

Basically, this is just the shell of a house from it's original state and it's has to be brought up to today' s standards in all areas. It's just over 900 sq ft.

We are also thinking about adding a 2 storey extension to the rear, to add more overall space.

Has anyone been through doing all this to a house before? We have no idea how much all of this is going to cost and are just trying to get an ballpark estimate on bringing the whole place up to standards. Thanks in advance...

Endymion · 19-08-2006 5:05pm

100 - 150k And no, I'm not taking the piss, in reality if could cost allot more then that when you finally go to do it. Thing is, these old houses are money pits, and it's only when you gut them do you get a real idea the what has to be done.

fixxation · 19-08-2006 8:10pm

Carnivore- thanks for that. Ahh it's the sad truth isn't it? At least we have a better idea of what we're up against now... thanks again

Endymion · 19-08-2006 9:12pm

serious, get a good Quantity suveyor in. He or she will give you a good idea. Allot of people find they price and borrow based on what you decribed above, and then have no money left for stuff like kitchens and bathrooms and painting. remember to take that into account.

I've worked on a couple renovation jobs, and the thing that stands out more then the cost, is the time. plan for a year tbh, especialyl with that extension.

I was working in one place where the guy had abit of space, got a quantity surveyor in, and ordered allot of the matierials in from germany, saved him quit allot.

Viking House · 19-08-2006 9:28pm

Two questions
How is the roof and do you need planning permission for the 2 storey extension?
Rough ballpark guide prices we use are €1k/m2 for renovations and €2k/m2 for extensions.

Jambo · 19-08-2006 9:35pm

fixxation,

You should also check with Dun Laoghaire / Rathdown Council too to check is it a listed building . As from personal experience with close relative selling a house at the moment both inside and out is protected and and renovations / structural changes must meet strict prior approval 1st !!!

fixxation · 19-08-2006 10:10pm

Yeah definitely- we decided to look for an old house that is about 150k less than what we have, just to be prepared for all the work that will need to go into it... I'm pretty sure we'll have our surveyor in before the end of the week to determine how much work will be needed...

Viking House- not sure about the roof yet but I hear it's one of the more expensive things to fix if there is trouble with it. Hopefully we'll know the full story on the place once we get the surveyor's report.

Jambo- fortunately it's not a listed building! (we think!) -- will have to doubt check that but I doubt it...

Thanks for the replies lads, fingers crossed here on this one

Jambo · 20-08-2006 3:40pm

Better check it than not tho - the house I was talking about is my grandmothers in waterford city an end of terrace 3 bed house - looks nothing special and an interested seller pulled out as he could not renovate the way he was wanting to . None of our family knew that the house was listed and its been in the family 40years +

ircoha · 20-08-2006 4:22pm

fixxation wrote:

Hi everyone

We're thinking of purchasing an old end of terrace house in Dun Laoghaire that is in need of complete refurbishment/modernisation - it needs central heating added, re-wiring, new windows, an attic conversion, a few walls to be knocked down, proper plumbing installed, some old fireplaces removed, and a brand new bathroom and kitchen.

Basically, this is just the shell of a house from it's original state and it's has to be brought up to today' s standards in all areas. It's just over 900 sq ft.

We are also thinking about adding a 2 storey extension to the rear, to add more overall space.

Has anyone been through doing all this to a house before? We have no idea how much all of this is going to cost and are just trying to get an ballpark estimate on bringing the whole place up to standards. Thanks in advance...

Viking house is the key man on this post, and will hopefully correct my ramblings.
This is my perspective having done a number of renovations.

Given the scope of the work you have outlined, and u dont specify how large the extension will be, I would give very serious consideration to 'dozing the lot and do a complete re-build.
My experience is that in the long run it is the cheapest, allows you use the most up to date materials, as well as comply fully and easily with building regs, as well as make it as enegy efficient as possible.

