[8] 3 early errors that can wreck your budget
Map data: Google - Image: Landsat / Copernicus

Location

Build Start

Architect

Total Floor Area

Every change you make after breaking ground carries a price tag. The Glass-House started with loose plans and open-ended ambitions, but each early uncertainty multiplied into cost, delay, and design drift. For self-builders, the lesson is simple, lock in your big-ticket choices before the first trench goes in, or be prepared to pay the “evolving design tax.”

Site Purchase Price

Site Area

Site Cost Per m²

Initial Budget

Total Spend

Budget Overspend

Cost Per m²

Site Coverage

Plot Ratio

All Figures Indexed To

Construction Type

Materials

Features

Every change you make after breaking ground carries a price tag. The Glass-House started with loose plans and open-ended ambitions, but each early uncertainty multiplied into cost, delay, and design drift. For self-builders, the lesson is simple, lock in your big-ticket choices before the first trench goes in, or be prepared to pay the “evolving design tax.”

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Acknowledgment:

This is a non-commercial review carried out for the purposes of study in developing an understanding of the requirements of self-build in the UK.

The views and opinions expressed are my own and is not affiliated in any way with Grand Designs or Channel 4.  All information on this page has been gathered from publicly available sources.

The plot/site information was located using Land Registry and The Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities Data which contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

The lessons learned are derived from my interpretations and observations of a publicly disseminated case study and are in no way meant to be a substitute to the original.

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