Is it time to stop dreaming of a self build and buy a house

mtoutlemonde

Hi folks, sorry for long thread title.

Background - late 30s, single have planning granted for house.

Will prices ever come back? I was granted planning in 2019 with an affordable quote. However due to a work situation and covid, I was unable to build due to price increases and they don't seem to be falling and if they are, nothing near where it is affordable for me to build. Is it time to now give up on the self build and buy? I know no one can answer the question or tell the future but any thoughts would be welcomed.

alan86

Hey mtoutlemonde,

I am in the same place as yourself as i have planning granted also however i have been unable to even get a quote from any contactor as they are all too busy. Speaking to my engineer/ architect he said he has never had so many one of buids at the same stage as myself before so it looks like the market is showing no signs of slowing.

From what I can see the prices aren't going to move a whole pile as the demand for houses is still through the roof. Even if the one off houses and private estate builds slow down there's such an push from the government to provide houses there will still be a large number of social houses being built.

My next plan is to reach out to a quantity surveyor to get a BOQ and an estimated build cost so I can see where I am cost wise as I have been unable to get a quote.

mtoutlemonde

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120318621#Comment_120318621

Well I have the quotes and feel somewhat guilty about it as the contractor had to pay a QS to do it. I suppose if I ever build, they will be my builder of choice.

It's so difficult to know what to do - build and eradicate my savings and then live pay cheque to pay cheque. And the biggest fear that I start and then prices drop and I've paid through the nose. Being single makes it more difficult. Ah I'll wait and see until summer.

Bracken81

Ireland is 200,000+ houses short currently

Really cant see prices dropping until those houses are built, of course with population growth that will grow larger and larger over the years

Considering only 30,000 homes were built in 2022, its not looking great

I cant forsee Houses/Materials reducing in price, unfortunately

And as stated by many others on here, getting a reliable and competent Contractor to complete your project, is proving tricky

daheff

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120330532#Comment_120330532

supply costs should start easing in the next few months. China has opened up, wholesale energy costs have dropped and shipping costs have dropped to precovid levels.

these factors should all feed back into cost of raw materials. One would hope that builders can pass on those cheaper prices rather than pad their own pockets.

Bracken81

Here's hoping that'll happen

But wouldn't imagine it'll be 20%+ reduction or anything up at that scale

fliball123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120330586#Comment_120330586

Prices will drop construction output is down over 20% in the last 2 years. If the builders are seeing costs dropping (and they are on raw materials) and dont pass them on their dinner will be eaten. Even with the lack of supply of for our demand in the this country. Interest rates are quelling demand and prices are starting to drop as can be seen via price changes on myhome. As a previous poster said it will take time to drop but if the construction companies dont pass on the savings they may face hitting the wall as a company

Bracken81

I admire all of the optimism on these threads, I really do and I hope you are right

But when I'm seeing quotes this week, of €600,000+ for a large Extension you do have to wonder

fliball123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120340166#Comment_120340166

600k+ you must be getting gold flied floors and diamond encrusted windows . How large are we talking a kilometer of an extension?

CPTM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120341215#Comment_120341215

I'm hoping it's a typo and they really mean 60k.

Bracken81

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120341215#Comment_120341215

😆😆

Hang on are Gold plated Architraves not the standard?

100 metre squared Extension, on a very tight site, in Foxrock, complete cottage Refurb also

alan86

Finally got 2 quotes back today from builders for builders finish of 196m2 bungalow.The first was 320k and the second was 365k. There was alot of PC sums in pricing so I would imagine the finish price would exceed the initial price. Im going to stick with my plan to reach out to a quantity surveyor to get a BOQ and an estimated build cost so I can compare the quotes above agaonst going direct labour.