In addition, I dont think 150 will do it in the current climate

The Hill Billy · 21-08-2006 9:00am

Fixxation:

I did a similar job on a similar-sized house 3 years ago. More or less this is what was done:

Fixed roof (few missing slates).
Insulated roof (used Conservobond).
Installed fire-break in previously shared roof-space.
Removed stairs (dry rot) & replaced, including bannisters.
Removed all downstairs floors, taking levels down 6 inches.
Installed DPC, insulation & new concrete floors.
Removed lath & plaster ceilings, treating all timbers for dry rot & woodworm.
New fusebox & complete rewiring.
Installed new plumbing & central heating system (first time in 150+ years that the house had hot running water – EVER – was in October 2004!).
Removed plaster from & re-pointed internal brick- & stonework.
150 sq ft extension with felt roof for utility room & bathroom.
Insulated & slabbed one bedroom, bathroom, utility & hallway.
Re-plastered 5 rooms.
New ceilings all rooms.
Laid solid wood floors throughout.
Re-painted walls & ceilings throughout.
Six new windows, 1 front door, 1 patio door. (Mrs Billy is still waiting on the patio to go with the door.

)
Hardwood window boards.
Countertop & 2 carcasses in kitchen (have mainly free-standing kitchen).
New sink, toilet, shower unit in bathroom.

It cost me €35k (materials, electrician, plumber, plasterer, brickie, some specialist carpentry/joinery). I did most of the work myself with the exception of all electrical work, the block-work for the extension, some plastering, most of the plumbing.

It also cost me evenings & weekends for 11 months (could have got it done quicker had I known what I was doing at the start - I'm a desk-jockey usually) & lots of pints for mates who gave a dig out.

TBH - I could have saved a lot of time by cutting out the restoration of internal features but it would have looked sh1te compared to what we have today.

Best of luck!

dools · 21-08-2006 9:33am

Fixxation,

Like Hill Billy, we got work done on old house last year and it cost €35k. We moved a couple of months ago and are currently going through the same process.

For €35k we got:
Complete rewire
Comple replumb (kept existing boiler)
New fitted Kitched (Vinlyl wrapped Maple Shaker - not a solid wood one)
New stair bannister
re-slab of ceilings (stipple) and all walls skimmed downstairs
New doors and architraves throughout
Wall knocked through between kitchen and dining room
semi solid flooring all downstairs
Kitchen tiled
Alarm fitted
attic stairs (stira) and a small area floored
Box room skimmed
New carpet in 3 bedrooms, stairs and landing
New windows throughout, front door, back door and porch
Roller blinds installed
New Fireplace

That was about it for €35k. In addition, you have to add in the cost of paints, light fittings,etc

HTH

D

fixxation · 21-08-2006 10:52am

ircoha, Hill Billy, dools:

Thanks a million for the [very!] detailed replies, I'm amazed that both of you [Hill Billy, dools] could get all of that done for under €50k. My girlfriend and I aren't the most skilled with building and renovations etc, and plus with many other commitments on the side, we'd have to pay builders and the other relevant professionals to do most of the work as free time isn't really on our side right now. This is where the concern is, as it would probably be more in the area of 150k+, similar to what ircoha and Viking House has said.

I think the next step as definitely to have a builder or surveyor in to check it out as Carnivore mentioned... we're kind of stuck in the middle on this one, because we love the house, but just really have to figure out if we have enough to put into it now to make it habitable, and then do the rest later [extension, etc] -- the biggest fear is getting halfway through and then realizing the funds run out, we're just trying to be as cautious as possible throughout the whole idea to make sure that doesn't happen.... will definitely get a builder in now to check it out and see what the story is.

Thanks for all the help.

dools · 21-08-2006 11:14am

No Probs Fixxation,

As I said, we are currently renovating our new (old) house. The plumbers and sparks are in and we have the windows and doors done. You can certainly get a lot of work done for €30 - €35k but have certainly noticed the hikes in costs since this time last year. We are getting the same job done and using the same tradesmen. Th windows cost €9.5k (v €8.5k last year). The plumber is costing €9k this time (v €7k last time) as we had to get a new boiler installed and copper has increased 100% in cost.

