Sanity check on this quotation

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gdn888

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This is a quotation provided to us for the renovation and extension of a 70 m2, two-story end of terrace house in Dublin, built in 1930. Solid concrete wall construction. Currently BER F.

The proposed ground floor extension is is 31 m2, and the proposed first floor extension is 20 m2. I'm posting the quotation here as a sanity check and to see if those more experienced than myself think it's reasonable, or if any items require some scrutiny.

The quotation is above what we are capable of paying I'd appreciate any advice on strategies to get this estimate considerably lower.

Construction of extension and renovation of existing house
  1. Preliminaries, skips, site preparation, scaffolding, rubbish removal and site supervision 26000
  2. Demolition of existing rear structures and internal alterations 13700
  3. Foundations and ground works to new extensions 16000
  4. Insulated ground floors to extension 7400
  5. Blockwork to ground and first floor extensions 16000
  6. Structural steel and alterations to existing openings 14900
  7. New first floor structure 7400
  8. Pitched roof structure, coverings and connections to existing roof 23000
  9. Flat roofs, rooflight and aluminium cappings 13100
  10. Insulation and airtightness to new walls and roofs 9400
  11. External finishes to new extension and rainwater goods 7400
  12. Existing ground floor removal and insulated replacement floor preparation 9700
  13. Underfloor heating and standard screed - ground floor allowance 11400
  14. Air-to-water heat pump, cylinder, hot and cold water services and first floor radiators 27200
  15. Electrical alterations and installation to extension (90 electric points, white PVC finish) 14300
  16. Extractor fans and kitchen downdraft duct provision 3000
  17. New ceilings throughout, wall preparation and replastering 12600
  18. Bathroom construction and fit-out labour with recessed storage 10300
  19. Ground floor WC shower room and utility services 8000
  20. Internal doors, skirtings, architraves, window boards and consumer unit enclosure 8600
  21. Stair headroom alterations - provisional structural allowance 4000
  22. Attic floor and eaves insulation with approximately 12 m2 raised storage base 4600
  23. Remove gas fire, fireplace and hearth and prepare chimney for future stove 1700
  24. Flooring and tiling installation labour 5100
  25. Internal painting only (Dulux / Fleetwood paint) 9700
  26. External wall insulation 21000 (Front brick slips including canopy extension 5500)
  27. PC sum for external works - approximately 20 m2 external patio 4500
Total for extension and house renovation including patio PC sum 315500 (excluding VAT)

Items not included
  1. Windows
  2. Kitchen and fitted furniture
  3. Sanitaryware / tiles
  4. Floor finishes
  5. Solar panels
  6. MVHR
  7. No front garden works included
 
A few questions first, is the house in any way liveable? Do the ceilings all need to come down? Is 15 a full electrical rewire, or just the extension?
Thats a pretty expensive quote, at 4,500 a square meter? On first look it seems over costs quoted here of around 3K: https://www.beforeyoubuild.ie/blog/house-renovation-cost-ireland-2026

If the house is liveable, and you cant afford the total one stop shop approach, you may need to break up the work and do some yourself. You may need to leave the extension for now.
If taking this route, I would recommend an energy survey to see which elements to tackle first and use any grants you can. I would also recommend an electrical survey. For plumbing, you may want to reduce the costs in 14 by just putting back in a new efficient oil or gas for now with new rads and pipework.

Looking at the list the ones that stand out to me are
1. Thats a large sum for such little detail
8,9 36000 seems large for roofs
12,13 20000 on floors, its not a nice job but insulating a floor yourself and not going with UFH is do-able
17 do you need all ceilings and replaster?
20 How many doors is that, you might want to source them yourself from 200-500 each, and then a cost per door to hang them
24, 25 flooring and painting can be DIY

Personally, I wouldnt go for a spend like that and not have windows or a kitchen done. I would focus first on essentials in the fabric of the house and needs such as electric and plumbing. Consider whether you want to aim for a B rating rather than A.
 
Bow tie said:
Thats a pretty expensive quote, at 4,500 a square meter? On first look it seems over costs quoted here of around 3K: https://www.beforeyoubuild.ie/blog/house-renovation-cost-ireland-2026
Click to expand...
I think prices at that link are for renovation within existing walls and don't allow for any extensions.

When I saw 50m2 extension I was expecting ballpark €250k at 5000 per metre just for the extension. So this quote seems reasonable to me when you add on renovation of existing 70m2. Bear in mind costs are only rising and this will likely be built in 2027, not 2026.

Where are you based in the country? This may also affect pricing somewhat.
 
Yes, I'm not dublin based.
If the OP cant afford this quote, I would think they should drop the extension and focus on the house already there first though.
 
Persia said:
How many quotes have you received so far and was this the cheapest?
Would it be cheaper to take a short cut and trade up to a larger house?
Click to expand...
This is the first of three quotes we're expecting but we expect it to be the lowest.

Bow tie said:
If the house is liveable, and you cant afford the total one stop shop approach, you may need to break up the work and do some yourself. You may need to leave the extension for now.
Click to expand...
The house is liveable but you wouldn't invite anybody around! I've tried breaking up the work with this full extension and renovation in mind but it really hasn't worked out. Front windows, front door and side window already replaced with triple glazing. They now need to moved out so they're not sunken with the new EWI. Would've been cheaper to get them all together with the new windows for the renovation.

House rewired two years ago, so I will query the cost of the electrics. I do appreciate the suggestion to break up the work. It's something I've tried to do but it's an approach that's lost us money.

Bow tie said:
do you need all ceilings and replaster?
Click to expand...
I would say so yes, they're the original lath and plaster and have seen better days.

Bow tie said:
20 How many doors is that, you might want to source them yourself from 200-500 each, and then a cost per door to hang them
24, 25 flooring and painting can be DIY
Click to expand...
That's useful, thanks.
 
When you say solid concrete construction is there any gap or cavity?
Instead of external wrap, you could get the cavity pumped, with a grant, and better warm plasterboard before replaster.
This is where an energy assessor is worth their weight and should work with your budget to give you great advice.
 
Bow tie said:
12,13 20000 on floors, its not a nice job but insulating a floor yourself and not going with UFH is do-able
Click to expand...
I think it would be a mistake not to do UFH given the scale of the proposed works. Skipping the UFH will entail additional expenses that will offset much of the savings and likely result in compromises elsewhere.

Bow tie said:
When you say solid concrete construction is there any gap or cavity?
Click to expand...
1930s construction is typically either mass concrete or solid blocks, hollow blocks didn't come in until ~1950 and cavities only started appearing in the mid-'60s.
 
patfert1 said:
Having installed UFH a couple of years ago, the result is really lovely and definitely worth the investment.
Click to expand...
Yeah, and the alternatives here with a heat pump are really limited to obtrusive ducting for an air-to-air system or large rads that will impact how the space is used.
 
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