Room to Improve (v2)

RyanTubsmoneybelt

Fake it til you make it ...the dermo square box bannion way.

the_pen_turner

seemed very sparce on actual facts about the build. far too much time spent showing off that house in Tottenham and on foodball matches

thereiver

They want people to live in and upgrade derelict house,s so it makes sense to provide a grant for structural work .

it may be cheaper in some areas to buy a derelict house than one thats ready to move into.

Westernview

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123023670#Comment_123023670

Nonsense. Whatever about RTE as a whole this is one of the best shows on it and has consistently high viewing figures. 290k is not pie in the sky for a lot of professional people, especially couples. She ended up with a fantastic home and the grants played a big part. It should inspire others to take on urban properties which is what the derelict grants are all about.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123023908#Comment_123023908

The whole purpose of the vacant/ derelict house grant is to encourage people to upgrade and make likeable again older houses. The main criteria is tge house has to be vacant for 2+ years. If its vacant 2+years its nearly Immaterial the condition the house is inside. The derelict part of the grant is paid where structural work is required like a new roof, replacement of inside structure of the house etc. It's actually the part of the grant that make it viable to renovate old unused houses.

Westernview

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024051#Comment_123024051

That's correct a building can be structurally sound and qualify. MPRN numbers are usually needed for grants and that can be used to determine if a house was using electric or gas in recent years i.e. derelict or occupied.

TinyMuffin

we bought land 10 years ago with a new build on it that was never finished. Would it be eligible for a grant.

Zardoz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024051#Comment_123024051

Yes I know that it is to encourage people to upgrade older houses.

However on the gov.ie website it says

"If the refurbishment costs exceed the standard grant of up to €50,000, a top-up grant amount of up to €20,000 is available. To get this top-up grant, you must confirm that the property is derelict. This means that the property is structurally unsound and dangerous."

There is a difference between a house needing some roof repairs or structural repairs and a house being unsound or dangerous.

I guess its easy enough to get someone to sign off on an independent report confirming the property is structurally unsound and dangerous these days.

I know from previous experience that Revenue would not accept a house was derelict unless it was literally a ruin with no roof or 3 walls but Im seeing Bannon get derelict grants for perfectly solid structures.

Former Former Former

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024111#Comment_123024111

What you really mean is that tonight’s show didn’t discuss why the building was unsound.

Like, I’m sure the house wasn’t falling down, but that doesn’t mean it’s sound. When you start pulling out windows and demolishing the back of the house, you’ll find out pretty quickly how sound it really is. It didn’t look great tbh.

Zardoz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024091#Comment_123024091

To qualify for the grant, you must:

• have proof of ownership or evidence of active negotiations to buy the property (that is, confirmation of engagement from the estate agent or owner of the property) where you are seeking approval in principle for a grant
• live in the property as your principal private residence or make it available for rent
• have proof that the property has been vacant for at least 2 years and that it was built up to and including 2007

Was the house built before 2007 ? Has it been vacant for over 2 years ?

itsacoolday

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123023908#Comment_123023908

She could not have got the "Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant" as it was not a Refurbishment project, it was a new build. She could not have got that 70k grant. I know a couple who had an old derelict house and applied for the grant as they wanted to knock the old house and rebuild a new house on the old site, but they were told they could not get the grant as the grant was for refurbishment of old houses only. The structure of the old house would have to be kept, for environmental reasons etc. Definitely no 70k grants for new builds, sorry. More likely I'd say she inherited the 70k or something, fair play to her. Nice new building now.

Enjoyed the show, seems like a nice lady so glad it worked out and the town is better off after it. Was nervous for the lady that they would find a problem that would blow her budget but thankfully they didn’t.

I noticed that the shot of Dermot first arriving on site supposedly pre drawing stage had a planning permission notice on the window. Only a small thing but surprised they didn’t remove it

chooseusername

Nice house now. But I'm confused, did the bedrooms end up on the ground floor?

If so, it is nothing like the plans granted in Jan 22.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024091#Comment_123024091

All you can do is apply, however it has probadly never been recorded as a dwelling house, it has never been finished. You may qualify for the first home grant instead.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024111#Comment_123024111

If a house requires a new roof is it not structurally unsound.

phormium

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024141#Comment_123024141

They kept the front wall definitely and think they mentioned some side walls but even the front wall would qualify them going by some projects I have seen but online and in person. Saw one recently where they knocked everything but front wall of old cottage and then actually built a new wall outside it so it became the internal side. Very inventive but realistically a brand new house with an old feature wall inside! I think it all depends which county and who is inspecting on interpretation of the qualifying criteria like a lot of things!