You really need to decide whether you are going to go ahead with the extension or not. The renovation process is very dirty and obtrusive. We have moved in with the inlaws for a month while the work is being done as sometimes there is no water nor electricity in the house plus the floorboards have been ripped up for the lads to run pipes and cables. If you go ahead and do the existing house and then do the extension at a later stage, you will have to go through the whole rigmarole twice. Would'nt fancy it personally. If funds are tight, could you do the existing house and just add a single storey extension?

Keep us up to date

D

Endymion · 21-08-2006 11:31am

It's very unlikely you would be allowed to completely knock an old terrace house, regardless of it being listed or not. One of the mains thigns about redevelopements is that they have to stay true to the local area. So if you have a row of red brick terrace houses you can't exactly build what ever you want.

Fixation, The key thing in Hill Billy's post is that he did most of the work himself. Now that can either save you money or cost you money, depending on how competent you are. And as he said, it will take you longer, savings on labour could end up going on increased material cost. It's not unusual to see 20 -30 % increases in matierial costs in a year.

fixxation · 28-08-2006 7:00pm

Hi again everyone

Well, the builder has been in and we have a quote. The quote was, ehm... higher than our budget as expected so we really have to have a serious think about how we're going to make this work if it's going to work at all.

The figure to modernise the whole current (old) house as it stands was around 100k. The 2-storey extension adds another 100k on top of the work in the old house alone, and that suddenly puts the project cost 200k when the budget is only 100k to begin with.

As many of you have said this isn't going to be an easy project to take on, especially when myself and girlfriend know very little about renovations and also wouldn't have a lot of time to manage it properly, which could be a massive downfall of the whole project and we could end-up in a disasterous situation.

The biggest problem is that we'll need at least the ground floor extension to get the kitchen in properly- the current kitchen is 13'x7' and there isn't any room to spare inside the house except for going out to the back. The idea of just doing the ground floor extension is good for getting the kitchen in properly, but I'd say it would be cheaper to have them do the full 2-storey extension at the same time as I'm guessing it would be cheaper than doing each level at separate stages. Doing them at the same time will take all the money in the budget and then the rest of the old original house is left in it's original state, which isn't the best either having half a nice house and half an old unwired/no plumbing/no heating old house.

To top it all off, we haven't even bought this house yet. We don't want to make an offer unless we're confident that we can get something decent and livable with our small budget of 100k. Planning permission will still have to be applied for, and if it's rejected based on the architect drawings then this whole thing is a waste of time and money...

We could apply for planning permission now, but I doubt the owners of the house have 3+ months to wait around for us to find out of it's rejected or accepted. It's hard to say if they would even accept an offer on the house subject to pp but I'm sure we'll find out soon enough. Based on what other owners on the street have done, it doesn't appear that it will be a problem to get permission for the 2-storey extension, and 1-storey I suppose is even easier as long as we don't go over the maximum square footage allowed.

What do most of you think about all this, would it be crazy to put a bid on this house before obtaining planning permission? Has anyone here been in a similar situation where money is tight, and done a single storey extension first and then the top floor part of the extension at a later point in time?

Cheers for the replies lads, really appreciate it here!

The Renovate House rookie Fixxation

The Hill Billy · 29-08-2006 7:43am

Fixxation:

Do you really, really need to build on out the back at the moment? I ask because the house I bought & renovated was way smaller to our previous house - but we still managed to make it work without extending.

Basically we moved from a standard 3-bed semi into a house with 3 rooms. 1 bedroom for us, one for the child & a kitchen/living room. I built a small extension (5m x 2.5m) to the rear for a utility room & bathroom.

Anyway, myself & Mrs Billy did quite a bit of research into space-saving techniques & the like, & things have worked out really well. Even down to simple things like converting the old fireplace into a larder, having sliding doors on kitchen units/furniture.

When you get down to it - you don't need half the space that you think you do.

Best of luck with whatever you do.

fixxation · 29-08-2006 12:25pm

Hill Billy- thanks for the reply. Yeah, when it really comes down to it, we don't absolutely need the extension at all. It would be really nice of course, but the more I think of it after reading advice from all of you and other advice from friends, it's just not feasbile at this point in time to put an extension on the house and then leave the rest of it as it is (in it's current old original state).

