How much money would you need to be earning to build a house as you go.

CertifiedSimp

Let's say you had 40k cash you were able spend up front, would it be do-able to build a house as you go or would it take too long?

Would builders be open to stopping/starting etc.

Let's say you could spend 1500 a month on the house after the initial outlay.

What kind of cost would it take to get a house into liveable condition - floors, furniture etc doesn't need to be added into the cost.

Padre_Pio

No,

At the very least you need to get the house weather tight.

So foundations, basic plumbing, floors, walls, windows, external doors and roof would all need to be done. Stopping for months at a time in between these stages is not a good idea.

Most builders have 3-6 months work ahead of them, so you can't really slot in a few weeks here and there.

Depending on where you are, a house cost 150-200euro per sq.ft.
You also need to buy the site, so your 40k and more is gone immediately.

CertifiedSimp

Padre_Pio wrote: »

No,

At the very least you need to get the house weather tight.

So foundations, basic plumbing, floors, walls, windows, external doors and roof would all need to be done. Stopping for months at a time in between these stages is not a good idea.

Most builders have 3-6 months work ahead of them, so you can't really slot in a few weeks here and there.

Depending on where you are, a house cost 150-200euro per sq.ft.
You also need to buy the site, so your 40k and more is gone immediately.

So do you have a rough idea what it would cost to get it into that liveable condition?

Site would be already owned.

So between planning permission, architects, lawyers etcs I guess it would cost a good bit up front before breaking ground at all.

sydthebeat

CertifiedSimp

Exactly

Padre_Pio

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

So do you have a rough idea what it would cost to get it into that liveable condition?

Site would be already owned.

So between planning permission, architects, lawyers etcs I guess it would cost a good bit up front before breaking ground at all.

How long is a piece of string.
What kind of house?
What size?
Where in the country are you?
What architectural features?
What materials?
What approach to building?
Bungalow, two, three storey?
What utilities? You need a well? Septic tank?

Far too much unknown to give any sort of answer. The 150-200 euro per sq ft is the best guideline anyone can give without getting into the detail.

There's plenty of threads on Boards with people giving ballpark figures of their own builds.

Gumbo

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

So do you have a rough idea what it would cost to get it into that liveable condition?

Site would be already owned.

So between planning permission, architects, lawyers etcs I guess it would cost a good bit up front before breaking ground at all.

Just to get to the first block being laid might cost 20k with planning, drainage, contributions and connections.

Then you won’t get a builder to come and go and come and go. There’s a cost to the admin of setting up a site. Insurances. Getting materials and machinery onto site. Storage of materials and accepting deliveries.

Can you not get a mortgage?

listermint

You won't find a builder working for 1500 pm on the off chance. You might be able to build bits in stages from different labour sources of you PMd yourself but even then you'd want to know what your doing fully.

I believe my neighbor did her entire build on what I like to call the never never. It's taken her between 4 to 5 years to complete only moved in a month or so back.

BryanF

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

Let's say you had 40k cash you were able spend up front, would it be do-able to build a house as you go or would it take too long?

Would builders be open to stopping/starting etc.

Let's say you could spend 1500 a month on the house after the initial outlay.

What kind of cost would it take to get a house into liveable condition - floors, furniture etc doesn't need to be added into the cost.

So the initial outlay is 40k and you plan on building with 1.5k per month? Speaking from experience.. this a heart attack/marriage break-down waiting to happen.

Builders will not be interested. You’ll be building direct labour, but will be saving up to pay lads and buy materials, so months will go by without any progress made.

Btw €1500 is about what a Construction company charges for trades person Per week. That’s works out about 20-25€ per hour for the guy before tax

CertifiedSimp

BryanF wrote: »

So the initial outlay is 40k and you plan on building with 1.5k per month? Speaking from experience.. this a heart attack/marriage break-down waiting to happen.

Builders will not be interested. You’ll be building direct labour, but will be saving up to pay lads and buy materials, so months will go by without any progress made.

Btw €1500 is about what a Construction company charges for trades person Per week. That’s works out about 20-25€ per hour for the guy before tax

No, I asked could that be done.

I'm years away from building - just wondering what's possible to get by without getting a mortgage.

Gumbo

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

No, I asked could that be done.

I'm years away from building - just wondering what's possible to get by without getting a mortgage.

Not what you have planned unfortunately.
Also, in years to come the regs will be stricter. Passive standards etc so prices will increase.

You’ll never have enough to build with that plan. Sorry to be blunt.

Apiarist

If you have the site owned and can get a planning permission, you could buy yourself a toy house log cabin.

www.google.com/search?client=opera&q=log+cabin+kit+ireland

CertifiedSimp

Gumbo wrote: »

Not what you have planned unfortunately.
Also, in years to come the regs will be stricter. Passive standards etc so prices will increase.

You’ll never have enough to build with that plan. Sorry to be blunt.

I still haven't got an answer on what it takes to build a house so it's livable if you have a site. Standard 4 bed bungalow, windows, doors, heating and walls plastered with site already and in rural Ireland.