ColemanY2K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120343068#Comment_120343068

for comparison purposes i'll tell you my story.

i'm currently building a 197m2 (almost the same as yours) self build bungalow in co waterford. to give you an idea what stage we're at, the roof has just gone on and the windows were measured today.

its being built to passive house standard i.e. well in excess of the current building regs (wall u value = 0.13, floor u value = 0.11 and roof u value of 0.10) - aluplus windows/doors by rationel which are not the cheapest on the market. the final estimated cost will be in the region of 205k including professional fees (i designed the house - an engineer has been employed to oversee construction).

caveat. my father is pretty much project managing it on day to day basis which is a huge help and i've had family members chip in with labouring and the pouring of the foundation and structural floor slab. this has saved me the guts of 20k. all other work to date has been done by trades.

as you can see the true cost of a self build is far less than what you are being quoted and i'm sure the builder could improve on what i'm shelling out to build my house.

while material prices are high, they are coming down. the m3 price i paid for concrete for the structural floor slab was less than i paid for the foundations a few weeks before that and timber has come way back. what i really need is for pir to drop as the floor insulation at current prices would cost me around 8k - even a small % drop would mean a significant saving.

alan86

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120343382#Comment_120343382

Thanks very much for all the info. Can I ask a few questions?

What kind of build is it block/IFC/ timer frame etc?

Bungalow/ 2story/ dormer etc?

Is the final price you listed completion or to builders finish?

How did you come up with estimated end price? Did you use a QS?

To give a bit more info on my own side we are looking at building a bungalow as mentioned above, 196m2, the build is fairly straight forward the site is flat, should be no issue with stone etc. and is close to road, the shape of the house would be in the shape of a cross and has a nice bit of glass with 1 big corner window and a bit of stone on one portion at front of house. Apart from that it's your stand Bungalow with 4 bedrooms, office , main bathroom, ensuite, utility, kitchen come dining and sitting room.

I would of worked As an electrician for over 10 years in domestic scene but have been out of it for about 7 years now so would of lost touch with a lot of contacts I would of had but hoping my past knowledge would at least stand to me. The reason I would of looked a contractor initially was busy life between work and kids so was concerned how much time house could eat up but from the pricesed I have been quoted for builders finish I couldn never justify going with contractor route.

ColemanY2K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120343798#Comment_120343798

no bother at all...to answer your questions;

1. traditional block built house. strip foundation with two concrete block leafs. 150mm cavity filled with xtratherm cavitytherm insulation.
2. bungalow, rectangular in shape
3. completion.
4. i am a qs, i guess that helps.

to drive costs down i've manically scoured the internet to source materials. for example i saved 700 euro by ordering the intello airtightness membrane from germany. now you don't have to use intello but i wanted the best product in order to get maximum bang for my buck. other cost saving measures included buying a jcb and cutting the site and foundations ourselves. that saved a few grand. jcb will be sold afterwards and we'll probably make our money back. the wall and floor insulation was bought from the cheapest supplier in munster after doing extensive research. the passive house certified mvhr system was bought from the north and will be installed myself. the heat pump and underfloor heating will be bought joule in dublin...i asked the plumber to see if he could beat it and it turned out he couldn't.

i'll take 2 weeks off work and tackle the airtightness myself. a lot of this wouldn't be possible if i didn't have the help from family and contacts and of course the wifes patience in the evenings as she looked after the littole one as i worked on planning and building the house after work.

self build takes a lot of time and effort but is ultimately rewarding or it certainly is in my case.

alan86

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120343882#Comment_120343882

Ithanks very much for answering the questions above. It's amazing the difference in price your going to get to completion for compared to the price I have been quoted.

Being a QS must really help with getting the figures together. Would you have any idea what a QS would cost me just to put an initial estimate together. And if I am to go with a QS is there any specific things I should be asking the QS for? What I would be hoping to get is a list of materials and an initial estimated cost for materials etc.

ColemanY2K

It certainly does help.

Im afraid I can't tell you what the fee would be as i don't do that line of work but what you would be looking for is a priced bill of quantities. Prior to engaging with them have a think about your scope and spec. The more detail you can give them the more accurate the estimate/BOQ will be.

893bet

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120343798#Comment_120343798

“Apart from that it’s a standard bungalow”

The “that” makes it entirely non standard as it’s the shape of cross making every trade more expensive. The roof, vs the rectangular one you are talking about could be multiples different.

Apples and oranges.

alan86

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120348085#Comment_120348085

Cheers, thanks for all the help

alan86

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120348119#Comment_120348119

Thanks for the input.

fliball123

Hold tight yet another month of contraction in construction PMIs. With more and more uncertainty and the likelihood of a recession increasing with each interest rates hike, you will be paying a lot less for your extension in 12 months time.

https://tradingeconomics.com/ireland/construction-pmi