We've decided to redo everything on the inside, make it livable and make the most out of the space, and then leave the extension(s) until a later date. After all, we'll have the house and the land, and it's not a necessity to have the extension now. It's unfortunate that we couldn't afford to do both the house and the extension with our budget, but I think for peace of mind, we'll be much better of (financially and mentally) by taking this route.

Many thanks to all of you for your advice in this situation here... all is looking good now moving forward.

Cheers
A.

damiand · 05-09-2006 1:43am

Interesting discussion. Thwo calculation were never menetioned (I think),
1. the cost of the architect - €3 to 8,000 +++and
2. Developmnet Contributions attached to any grant of permission for the extension. Dont know how much that is.

MonaLisa · 06-11-2006 1:12pm

Hi All,
Just a quick Question, Any of you kind people know and Honest/Excellent builder that can convert a Garage and Build an extension... Please PM Me with details if possible. Your help is much appreciated.

The property is located in Malahide/Portmarnock.

many Thanks
Mona

old boy · 10-11-2006 12:35am

fixxation, the old lady and i renovated our house a few years back done it all ourselves, went to the liberary rented a few books read and reread them, then started to work, very hard at the start but i can say lack of dosh is a good teacher, done up one room at the time, moved in early as possible, no rent to pay, convert rent money into cement wiring etc, once you have a place to eat and sleep you are on a winner. then you are in no rush, take a weekend off when you like, also remember, good used servicable furniture and fixtures will do until your are finished, BECAUSE THERE WILL BE DUST DUST DUST. also 3x2s with plasterboard attached will hide a multitude, our project cost us 12,000. i was offered 200,000 for it we felt quite chuffed, the old lady then done up the kitchen that cost 8000, if you purchase good used doors and windows, or new ones, you can then make the openings to fit, most manufacturers have unclaimed, or seconds, in stock and are glad to part with them.

secman · 10-11-2006 10:36am

Mona Lisa. I have posted you a private message concerning a local builder that I could reccommend to you.

MagDee · 03-10-2007 12:31pm

I would love to renovate and old house but have no idea of how to find one. all houses on myhome and daft are well looked after and owners put money to make them look better to sell them better. but since i have a weird taste i would be doing painting and all anyway so why pay twice?

John Mason · 03-10-2007 1:41pm

MagDee wrote:

I would love to renovate and old house but have no idea of how to find one. all houses on myhome and daft are well looked after and owners put money to make them look better to sell them better. but since i have a weird taste i would be doing painting and all anyway so why pay twice?

err, i found my house on myhome.ie and it had to gutted, cost me about 20-25k to do all the works to date ...........three years later i am still not finished

The Hill Billy · 04-10-2007 8:30am

MagDee:

When we found our place it wasn't even described as a house - it was on the estate agent's list described as a "property". They had no advertisement for it - even in their offices. It was on a typed-up list of available properties on their office counter.

What you are looking for is desirable, but not high-value. Estate agents usually don't post many "do-er up-ers" on the net. You would be better off doing some leg-work & calling in, explaining exactly what you are looking for & seeing what they have on offer rather than relying on MyHome.

NextSteps · 04-10-2007 9:06am

MagDee wrote:

I would love to renovate and old house but have no idea of how to find one. all houses on myhome and daft are well looked after and owners put money to make them look better to sell them better. but since i have a weird taste i would be doing painting and all anyway so why pay twice?

There's a big difference between painting (and other finishing touches) and renovations. Take it from me, a house that needs to be renovated will take about 2 years of your life - and that's with contracting out all the actual work. You will still spend 2 years talking, thinking and worrying about the place, every bloody day.

