helping you to make decisions on your next project......
Timber Frame Builders Perth
Considering what to do with your tired old home that is just not functional…. Or have you run out of space in your existing home due to your family growing, or simply growing up! A lot of people question whether they should knock over their home and start again or if they should just renovate and extend their existing home. There are so many things to consider when deciding between the two options. Interestingly the number one thing people always think of when tossing up between the two options is, how much both options will cost. They then base their decision on this alone. However, you need to consider more than just the cost when considering to either renovate your existing home or knock you home over and start again by doing a new build. Council Regulations The most important thing to questions is, will your local council allow you to knock down your existing home to start building a new home? This is not always an option if you live in a heritage listed home or heritage overlay areas. Most homes in Perth Western Australia should not have to worry about this, a simple call to your local council to ask is all it takes. If the answer is yes you are able to demolish your home, then move onto the next thing on the list to consider….. How Much work is really needed? The answer to this, is one that only you know the answer - how much extra space in the home are you after, and how many walls, namely structural walls, need to be removed and patched up to ensure you get the right lay out you require/want? The more walls you remove the more costly your renovation becomes, also the larger the floor plan is going to become the more it will cost you to renovate and extend the home. If you are knocking through 4-5 different walls throughout the home, gutting every single room in the existing home and extending beyond 70m2 of extra space, depending on the final specification and materials used, you may find that a new build will actually cost less! Now this will depend on what you will build, when building new, you can build a 3 bed and 2 bath home for around $250,000! The demolition and site works will cost around $20,000 (average for most single storey homes) so for $270,000 you could have a brand-new house. However, if you are hoping to build a larger 250m2 + home along with higher end specifications and materials then the same new build could cost you $500,000+. A decent renovation on a mid-high specification home may only cost $300,000. Therefore, in some cases the cost to renovate is cheaper than to build new. Each home is different to the rest so an evaluation on works required to suit your lifestyle is a must! Will you be over capitalising? This is only important if you plan to sell the home in the next 5 or so years. Overcapitalising happens when you spend more on your renovations and purchase/value price than the house is worth and you will end up making a loss if you sell the home. As an example, say you buy a house for $450,000 and spend $150,000 on a home extension and internal renovations. 2 years later you decide to sell your home and move on. The house sells for $550,000 you therefore have over capitalised by $50,000 and essentially you will lose money. To avoid this, it is always a good idea to talk to your local real estate agent to guide you as to what your home may be worth if you complete the desired renovation you are contemplating. If it is not going to be worth the money spent on the renovation, then it is best to re asses. Unless you plan on living in the home long term and therefore capital growth should out weight the over spend up front on renovations. Will you be losing character features? Some older homes can have amazing heritage features, such a historical fire places, architraves, and ceiling roses. Gorgeous high ceilings, original floorboards, tick pointed bricks and timber sash windows or in some cases stain glass windows. The list goes on for the character features your home could have. It is sad to see these features go when you demolish the home, we always like to hold on to and pay homage to these features in any renovation we complete where practical. It is important to pay respect to our history and such a lovely feeling to live in a home that has so much character. You need to consider what character your home has and consider if it is worth holding on to those features or not. Consider the environment…. This is an important one that very rarely gets considered. Think about the impact to the environment that all the demolished materials will have, where is the waste going, will it get recycled or will it go to land fill? Also, how much more greenhouse gases will be emitted into the air to produce the extra materials to build a full newly built home? Considering the environment is just one further thing that is worth considering when tossing up between demolishing your home or renovating and extending your home. Orientation of the build
Back in the day house position was not really considered a must, looking at the older floor plans and the orientation on the block really make you scratch your head! Solar passive designed homes are a big thing in building design today and when considered and designed appropriately can really make living in your home much more comfortable and energy efficient. You may find that in order to get the ultimate northern orientation into your living area is just not practical by working with the existing floor plan and the only way to get this desired orientation and floor plan layout is by completely demolishing the existing home and starting fresh with a new build. Conclusion The decision will be down to you at the end of the day; however, it is important to consider more than just the cost difference between the two options. Will council even let you build your new home? How much extra space do you need and what work is required in the existing home to get the desired amount of space and work-ability you require. Also do not discount the character features if any, in your existing home. Then of course you need to think about the impact on the environment a demo and rebuild is going to cause. Lastly but not least, consider the existing orientation and what is possible when you extend vs the ultimate orientation if you build new. Thinking of demolishing your existing home or wanting to know more about what is possible, talk to a builder now and look at getting rough ballpark figures to explore your options. We are here to help at Distinct Renovations, and happy to answer your questions. Timber Frame Builders Perth
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