If you are considering renovating your home start by thinking about areas of your home that could be improved, updated or extended that would not only add value, but would improve the quality of your everyday living.Refurbishing your existing kitchen or bathroom is a great way of improving your home without having to spend a lot of money. Visit your local kitchen and bathroom companies and speak to their in-house designers. They will be happy to produce simple design plans for you free of charge if you are interested in buying their products. Shopping around in January and February also means you have the added benefit of getting good discounts on most of their kitchens, sinks, taps and baths because of the post-Christmas sales! For small scale projects like this speak to friends to try and source a good small builder that they have used before. A builder that is highly recommended with a track record of reliability and good quality workmanship is worth his weight in gold, and yes they do exist. Picking a random builder out of the phone book is not a good option.
If you are more ambitious and want to increase the amount of space in your home then you will be looking at adding an extension, conservatory or loft conversion. If you do this I suggest you consult a local architect. Architect’s have the creative skills to see opportunities that can make fantastic improvements to your home even on the lowest budget and if you go ahead and employ their services they will do so much for you.
An architect will produce design drawings to help you understand what your new home will look like, they will advise you on local planning policy, make the necessary planning and building control applications to your local council, they will advise you on building costs, help to recommend good local builders and they will also supervise all of the work on site to minimise any stress to you.
Yes, I’m an architect so this does sound like a sales pitch, but it’s a mistake to think that architects just draw pretty pictures. They are at the very heart of the building process and a good architect will be there for you every step of the way.
To find an approved local architect contact the Royal Institute of British Architects (www.architecture.com) or contact your local planning department who may be able to make recommendations.