John Mason · 04-10-2007 1:29pm

UB wrote:

There's a big difference between painting (and other finishing touches) and renovations. Take it from me, a house that needs to be renovated will take about 2 years of your life - and that's with contracting out all the actual work. You will still spend 2 years talking, thinking and worrying about the place, every bloody day.

i agree totally, everyone thinks its going to be fun to do up a house, its not, it bloody hard work, stressfull and there will be many many tears shed. it you think the work is going to cost 20k, i would suggest you take a loan for 40k every timescale and budget you have should be doubled

The Hill Billy · 04-10-2007 4:57pm

MagDee:

Are you thinking of renovating or redecorating? If you gave us an idea of the type of changes you would make to a house it would help us give you better advice.

MagDee · 04-10-2007 5:08pm

it would have to be livable on some level. i can change windows and installations alright but as little as possible of course to avoid pain in the backside. generally redecorating only would be ideal but i'm not great on miracles

but i would need to move in at least to one room, to have hot water access and roof over my head. and if before winter - some kind of heating wouldn' hurt.

The Hill Billy · 05-10-2007 9:03am

So it is a real doer-uper that you're after. Good for you! Get out there & start knocking on the estate agent's doors. Also, if you see a run-down place that you are interested in - you could always approach the owners directly or through an agent to see if they were willing to sell.

MagDee wrote:

i would need to ... have hot water access and ... and if before winter - some kind of heating wouldn' hurt.

Wuss!

D72 · 15-11-2007 10:28am

Hello,

Some good information in this thread.I have just purchased a small cottage 800( not including attic conversion that will be done )sqft that also needs compete refurbishment.Just wondering fixxation how you got on and does anyone believe 60k is enough to get up and running. I've reasonably good diy knowledge but my main concern is that the house requires rewiring , plumbing and a new heating system so I am concerned with regards to getting that done as im not sure when it can be done.For example Does rewiring only require 2 fixes or is it back and forth and back and forth and when is the begining stage. Also the internal walls are solid concrete and we need to knock quite a few of them so whats the load bearing issues as we are also getting an attic conversion done so can we design that to place the complete roof load bearing onto the side walls and then do whatever we want inside. ( single story ). ANy comments woould be much appreciated even if they are not directly realted to above questions

Damfino · 15-11-2007 12:58pm

Hi

Great thread! Some very informative comments.

We too are tempted by a renovation/restoration jobbie on a mid terraced house in Dublin, around 1000 sq/foot

Big fear for us is whether we can future proof the home, and create a sell on option in years to come. Big disadvantage at present, is the fact that you'd have to go through the house to get to the garden. Also size of main bathroom upstairs is relatively small, with no current ensuites upstairs. Also no utility bathroom downstairs.

We would hope to put on single floor extension across the rear of the house, and create an open plan layout with existing living room. (I.e kitchen come dining area, and put in double patio door) Existing kitchen at front of house would need to be turned in to seperate living room.

Meeting with builder over next few days, so will be interesting to see how accurate my guesstimates are below??

Extension: 65
Kitchen: (Would be small area to fill, so I'm imagine 7k-10k)
Electrics 10k (Family Friend would help us out, but still need materials)
Flooring 5-8k
Plumbing and heating 15k ++ (Depends on what could be done upstairs)
Windows (7 windows frames x double glazing )15k
Shower (2k)
Doors 5k
Internal restructuring (We would need to change layout to hallway and knock through existing utility room at back, keeping connection with garden, seperate from rest of house.) 10k

150k would be needed to make it habitable... Major ouch on the cashflow, but alot of 3 bed new developments in dublin, do not come to the market with space upstairs in the bedrooms, big gardens stc.

Could be worth the risk, or could be stuck with a mid-terrace house for life and in debt

pbolger2001 · 11-12-2007 10:38pm

hi,

just wondering if you got prices back on your building costs. i am in a similar situation renovating a property of approximately 1250sq ft. I had a rough quote of 80-85,000(worse case scenario figures, apparently).

this is for:

skimming of all walls and ceilings inside.
complete rewire,
complere replumb, (including new burner, tank and rads)
new windows and doors ,inside and out.
new skirtings and architrives, door frames and stairs.
demolishing two walls and putting in RSJs.
building a new en suite.
hi-spec kitchen and bathroom suites.
solid oak floors downstairs.
bathroom/kitchen tiled.
painting of whole house.
re-roofing utility room.
outside walls dry lined.
complete waste removal.