I could have 60k cash, I could have 80k.

sydthebeat

victor8600 wrote: »

If you have the site owned and can get a planning permission, you could buy yourself a toy house log cabin.

www.google.com/search?client=opera&q=log+cabin+kit+ireland

complete waste of money as they dont comply with regulations
and also wouldn't comply with planning permission

CertifiedSimp

sydthebeat wrote: »

complete waste of money as they dont comply with regulations
and also wouldn't comply with planning permission

I know several who have them, permission granted etc.

They're actually quite nice, just not suitable if your life changes in future, kids and would be tricky to sell I guess too.

Apiarist

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

I know several who have them, permission granted etc....

That's what I have seen too. My friend lives in a 1-bedroom log house. Perfectly fine, though the heating and the shower are both electric. It may be quite expensive to heat in winter.

CertifiedSimp

victor8600 wrote: »

That's what I have seen too. My friend lives in a 1-bedroom log house. Perfectly fine, though the heating and the shower are both electric. It may be quite expensive to heat in winter.

My friends experience is they retain heat very very well.

Dudda

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

I still haven't got an answer on what it takes to build a house so it's livable if you have a site. Standard 4 bed bungalow, windows, doors, heating and walls plastered with site already and in rural Ireland.

I could have 60k cash, I could have 80k.

Standard 4 bed with windows and doors plastered is still incredibly vague.
Let's say 200,000 assuming it's a super simple design, easy to build, no features, no abnormals, no high spec anything, searching through bargain bins and skips to find stuff people don't want, etc.

IF you've 1500 a month that's 18,000 a year. If you've the 40k saved you mentioned that's going to take you 8 years and 11 months. That's excluding ANY inflation or increases in costs which will happen. You're probably looking at closer to 10 years due to inflation. Now if you're going to end buying scaffolding and other items as it will be cheaper than renting them for 4 years. But what about insurance? Are you going to insure it for 10 years as a construction site?

Even if you reduce the cost of the building see how it's just not possible?

Let's say you have 80k saved up. That's still 120k of construction costs and still over 6 and a half years. It still doesn't make sense.

You either have to have at a guess 75% of the total cost in cash saved to get you to a place where you can move in or get a mortgage.

If you were on your own you might get away with say 65% of the total in cash and only do one bedroom of the 4 with no sitting room either and one WC and a Lidl middle aisle mini electric single hop for a kitchen.

Padre_Pio

Dudda wrote: »

Let's say you have 80k saved up. That's still 120k of construction costs and still over 6 and a half years. It still doesn't make sense.

You either have to have at a guess 75% of the total cost in cash saved to get you to a place where you can move in or get a mortgage.

If you were on your own you might get away with say 65% of the total in cash and only do one bedroom of the 4 with no sitting room either and one WC and a Lidl middle aisle mini electric single hop for a kitchen.

Bear in mind thats probably four winters and over a dozen storms before you have the roof on, so who knows how much damage.
Plus, chances are the site will be robbed.
Plus, you'll never get a builder to stick around for that long, and no builder wants to take on a project someone else has half finished.
Plus you're still paying rent somewhere, or living in a caravan on the site.

It's a bad idea, start to finish.

CertifiedSimp

Dudda wrote: »

Standard 4 bed with windows and doors plastered is still incredibly vague.
Let's say 200,000 assuming it's a super simple design, easy to build, no features, no abnormals, no high spec anything, searching through bargain bins and skips to find stuff people don't want, etc.

IF you've 1500 a month that's 18,000 a year. If you've the 40k saved you mentioned that's going to take you 8 years and 11 months. That's excluding ANY inflation or increases in costs which will happen. You're probably looking at closer to 10 years due to inflation. Now if you're going to end buying scaffolding and other items as it will be cheaper than renting them for 4 years. But what about insurance? Are you going to insure it for 10 years as a construction site?

Even if you reduce the cost of the building see how it's just not possible?

Let's say you have 80k saved up. That's still 120k of construction costs and still over 6 and a half years. It still doesn't make sense.

You either have to have at a guess 75% of the total cost in cash saved to get you to a place where you can move in or get a mortgage.

If you were on your own you might get away with say 65% of the total in cash and only do one bedroom of the 4 with no sitting room either and one WC and a Lidl middle aisle mini electric single hop for a kitchen.

No my current save rate while renting is about 17-18k per year.

I have a substantial cash sum now. Maybe even more in future or maybe I choose to spend some before then.

Don't worry about sitting rooms or ovens. I'd source them easily and cheaply.

The reason I'm asking is I know people who moved into places with no kitchen, flooring or tiling done and they did bit by bit.

Dudda

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

No my current save rate while renting is about 17-18k per year.

I had 18k per year in my figures!!!

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

I have a substantial cash sum now. Maybe even more in future or maybe I choose to spend some before then.

Don't worry about sitting rooms or ovens. I'd source them easily and cheaply.

The reason I'm asking is I know people who moved into places with no kitchen, flooring or tiling done and they did bit by bit.

Look... it doesn't matter if you got Pill Hogan to look through these figures it can't be made look good or work. Forget the oven, flooring, etc. have you any idea how much it costs to just get to a stage where windows are fitted and have a roof on? That's where all the cost is.

