To move or improve?

Sooner or later most of us find ourselves wishing our homes were just that little bit bigger. After all, who doesn't need more space - perhaps somewhere to work from home in peace, or somewhere to banish those mountains of primary- coloured children's toys, or maybe a bright and spacious new kitchen where you can do your Gordon Ramsey impersonation without alarming the neighbours. But wanting more space means having to make tough choices - facing up to the daunting challenges of either moving or improving.

As we all know, moving house in Britain is officially one of life's most stress- inducing experiences, and certainly one of the most expensive. You'll need the endurance of a Super-Hero in lurid tights to endure the combined horrors of gazumping, gazundering, HIPs, dirty tricks, damning surveys, frosty solicitors and dubious estate agents. It's enough to make you wilt just thinking about it.

Fortunately the alternatives to uprooting the entire family and moving house are well established - the most popular options being extending upwards into the loft, or outwards with a conservatory or a full-blown home extension.

Making the most of your existing property by 'adding on' can save shed-loads of money in fees and taxes that you'd otherwise waste by moving home. It can also be a good opportunity to discover your inner Lawrence Llewellyn Bowen and assert those long dormant interior design skills. And if you follow the fortunes of aspiring developers on TV property shows it seems you don't exactly have to be a genius to successfully transform your home and make a good few quid into the bargain.

But of course 'Colin and Justin' style TV shows don't always tell the full story. In reality we all dread 'getting the builders in' - the nightmare scenario of witnessing your home being transformed into a debris-strewn battlezone of unfinished work, spiralling costs and inexplicable delays, with rogue builders reeling off bizarre excuses whilst helping themselves to big dollops of your hard-earned cash.

Thankfully, with some careful planning and a healthy slice of professional guidance, construction site calamities can be avoided. To the rescue comes chartered surveyor Ian Alistair Rock who has written the new 'Haynes Home Extension Manual' which offers sound guidance as well as some cautionary tales. The book features hundreds of colour photos of properties being extended - the good, the bad and the downright scary!

"A question that many people ask is 'what adds most value?" says Ian. "The answer depends on what kind of property you're starting out with. But you can't go wrong if your new extension overcomes an obvious drawback, such as a tiny kitchen. Today, buyers expect good sized kitchen/diners - even though many of us survive on ready meals and takeaways! Another sure-fire winner for most homes is adding an extra bedroom, or in some cases an extra bathroom and WC. Converting the loft is also normally money well spent. However, not all properties are suitable for loft conversions, especially those built after the mid 1960s with their shallow roofs and with modern factory-made trussed rafter roof structures. Contemplating building a conservatory can mean a knock on the door from a high pressure salesperson, only to end up with an expensive, poor quality job that's freezing in winter and scorching in summer, and doesn't get used much. Given the choice, it's normally best to go the extra mile and build a 'proper' home extension, which should add significantly to the value of your home".

"Building a home extension can be no less challenging than doing a 'Kevin McCloud' and erecting your own Grand Design - in some ways an extension is actually trickier, since your design options are limited by having to join up to the existing property and connect to old drainage, heating and electric systems".

The Home Extension Manual confirms that managing a building project isn't easy, and stresses the importance of thinking it all through carefully before you start. Builders get a bad press, and of course some deserve their reputation. But most will try and do a difficult job well. It should be the case that 'good clients' get good building work done for them - but until now there hasn't been much guidance for homeowners. The Haynes manual explains how to manage each stage of a build. Here are some 'top tips' from the book - some do's' and 'don't's for anyone planning to extend their home:-

DO's

1/ Check whether you actually need planning permission, as it may not be required. Many loft conversions and single storey extensions are classed as 'permitted development'. Check your ideas first with the Council Planners, and see what other people in your neighbourhood have been allowed to build.

2/ First build the extension in your head! A day spent carefully thinking through all the details in advance can save 3 days later on site sorting out misunderstandings you hadn't predicted. Consider who will be doing what and when.

3/ Write out a specification - a detailed list of everything you want done (see free samples on www.home-extension.co.uk). Sketch out your ideas as drawings, which may later form the basis of your planning application. Architects may offer a free initial consultation to discuss your ideas.

4/ Before the builders start, consider all the practicalities - such as using the loo, how they get site access, water supply, security, and safety measures. Good planning should minimise the intrusion on your family life, especially when it comes to cutting power supplies and 'breaking through' - ( i.e. making new doorways into you house from the extension).

5/ Always check what's under the ground before digging! It's not a great start when your electricity cables, gas or water pipes and phone lines are severed on Day One.

6/ Communicate! It best to have a brief site meeting, every fortnight, and to keep a daily site diary with photos of who did what and when. Communication by phone can be challenging when there's a Kango power breaker blasting away in the background.

7/ Agree with the builders at the outset all the important points - e.g. the dates for starting and completion, how often you will pay them, whether you plan to keep a retention (5%), whether there's a penalty for delayed completion, and how much of the work you will be doing yourself. Using a contract should help make all these points clear.

DON'Ts

1/ Don't be shy of asking your Local Authority Building Control Officer for their technical opinion. They have good local knowledge of things like ground conditions, which will directly affect the cost of building your foundations.

2/ If you plan to personally Project Manage the job - don't underestimate the challenge of getting the project completed on time, on budget and to the right quality. Even the professionals can get this very wrong (e.g. Wembley Stadium)

3/ Don't be overly optimistic when budgeting. Making unrealistic budget assumptions at the outset is the most common reason for projects coming in over budget.

4/ Don't just pick any builder from Yellow Pages. Try to get builders via recommendations, check their previous work and talk to former clients. You wouldn't buy something on Ebay from someone with a zero rating or negative feedback - nor should you here.


5/ Once you've accepted a quote or tender, don't go changing your mind about the design! Some builders make nearly half their profits charging for expensive 'extras'.

6/ Only pay for completed work. Don't pay in advance, but always pay promptly - no one does their best work when they haven't been paid.

The new Haynes Home Extension Manual by Ian Alistair Rock is priced at £19.99 from all good bookshops. ISBN: 1844253570