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024424#Comment_123024424

The front room or shop ended up as her office with a second bedroom behind it, I think, so not affected by street noise..

Mo Ghile Mear

Glad she dug in her heels and wasn’t talked into doing it Dermot’s way. Maintenance on those joists would be a pain. Nice job overall though.

KaneToad

It didn't seem like the interior courtyard pulled in that much light. If anything, it seemed to suck in more darkness. 😁

Azatadine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123023819#Comment_123023819

Yeah, the bright coloured kitchen units never appeared!

GAAcailin

Would have like to have seen the kitchen design, which appliances she got and more on the heating/ solar system. Also there was no mention of the bathrooms; the program jumped from a half build to the finished product. Would prefer more detail than the trip to London to see her friends and the GAA bit.

I thought it was one of the better RTI, not your typical type of rebuild / extension. Nice to see an old shop being restored and bring a bit of life back into the town rather then (what seems) the norm now of building massive houses in fields on the outskirts of towns.

Looks like she has rear access but the back wall / gate was unfinished.

itsacoolday

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024424#Comment_123024424

You are right. The plans submitted and approved for planning in 2022 ( application no. 2250 Mayo Co Co ) are very different to how the house turned out.

I prefer the old design in a way, at least with the kitchen living downstairs you could more easily bring in laundry or shopping or have a bbq or coffee outside more easily, without the only back entry to the house being through the master bedroom.

Also the plans approved on the planning permission drawings had a walk in wardrobe. I think last night she had a canvas pop up wardrobe in her room, and you squuze between it and the bed to get out the back door of the house, to eg the bin?

chooseusername

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123025533#Comment_123025533

The walk in wardrobe was upstairs, no room for it downstairs. Was the underfloor heating upstairs or on the ground floor?

itsacoolday

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123025924#Comment_123025924

In the planning permission 2022 drawings the 3 bedrooms and walk in wardrobe were upstairs. And the heat pump area downstairs.

On last nights programme the 3 bedrooms were definitely downstairs, and I do not recall a walk in wardrobe?

https://www.eplanning.ie/MayoCC/AppFileRefDetails/2250/0

Interesting. I think most people would prefer the very different house design and layout in the 2022 planning permission drawings. What do you think?

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024328#Comment_123024328

I thought she came across really well. I knew her brother so might be biased but I think she handled Dermot as well as anyone on the show has done before.

The house ended up lovely... That should be a given but I don't actually think it was well designed at all.

Living area upstairs is trending but it's completely impractical imo. There was a small balcony upstairs but the back yard is wasted entertaining space, unless guests are brought through her bedroom. Having the second bedroom / office onto the main street... That would no for me. And while it was a really nice touch to have the name on the front… could they not have kept or recreated the original framing and signage. A big missed opportunity there imo.

itsacoolday

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123026127#Comment_123026127

Yeah, good points. What do you think of the completely different design done by the other firm of architects ( for planning permission)? I have no connection to either firm of architects - the one in Swinford who got the planning or Dermot Bannons.

chooseusername

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123026930#Comment_123026930

I don’t know why Bannon got involved at all. He made so many changes she might have to apply for retention.

riddles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123024633#Comment_123024633

the boards in between the joists were not aligned at all if they were staying like that it would have just looked like the plaster board was due to be done.

ShamoBuc

Only getting round to wayching the episode now.

Finished product was very nice and really suited her needs. The bed being next to the door was never going to work.

The ope joists wouldn't have worked either I think, especially with the wooden floor, too thin a room also.

The best feature of the whole build for me was the name of the butchers on the outside, a real country and family thing to do.

standardg60

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123026980#Comment_123026980

One word..grants, he seems to have no problem getting them.

itsacoolday

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123027046#Comment_123027046

The bed is still not too far from the back door, and if the master bedroom has not enough room for either a wardrobe or walk-in-wardrobe it is never going to work. Imagine having to walk by the main bed in the house to get to the bin outside the back door, or having guests for a bbq and them having to walk through the main bedroom to get to the kitchen ( upstairs) or the bathroom?

The other design ( the one from the Mayo firm of architects- the one that got the planning permission with a completely different design and layout ) had not such drawbacks and was perhaps better suited to the needs of country people?

Imagine bringing in shopping through the back door ( ie bedroom door) past the bed, hanging out washing past the bed etc?? I never saw anyone arguing for or with an inflatable bed just inside a fully glass back door before, hope to never again.