This won't work until you've saved 75% odd of the total price. That means you need to have saved €150,000 at a minimum before you start building and even then this is a direct labour project where you're doing everything yourself and you've extensive knowledge and experience in the construction industry.

Not sure how many ways and by how many people it takes to say this won't work.

CertifiedSimp

Dudda wrote: »

I had 18k per year in my figures!!!


Look... it doesn't matter if you got Pill Hogan to look through these figures it can't be made look good or work. Forget the oven, flooring, etc. have you any idea how much it costs to just get to a stage where windows are fitted and have a roof on? That's where all the cost is.

This won't work until you've saved 75% odd of the total price. That means you need to have saved €150,000 at a minimum before you start building and even then this is a direct labour project where you're doing everything yourself and you've extensive knowledge and experience in the construction industry.

Not sure how many ways and by how many people it takes to say this won't work.

No, hence my thread.

hurikane

Utterly mad idea. I put stacks on cash in, got a mortgage and still struggled to finish the house.

salmocab

You’d need to have enough to build the house as far as being weather tight initially for this to work. If you had an absolute bare shell built with roof and windows done you could chip away at the inside and the outside works like paths etc. 1500 a month won’t get you many hours of a tradesman on site or materials though. You’d have to go months between getting various people on site and paid which can be problematic as plumbers and sparks can’t do much until the studs are done, so studs would need doing, maybe 3/4 months later you can afford To get the plumber in another 6 months to get the sparks in then you need to get the plaster boards up before getting the plastering done, followed by starting second fix for the trades maybe a year or two after they first fixed. That’s on top Of having to make some big purchases like heat pumps and solar. It’s doable but not in anyway practical unless you can do an awful lot yourself like the people on tv who’s marriages seem to break up.

Gumbo

CertifiedSimp wrote: »

I still haven't got an answer on what it takes to build a house so it's livable if you have a site. Standard 4 bed bungalow, windows, doors, heating and walls plastered with site already and in rural Ireland.

I could have 60k cash, I could have 80k.

It has to be fully complete to comply with planning and building regulations before it can be signed off as habitable.

That’s what it takes.
As for the financial cost of that, get 3 quotes from local builders.

Gumbo

victor8600 wrote: »

That's what I have seen too. My friend lives in a 1-bedroom log house. Perfectly fine, though the heating and the shower are both electric. It may be quite expensive to heat in winter.

Is it out a back garden?

Dudda

Gumbo wrote: »

It has to be fully complete to comply with planning and building regulations before it can be signed off as habitable.

Kinda, grey areas exist like you have to have a working bathroom but don't need 3 of 4 of them. You don't need floor finishes to comply with building regulations as long as the concrete/timber/etc is level and safe. So it doesn't have to ALL be fully finished but you do need certain elements to be finished to comply with planning and building regulations.

For a bank mortgage drawdown that's different. They'll want it finished

TheBoyConor

If you have that much cash, and can save 18 k a year, why not just get a mortgage and do it properly rather than stringing it our for years. You'll be having 2-in-1 house warming come wake by the time it is finished.

CertifiedSimp

TheBoyConor wrote: »

If you have that much cash, and can save 18 k a year, why not just get a mortgage and do it properly rather than stringing it our for years. You'll be having 2-in-1 house warming come wake by the time it is finished.

I'm thinkng of getting a mortgage for a 2nd hand house and living there for a while, eventually moving out and renting it. Rent should cover the mortgage.

TheBoyConor

Renting out the house is a rock many have perished on. DO NOT DO THIS!

The bank will throw a wobbler if they find out you are renting the house. The will want a higher interest rate, and possibly a lump sum as it will then be an investment property.

Once a tenant is in place for 6 months, it could take years to get them out with legal fees racking up, RTB and court hearings, and all quite possibly without a penny of rent being paid.
For goodness sake man, do not do this!! Go over the the A&P forum and read one of the multitude of stories of landlords crying into their pints because of the shenanigans of delinquent tenants.

Just get a mortgage and either build or buy. Don't try to be too smart for your own good, especially when you don't know the construction and property industry. Cute schemes dreamt up on a wet weekend will end in tears. Guaranteed.

Gumbo

Dudda wrote: »

Kinda, grey areas exist like you have to have a working bathroom but don't need 3 of 4 of them. You don't need floor finishes to comply with building regulations as long as the concrete/timber/etc is level and safe. So it doesn't have to ALL be fully finished but you do need certain elements to be finished to comply with planning and building regulations.

For a bank mortgage drawdown that's different. They'll want it finished

Yeah, I probably should of clarified that it needs to be complete to a building regulation standard. No flooring, paint required.

What people get caught on on is the kitchen, you need a functioning sink and minimal counter space to comply with the regulations, also, the bathroom. The minimum requirement is a bath, so I’ve seen people finish their en-suite first and forgetting about the main bathroom only to be told to finish the bath to get cert and draw down.

Floor finishes can be tricky as the slab level will allow for the finishes so then the threshold through the main entrance may not comply with Part M.


Maybe I check too much detail