Value of garden v extension - Dublin

Theboinkmaster · 10-10-2019 11:59am

I forgot to say my garden is east facing too, so limited use

BrokenArrows · 10-10-2019 2:15pm

Theboinkmaster wrote: »

To give you an idea of garden left after proposed extension it would be:

- 24 sq m grass rectangle
- 12 sq m patio rectangle
- 5 sq m flower beds/trees
- 6 sq m side passage (covered up so we use to store stuff, no garden shed)

Hope that's helpful - so about 45/50 sq m left of garden after extension, maybe more as my wife thinking of reducing size of extension from 19 to 17 sq m.

Ok that garden size will be perfectly fine without impacting the value of the property.

Ray Palmer · 11-10-2019 11:17am

victor8600 wrote: »

I know what else is a rarity -- an extension that looks good.

I have no idea why you think the majority of extensions are ugly. Most are fine it is rare I have seen an extension and thought it made the property look bad. You really are out on your own with that view.

spaceHopper · 11-10-2019 12:30pm

You have a 1700 sq ft house, it's not small you shouldn't need an extension, you need the garden more get a skip and do a clean out

BeansBeans · 11-10-2019 12:33pm

Ray Palmer wrote: »

I have no idea why you think the majority of extensions are ugly. Most are fine it is rare I have seen an extension and thought it made the property look bad. You really are out on your own with that view.

I would agree with him, I think a lot of extensions are ugly and a bit of a waste of potential. Although of late there are more extensions that have had proper architectural input and consideration so things are changing

SozBbz · 11-10-2019 1:57pm

BeansBeans wrote: »

I would agree with him, I think a lot of extensions are ugly and a bit of a waste of potential. Although of late there are more extensions that have had proper architectural input and consideration so things are changing

There is a fair bit of truth to the assertion that some extensions are ugly. I think its especially true of older ones where there was no architectural involvement and people went with the cheapest options.

We're hoping to get out keys next week and in a few years hope to tear down the existing extension, which dates to the 1970's. Its your typical flatroof job, poorly insulated and in my view it doesnt make the most of the site. The resulting layout is poor and it I don't think we could get what we want by tinkering with it.

ncmc · 11-10-2019 2:13pm

spaceHopper wrote: »

You have a 1700 sq ft house, it's not small you shouldn't need an extension, you need the garden more get a skip and do a clean out

1700sq ft isn't *that* big in a modern estate house. AFAIK, the hall and downstairs loo have to be wheelchair accessable, so you lose a lot of space with an overlarge hallway and under stairs bathroom. The house next to mine is about the same size as the OP (we have a smaller three bed house) and they have the same layout as us only on a bigger scale i.e. Large kitchen diner and one separate living room.

I can see where the OP is coming from, with kids, it's nice to have a second reception room where they can hang out with their friends and then have a 'good' room for the adults. It was the norm in older houses to have two separate reception rooms but it has fallen out of favour a bit in favour of open plan living.

If I've read the OP's plans correctly, then he wants to make the kitchen/diner/living room bigger and then have a separate reception room that the kids can use. I think it's a good use of space. It sounds like your garden will still be an ok size. I think people value indoor space more than outdoor space with our climate. Once you can fit a rotary dryer, bbq and maybe a small shed/bike storage, I think it will be fine.

Plus if it's your home for the forseeable future, then you should turn it into somewhere you'd love to live NOW rather than worry about future value. The property market could change in so many ways, it's a bit pointless trying to work out value years in the future

Theboinkmaster · 11-10-2019 7:58pm

ncmc wrote: »

1700sq ft isn't *that* big in a modern estate house. AFAIK, the hall and downstairs loo have to be wheelchair accessable, so you lose a lot of space with an overlarge hallway and under stairs bathroom. The house next to mine is about the same size as the OP (we have a smaller three bed house) and they have the same layout as us only on a bigger scale i.e. Large kitchen diner and one separate living room.

I can see where the OP is coming from, with kids, it's nice to have a second reception room where they can hang out with their friends and then have a 'good' room for the adults. It was the norm in older houses to have two separate reception rooms but it has fallen out of favour a bit in favour of open plan living.

If I've read the OP's plans correctly, then he wants to make the kitchen/diner/living room bigger and then have a separate reception room that the kids can use. I think it's a good use of space. It sounds like your garden will still be an ok size. I think people value indoor space more than outdoor space with our climate. Once you can fit a rotary dryer, bbq and maybe a small shed/bike storage, I think it will be fine.

