Once the building of your home has been completed you’ll need to contact your local authority to arrange for a council tax valuation, a warranty inspector will review the property and issue the warranty, and you can now switch your self-build site insurance to a homeowners’ policy. It’s also time to embark on the VAT […]
The transformation from tired 1930s house to contemporary self-build is a pretty spectacular one. The stunning new property sits proudly at the top of a hill on the edge of a picturesque Sussex village, backed by the South Downs and faced by the South Coast. Helen and Richard discovered the dwelling after a three-year search […]
You’re so close to the finishing line! All that’s left to do is decorate and furnish your brand new bespoke property. Many self-builders find this the most exciting stage of the project when they can inject colour into their space and add soft furnishings to make it feel homely. Once the other trades have left, […]
Following the completion of first fix you will have plastered (or taped and jointed) ceilings and walls. This is a significant stage as the structure begins to feel more like a home than a building site, although electrical wires and pipework will still be visible. Second fix labour can now commence which will hide the […]
With the superstructure watertight, the first fix can get underway. This stage of the project essentially consists of all the work needed before the walls are plastered or ‘tape and jointed’, this includes: • Electrics – cables will be installed for the electrical supply in your house. First fix electrical work prepares the building for […]
Once the substructure has been completed, you are officially ‘out of the ground’. Where substructure is everything in the ground, superstructure is the structural part of the building above foundations, i.e. the timber frame. This stage of your project is about creating a structurally complete shell; you’ll need the walls up, supporting steels or beams […]
With plot, plans, permission and finance firmly in place, it’s now time for construction. Building a home can be roughly divided into five stages; groundworks (substructure/foundations), superstructure (timber frame), first fix, second fix and decoration. For those new to construction, most of the terms used will be unfamiliar. It can be helpful to understand the […]
We have once again been featured in the popular self build publication ‘Build It’. The stunning Scandia property appears in the February 2020 issue of the magazine and the case study takes a look at how our customers built their forever home in their back garden. Click here to read the article.
When planning to build your own home it’s important to obtain expert financial advice early in the process so you’re able to understand your loan options and therefore your budget. To calculate what you’ll have to spend you need to look at the money you currently possess and how much you can borrow. A specialist mortgage […]