Building a house - any advice?

A

August

Registered User
Messages
78
Hi,

We have just put in an offer on a site which will hopefully be accepted on Monday. Just wondering if anyone has any advice on building whether it be hiring a builder, house plans, costs, heating system etc. Any advice appreciated as Hubbie and I are completely green when it comes to this. Also the site we have found was used for pine farming so there will be a certain amount of site clearance which I am lead to believe should not take too much work or money to clear.
 
Hi there,

That's great news for you- hope it goes well. The stages we went through in the process were:

- Meeting with the council planning department to discuss our intentions
- Engaging an engineer/architect for the drawings/planning application
- Submission of planning permission application
- Suppliers costing the detailed house drawings
- Choosing a building contractor or choosing many contractors and
managing the build yourself

Have you planned for time/money for each of these phases? Best of luck,

Michelle.
 
The main bit of advice that I found after my build was apply for your ESB connection straight away, and keep after them - it took me a year and half to get it and it held up everything as no carpentry can be done till the heat goes on.
Dont be in any rush, especially if going direct labour. I went this route and you do save money but it does take time.
Also, spend money on insulation. In this country it is essential.
Best of luck!
 
Thanks astra. On the ESB/Telecom topic what is the situation with getting poles. Are you charged per pole or is there a max they can charge or does it depend on how far you are from services?
 
AFAIK there is a fixed fee for all new connections to ESB and this includes all pole transformers and lines required to get the power to your site. It will be your responsibility to get the power from this location to your meter box via and underground duct.

Site clearance should not be a big problem. Just and excavator and couple of trucks to draw away the stumps etc. Make sure you retain as much topsoil as possible.

Advice?

Spend plenty of time thinking about the layout of your new house, it is normally too late to make changes by the time you realise a room is too small or you have not included enough storage like walk in wardrobes or utility rooms. It might be a good idea to invest in a book of plans, have a look through them and use any elements you like in your own design.

If you can afford it use an architect who will listen to you and design a house that will suit you both now and in the future.

Use any south facing aspect to good effect so that sunlight can warm up your house during the day. It actually makes a huge difference.

Try and do up a realistic budget and stick to it. Remember you will be paying it back for the next 20 or 30 years.

If you are going for a contractor, get as many quotes as you can. You would be very surprised at the range of prices that come back to you.

Again, if using a contractor, involve a solicitor and get yourself a cast iron contract done up. At least then both you and the contractor will know exactly where you stand and there is no ambiguity about your and their responsibilities which can often lead to conflict. Chances are that any good contractor will have his own standard contract. Thats fine but make sure to read the small print and get it checked by your solicitor anyway.

I've plenty more but that should keep you going for a while;)

Best of luck with it.
 
Yes its a set fee but that doesnt make it any easier! Just keep a record of all correspondences with them in case you need it. It might be easier for you, I had to bring the supply from quite a distance.
Also as you plan each room try and visualise what furniture etc. you will also want in there and be careful about the positioning of windows and doors as you could find yourself very tight for space.
With regards to sockets etc. most electricians should be able to put you right but i did a list of every single thing electrical relating to each room (including christmas lights) and decided on the number and position of sockets from there, its as easy put them in now rather than later.
 
The ESB will charge you for extra poles over 1 or 2 as far as I know, see if you require extra poles to get the power to the house.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top