Plus if it's your home for the forseeable future, then you should turn it into somewhere you'd love to live NOW rather than worry about future value. The property market could change in so many ways, it's a bit pointless trying to work out value years in the future

Yes spot on about hallway and toilet you’re correct. We need a second living area so this is being added to the kitchen\dining room potentially.

So then we will have a front TV room and then a large open plan room with kitchen, dining area and living space with couches.

ncmc · 11-10-2019 8:07pm

Oh and just as an aside, our garden is the same size as your new garden would be (maybe a small bit bigger) we redesigned it a few years ago to make it look bigger. You’d be amazed how a well designed garden can trick the eye. We have a good size patio, shed, trampoline and rotatary dryer and still have space for planting along the sides and pots dotted around. I love my garden, I don’t feel hard done by that it’s small! Like the OP, the kids spend most of the time playing out the front on the green anyway.

fishy_fishy · 12-10-2019 10:39pm

So many people put poxy sh!te extensions tacked onto their houses and end up with a compromised space inside and a compromised space outside, everything gets darker inside and ultimately they add less value than they spend.

Go talk to an interior architect and figure out the best possible use of space. Maybe you'll add on something, but it sounds like the majority of your needs can be met by rearranging internally, and maybe having a small extension put on, but engaging someone who's actually good at arranging space in a useful manner will pay for itself in reduced building costs and a better outcome.

I'd be very surprised if you need to add that much to accommodate a family of 4 in an already decently sized house.

BarryD2 · 12-10-2019 10:58pm

Theboinkmaster wrote: »

The current garden is small enough - about 70sqm and my wife is very concerned about losing the garden. We don't use it that much she just likes looking out at it and sense of some space.

Appreciate any thoughts....

A question to consider would be does your wife spend longer in the house than you? If by any chance she’s there more often for the kids etc, than you are, I’d be listening carefully to what she’s happy with.

Theboinkmaster · 14-10-2019 4:08pm

fishy_fishy wrote: »

I'd be very surprised if you need to add that much to accommodate a family of 4 in an already decently sized house.

We do need the extra room. I don't want to rearrange anything as downstairs is perfect, just want 2nd living room.

My questions were really around the resale value of house with extension, not whether I need more room or not - I know I do, but don't really want to move.

Ultimately what % of buyers would be put off by 50 Sqm small garden...

Theboinkmaster · 14-10-2019 4:10pm

BarryD2 wrote: »

A question to consider would be does your wife spend longer in the house than you? If by any chance she’s there more often for the kids etc, than you are, I’d be listening carefully to what she’s happy with.

Good point but no, we both work full-time so in the house the same.

Her issue is looking out at garden and feeling a sense of space, rather than the garden walls closing in on you from outside if that makes any sense.

Personally I'd rather the extra room inside as we'd use it 365 days a year and we could still redesign the garden to maximise the small space.

harr · 14-10-2019 4:24pm

We built extension on this and last house and was left with similar size garden as OP would have.
We have no issues with the garden size and got garden done while doing extension. We got a small patio and small artificial lawn and a few decent flower beds. Painted shed and garden walls a bright colour. Plenty of room to sit and have a BBQ and decent enough room for kids to play.
On another note the houses selling near me sell quicker with an extension Over a larger garden even if the extension is a poor one and garden is properly landscaped.

Dolbhad · 14-10-2019 6:48pm

If I was buying a house, I don’t like when extensions are done and usually I’d think I’d have done it differently to suit my needs and too expensive fix. I also like a bigger garden. I would say do what works for you and your family. Just be aware for extension, you may not get the money back in a sale. But your not doing an extension to increase value of property but make the house work for you. If you need the space in the house and have the space in garden to use, I’d do extension

April 73 · 14-10-2019 9:17pm

OP - I did this back in 2012 to add another sitting room on to a kitchen/dining room. We reduced the size of the garden to do it but figured we used the space in the house much more than the few days we could spend in the garden every year. It was the right decision for us. We ended up with a space I loved inside & put a nice patio down outside the extension. We had a strip of grass, flower beds along the end & room for a shed at the side but it wasn’t a huge garden left. At that stage though our kids wanted to be out the front not the back garden. When we sold our buyers said it was the kitchen extension & the low maintenance garden that sold the house to them.

When we moved I did another extension (sadly I enjoy that kind of stuff). Prices are twice what they were in 2012 unfortunately. My advice would be not to cut back from 19 to 17sqm. You won’t save much & the space is worth it.

My personal opinion is make the house the house you want to live in. Our weather is bloody awful most of the time - having some low maintenance outdoor space is fine for a lot of people.

Value of garden v extension - Dublin

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