Where to start with a new build?

BallyGraig

Hi, my partner and I want to start a self build but we have no idea where to start.

We have a site on the family farm that we plan to build on. We have an idea of the type of house we would like. However we do not know how to get the ball rolling on starting the self build process. Who do we talk to first? Do we need to go to the bank first? From researching it, it looks like we need plans, etc. before talking to the bank. Is this correct?

Do we firstly need to get plans that we can bring to the planner to apply for planning permission? Do we need to use an architect or should we meet with a planner/enginner first? I have heard of people using drawings the engineer already has and by-passing the architect. We'd love any advice regarding peoples own experience with going down the architect route or engineer route.

Neither of us have any background or experience in building so we will not be attempting to project manage this ourselves. We are thinking it would be best to use the contractor to project manage it because we doubt we can afford for an architect to do it.

We both earn good salaries and have built up 70k in savings so we are not too concerned about financing it. The online mortgage calculators show we can borrow more than we expect we will need (however, i understand those online calculators are applicable to house buying rather than self building but im assuming they give us a good idea of what we can borrow). Ideally we do not want to exceed 350k for approx 230sqm house. We are based in galway.

Thanks

Gumbo

Check planning website for planning permissions local to you for similar development. See who they used as their agent.

Call them as they are most likely familiar with the local needs and local system.
Get their advice from there.
But it will involve preplanning, planning etc
Process could take a year all in.

JoeA3

BallyGraig wrote: »

Hi, my partner and I want to start a self build but we have no idea where to start.

We have a site on the family farm that we plan to build on. We have an idea of the type of house we would like. However we do not know how to get the ball rolling on starting the self build process. Who do we talk to first? Do we need to go to the bank first? From researching it, it looks like we need plans, etc. before talking to the bank. Is this correct?

Do we firstly need to get plans that we can bring to the planner to apply for planning permission? Do we need to use an architect or should we meet with a planner/enginner first? I have heard of people using drawings the engineer already has and by-passing the architect. We'd love any advice regarding peoples own experience with going down the architect route or engineer route.

Neither of us have any background or experience in building so we will not be attempting to project manage this ourselves. We are thinking it would be best to use the contractor to project manage it because we doubt we can afford for an architect to do it.

We both earn good salaries and have built up 70k in savings so we are not too concerned about financing it. The online mortgage calculators show we can borrow more than we expect we will need (however, i understand those online calculators are applicable to house buying rather than self building but im assuming they give us a good idea of what we can borrow). Ideally we do not want to exceed 350k for approx 230sqm house. We are based in galway.

Thanks

Hi there,
My wife and I are at around the same stage - or maybe just marginally ahead of you in this process, and we're also in Galway. Difference with us is, we're purchasing the site, in my locality, which is subject to planning permission.

The first thing we did was (approx 2 months ago), we went in for a fairly informal chat with a mortgage rep in the bank. At that stage we were very green. The whole thing was totally new to us and we'd done pretty much no prep work for that meeting at all. But it was a very useful meeting as it gave us a good idea of what we could afford to borrow and what steps we needed to do next.

Then I spoke to a couple of Engineers/architects and we settled on a particular Architect/Engineer who was recommended to us. We liked this particular person as he's an architect first and foremost, so we hope he'll have some good design ideas, as opposed to an Engineer who's more likely to reuse a template design he's used before.

We had our first meeting with him about 6 weeks ago, at which point he recommended we have a pre-planning meeting with the co-co, which we had last week. That meeting went fairly well I think, so now we feel comfortable to progress things a bit more - coming up with a design for the house, etc. We've been collecting ideas, photos, etc, and communicating those ideas to the architect. I expect we'll meet again in the next week or so to start formalising a design.

In the meantime I've been collecting the relevant documentation I need to prove my local housing need.

Few things I've observed in these early stages...
- things outside of the actual building of the house, cost a lot more money than you might expect (professional fees, planning fees, contributions, etc are expensive)
- things move slowly.... we were apparently quite fortunate to get a pre-planning meeting within 5 weeks of requesting one. 3+ months is closer to the norm apparently!

briaineo

Th below website shows the steps and rough cost estimates: http://www.iaosb.com/html/cost_of_construction.html

https://iaosb.com/building-stages/

BallyGraig

Thanks everyone, that’s been really helpful.

I did not know that we could expect such a long wait to meet with a planner. We just emailed the co co to arrange a pre-planning consultantation. And we have asked them what they recommend we have arranged before we meet with them.

That website was really handy briaineo, thank you.

JoeA3 I hope you don’t mind but I am going to send you an IM regarding your engineer.

JoeA3

BallyGraig wrote: »

Thanks everyone, that’s been really helpful.

I did not know that we could expect such a long wait to meet with a planner. We just emailed the co co to arrange a pre-planning consultantation. And we have asked them what they recommend we have arranged before we meet with them.

That website was really handy briaineo, thank you.

JoeA3 I hope you don’t mind but I am going to send you an IM regarding your engineer.

No problem.
Yeah apparently it can take months. But as I said, we got one within 5 weeks or so. Not sure what the justification is for it taking even that long as it was very informal, a 15 minute chat standing up across a counter.

BryanF

briaineo wrote: »

Th below website shows the steps and rough cost estimates: http://www.iaosb.com/html/cost_of_construction.html

https://iaosb.com/building-stages/

Seems a bit out of date?

darrmolo

i am currently doing a self build at the moment, lie you i am in galway and we also had the site on family land. 
First we got an engineer to come out an inspect the suit to see if it would be suitable to build on. then he drew up the plans, I had found plans i liked online but all the rooms had to be switched around to suit our site.
He told me a preplanning meeting was not needed!!
He submitted the planning and 2 months later it was granted. 
in the planning it stated how much the contribution fee is so i just rang up and paid that over the phone
we are opting out of the statuary regs and not getting a mortgage so we didnt need to employ an engineer thereafter to sign off on the build. both of us have experience in building and a lot of family and friends are in trades
I then got  construction drawings done and submitted them to the BMCS website along with a few other docs ad the proposed start date.
Once this was granted we started.
Whole process took about 5 months from design to breaking ground

sea12

Just started our build. Foundations gone on. As others said

Pre planning meeting with council.
Meet bank to know what size mortgage you could get
Meet architect/ engineer and tell them how much you can afford so they only design that option not something completely unrealistic.
Submit planning. Learn to be very very patient with requests for further information at last minute,

Hopefully permission granted. Then get construction drawings done by engineer.
Submit drawings to 3-4 builders for tender
Pick a builder submit formal mirtgage application
Apoint solicitor
Submit construction drawings
Pay council levy

Start construction.

That's as far as I've come and it's taken 2 years. Planning took over a year.