On a hillside North West of the town of Newhaven in East Sussex, Tim Cox and Julia Brock purchased an old dilapidated property and were granted planning permission to knock it down and erect a new 3-bedroom building within the existing envelope.
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Set realistic deadlines by accounting for potential delays. Building a home is a complex process that can easily take longer than anticipated, especially when facing issues like planning permissions or construction challenges.
Hire a local architect or builder who can be present on-site frequently to address concerns as they arise. Remote firms may struggle to manage local labourer’s effectively, leading to communication and scheduling challenges.
Understand all permits and regulations required for your site. Planning permissions can be tricky, especially with unique properties. Being unaware of certain requirements, such as septic systems, can lead to unexpected costs.
Always have a contingency plan in your budget. Overages are common; budgeting an extra 10-20% can help mitigate the impact of surprise expenses like deeper foundations or new septic systems.
Maintain open lines of communication with every party involved in the build—architects, builders, suppliers—to ensure clarity and minimise misunderstandings that can lead to costly mistakes.
Regularly review design samples and materials to ensure they align with your vision. Relying too heavily on contractors’ representations can lead to disappointment if the final result doesn’t match your expectations.
Be prepared to be flexible with your original plans. Compromises may be necessary, whether due to budget constraints, design limitations, or time pressures.
Don’t overlook the importance of the home’s exterior and surrounding landscape. Investing in landscaping creates a more appealing home and can prevent issues like mud around the foundation.
Prepare mentally for delays and setbacks. They are a common part of the building process and shouldn’t be taken as failures.
Building a home can be overwhelming. Don’t hesitate to ask for help from friends, family, or professionals to relieve some burdens and bring fresh perspectives.
While kit homes can expedite the building process, be prepared for their limitations in architectural appeal. Ensure that your kit design meets your aesthetic and functional needs.
Plan for and accept that adjustments may be needed after initial completion. Sometimes spaces require tweaking after seeing how they function in day-to-day life.
Keep a close eye on expenses and stay within budget where possible. It’s easy to get carried away with features and finishes, but staying grounded financially is essential for a stress-free build.
Embrace the experience of building your home as part of your life journey, fostering a sense of accomplishment and personal growth that comes with ownership and investment in a custom space.
Integrate nature into the design. A well-planned garden not only enhances the aesthetic but supports a better living environment.
Get a thorough ground survey done. It may cost more upfront but It could save you money during the groundworks if things like tree roots are found that delay the start of build. Either that or have a contingency for boarding.
Make sure you get the materials you plan to use as samples to determine how they work together.
Don’t be woolly with the detail. Getting the detail right in the earlier stages can help prevent last minute decision making.
Reduce the time restrictions to reduce the stress of making decision.
Remote workers increase the risk, use local firms for design as well as build.
Ensure the utilities, including septic tank condition are useable before purchasing the land/property
Get the windows manufacturer to measure for the windows or have the architect/project planner take the liability for communication. Or be extremely clear and accurate with the measurements communicated to the window manufacturers.
The outside of the house during work is a muddy bog and planned pathways could be useful (they used old railway sleepers and shingle)
Festivals use corrugated aluminium sheets.
Near the coast and high up, the weather is harsher so leathery plants are preferred
Using local materials and plants helps set the property into the surrounding area. Possibly helps with planning too.
Don’t build a house with a new-born baby. The build needs as much attention as a baby. You’ll be sleep deprived, exhausted and unable to make good decisions. And they’ll be useless at general labour, but they may look cute in a hard hat.
Be “pathologically” optimistic as there will be times when the project doesn’t seem to move forwards at all.
If you are interested in Self Build then most people start at a Self Build exhibition.
Reduce time constraints on the project so that overwork is avoided. Prevents silly errors that can be time consuming to correct.
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.