(they gave me an 8wk time frame)
id appreciate ANY advice from anyone.

Also, there is a mini extension above the existing extension. it is quite small and barely holds a sink and toilet. Id be looking to extend this a few feet to one side. This isnt included in the price above. Anyone ideas on how much this would cost and if it would effect the existing foundations of the extension.

thanks.
pbolger2001@yahoo.com

D72 · 12-12-2007 9:25am

Thats about right. In fact it appears reasonably good especially if it includes fittings and Painting of the house. I am getting similar quotes not including painting and fittings and not including a kitchen but does include a fairly major attic conversion and stairs.

quarry · 20-02-2008 7:08pm

Anybody interested in renovation and restoration of old houses should take a look at www.formerglory.ie. Loads of interesting buildings and houses for sale and advice and information.

alinoee · 21-02-2008 10:42am

fixxation wrote: »

Hi again everyone

To top it all off, we haven't even bought this house yet. We don't want to make an offer unless we're confident that we can get something decent and livable with our small budget of 100k. Planning permission will still have to be applied for, and if it's rejected based on the architect drawings then this whole thing is a waste of time and money... We could apply for planning permission now, but I doubt the owners of the house have 3+ months to wait around for us to find out of it's rejected or accepted. It's hard to say if they would even accept an offer on the house subject to pp but I'm sure we'll find out soon enough. Based on what other owners on the street have done, it doesn't appear that it will be a problem to get permission for the 2-storey extension, and 1-storey I suppose is even easier as long as we don't go over the maximum square footage allowed.

The Renovate House rookie Fixxation

Hi Fixxation ,
extension to the rear is generally exempt development (no need for planning) if the floor area of the proposed extension does not exceed 40 sq meters. (the area of the firs floor extension cannot exceed 12 sq. m. This is still subject to the distances from boundary, opposing windows and couple more things. If this suits you than you can always apply for pp to get larger extension and if refused build exempt one. But remember there is more than area to consider extension exempt. You might also need to get pp for your attic conversion. If you decide to apply for pp before you buy the house, if successful, I think the seller will rise the price. You could also go to Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown CC and see the planning history of the house. Owner might have already applied for PP and was refused.

prospect · 21-02-2008 3:02pm

Anyone know of any good websites that deal with the whole renovation process?

(Irish/UK would obviously be preferrable).

kcullen · 26-08-2008 12:03pm

Hi all,

My boyfriend and I just viewed and are considering making an offer on an old house in a brilliant location!

It is an executor sale hence the bargain discount price.

We will be getting a surveyor to look at the house but on first impressions it is amazing. 1000 sq ft, with 100sq ft garden therefore lots of extension potential.

We would be keen to buy it and make the few necessary changes now in order to make it livable in (i.e. central heating, sand all floorboards, paint, kitchen etc.). The idea would then be to renovate more extensively and extend out in 5/6 yrs when we actually need more space (we are only 26 now) and have saved up more.

What do people think of this as an idea? We would be keen not to throw too much money into the house at this stage with designer kitchens etc. given it will all be scrapped when we renovate and extend more extensively out the back garden.

Presuming the surveyor report is good, how much would central heating, some added insulation and a few minor bits and bobs (it has new double glazing windows and is fully rewired)? We would intend to paint, sand etc. ourselves.

Thanks for your help!

Kate

The Hill Billy · 26-08-2008 2:34pm

Kate:

Firstly, a 100sq ft garden won't give you a lot of space to extend. Did you mean that the garden is 100ft in length?

As for "how much would central heating, some added insulation and a few minor bits and bobs" - how long is a piece of string? You'd need to provide a bit more info. For example:
What type of central heat system will you be looking for?
How many rads & of what spec?
What sort of insulation? Attic, wall cavities, etc?
What are the bits & bobs?

Have a read through the previous posts may give you some sort of idea as to the amount of effort & costs?

From my own point of view - It really is well worth it. I worked every evening & all weekends on my place for 11 months doing it up. It was a bigger project than you are thinking of & nearly broke my heart at times. The end result was exactly what I wanted though & Mrs Billy & the kids love our home.

Go for it but expect it to cost twice as much as you originally expect.

kcullen · 26-08-2008 2:49pm

Oops, I actually meant 100ft long. About 20 ft wide!

There is a gas line all the way up to the house so the heating requirements would be to install a boiler unit and piping to the gas line and to a radiator in each room and to the immersion heater.

We would need approximately 8-10 standard length radiators to be installed upstairs and downstairs as there was never a central heating system installed at all.

We also need the attic to be properly insulated and may also require a few internal walls to be taken down.

The Hill Billy · 27-08-2008 2:08pm

Kate - I kinda figured that on the garden, but wanted to be sure. Sounds like a great opportunity. How old is the house? Is it stone or brick?

kcullen · 27-08-2008 3:56pm

House is about 50-60 years old- Ex Council. Very well built. Pretty sure its concrete built or at least brick (it is rendered on the front)

I think it is a great opportunity but we may be liviong in squalor for a while:)

The Hill Billy · 28-08-2008 8:06am

I'd imagine that the central heating is going to be your single largest outlay. Get out the good ol' Golden Pages & ask for ball-park estimates for what you think you need for heating.

As for insulation - I'd advise on putting in the highest spec you can afford. With ever-rising heating costs it is the only way to go. I spent a small fortune on it & it is certainly paying back dividends with regards heating costs compared with my neighbours. (All 4 homes in terrace identical - my place is the only one properly insulated & heating bill is 50% of theirs.)

I used Conservobond in my attic (insulation, waterproofing & bonding for slates) & high-spec foil-backed Kingspan under my new concrete floors. House is seriously toasty, but the 2 foot thick walls also help.

harly1516 · 28-08-2008 11:35pm

They say theres always one in this case two 35,000 would get you a nice single extention and thats without the kitchen, tiles or flooring but then again I see the inside of peoples homes and then I see the inside of peoples homes if you know what I mean 35,000 total crap
Listen to the lads that gave you advice they know what their talking about

CAT24 · 29-08-2008 9:43am

I would say to anyone that is thinking of buying a house and restoring to go for it (I'm probably 1 in a million). Myself and my partner bought a house earlier in the year and rennovated it and it was all complete in 2 months.

I had people ready to go before we have even signed for it and got at least 3 quotes for every job. Once one job was complete I had someone ready to come in to do the next job, you just have to be a good planner and and good at budgeting.

The following is what we dont for €22k:
-Insulate the attic
-Re-wiring
-Complete central heating system & radiators
-Re-plumbed the whole house
-New internal doors
-The whole house was plastered (not including the ceilings)
-Removed all floors due to wood worm and placed Wooden floors & carpets throughout.
-Paint
-Skips
-New kitchen
-New bathroom suite

There is a probably more but I cant remember. We done a lot of work ourselves such as pulling our fireplaces, tiling, painting etc.

The garden is still to be done but I'm thinking it can wait. You can definitely make the most from your space without building straight away.

CanIrish · 07-11-2008 1:39pm

Hello,

I see the last post was in Aug 08, but hopefully one of you might respond!?
I am really just looking for an opinion or advice??
I have seen a house that I would be keen to buy, the purchase price is very low, only 90k, but in need of total renovation, it is 1250 sq ft. Neither myself or my partner have any building experience so we would need a contractor or project manager... The house would need as far as I can see (I have yet to get a survery, as I am only considering options)
Re-wired
Re-plumbed
Central Heating
Re-plastered
new kitchen
new bathroom suite
Add downstairs w.c
Add Utility room
knock dining room and kitchen wall making it open plan
New floors (tiles, wood floor & carpet)
New internal doors
new external doors x 2
New windows (approx 8 windows)

Now here is the kicker, we only have 35k cash to do the work as we will need to have a deposit for mortgage of 18k, are we way out in left field, or could this be possible?????

Any advice would be very much apprecaited!!!!

RKQ · 07-11-2008 4:43pm

Subject to survey lets assume there are no structural defects.
90K is reasonable for 1250sqft house.
I can't be too specific as "how longs a piece of string" comes to mind. By this I also mean what are your personal preferences regarding bathrooms, tiling, wooden floors, soild kitchen etc? All these items can vary greatly in price.

What are your circumstances? Married, single, separated ie do you need to move into a completed house asap and start a family or can you take things at your own pace?

If you watch programmes like "Houses under the hammer" on BBC or "Property ladder", you will see people do quite significant works, for reasonable amounts of money. This is done by doing all the labour and hiring individual tradesmen as required.

I would think IMO that 35K would achieve alot in this house. Strip out all the old electrics, plumbing etc if required. The wc & utility extension might be stretching the budget abit far but get 3 quotes from reputable Contractors.

125K is very small money for a house today, so maybe its worth doing while leaving the new windows or New floors (tiles, wood floor & carpet) and new internal doors till next year! Little acorns grow.

Callisto99 · 15-12-2008 7:58pm

CAT24 wrote: »

I would say to anyone that is thinking of buying a house and restoring to go for it (I'm probably 1 in a million). Myself and my partner bought a house earlier in the year and rennovated it and it was all complete in 2 months.

I had people ready to go before we have even signed for it and got at least 3 quotes for every job. Once one job was complete I had someone ready to come in to do the next job, you just have to be a good planner and and good at budgeting.

The following is what we dont for €22k:
-Insulate the attic
-Re-wiring
-Complete central heating system & radiators
-Re-plumbed the whole house
-New internal doors
-The whole house was plastered (not including the ceilings)
-Removed all floors due to wood worm and placed Wooden floors & carpets throughout.
-Paint
-Skips
-New kitchen
-New bathroom suite

There is a probably more but I cant remember. We done a lot of work ourselves such as pulling our fireplaces, tiling, painting etc.

The garden is still to be done but I'm thinking it can wait. You can definitely make the most from your space without building straight away.

Hi Cat24,
Id be very interested in a breakdown on what you each cost. I am thinking of bidding for a house in poor condition which would require same as you say above - and incidently the max I could spend would be 20K as you quoted above. Could you help with the details please?
Thanks

ascottdub · 15-01-2009 7:40pm

Hi,
Well I'm glad to see others out there like me.
I would also be very interested in a breakdown of pricing. I am thinking of bidding on a small 3 bed, terreced council house in Dub.
It would need to be GUTTED. The only thing that seems to be okay are the front windows, and even that I would question
Re-wire everywhere
Re-plumb everywhere
New upsatirs bathroom. It is a small space
Complete new kitchen(only a sink at the mo), and I would try to add an exempt extension here, along with a downstairs bathroom if I'm going to this much trouble. The bathroom downstairs would be with a shower opposed to a bath
Attic I'm assuming needs to be insulated, and does anyone know if it's likely to have absetos(spelt wrong, sorry)
Skirting boards in 1 room downstairs are rotten, so how much does that cost
Definite evidence of a leak upstairs as crack across ceiling, and spot on floor
Walls would need to be replastered
I'm sure there will be a floodboard or 20 that will need replacing
Basically, it's a shell, and I won't buy until the price comes way down, but curious of the price to renovate
Also, is it better to pay just 1 company to do the whole lot, or is it cheaper to pay each aspect as they do the work?
Would it save me a few quid if I do some of the work myself, like ripping out bathroom, or tearing up kitchen(remainder of it)
Finally, how much have all these renovating jobs come down now due to the slacking in the business trade?
I see this thread hasn't been used in awhile, but there's alot of good advice posted here so it would be appreciated
Thanks, look forward to all of your suggestions
A

highdef · 06-08-2009 12:43pm

Just to throw another question in. I've spotted a nice big old farmhouse for sale in Wicklow and it's well over 3,000 sq foot. It says in the odd that it needs considerable modernisation/updating. It looks ok'ish from the outside but no idea what the inside is like. From the square footage of the building, does this sound VERY expensive?

Renovating an old house cost?

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