Whilst this is a “how long is a piece of string” type of question, it can be answered with a few more details. I firmly believe that you should be able to embark on a building project safe in the knowledge that you know what it might cost.
The cost of doing building work can be estimated using two factors.
- How large is the project?
- What level of specification is required?
Let’s start with the “how large” part.
This is a very simple measurement. Square metres. How much floor space is being created or refurbished, measured in square metres?
And the “what level of specification” part?
This is slightly harder to quantify, but can be considered as a sliding scale from “as cheap as possible, whilst still complying with building regulations” all the way up to “no expense spared”, with most projects falling somewhere in between.
As you can imagine, building a no-frills new classroom block to accommodate history lessons in a rural secondary school is going to be at the cheaper end of the spectrum. Refurbishing Buckingham Palace, with priceless paintings needing moving and storing whilst hand-made silk wallpapers are copied, and reinstated, in high-ceilinged banqueting halls, is going to be at the opposite end of the specification spectrum.
How do we work out the costs?
I have been involved with the design and project management of over 300 residential projects over the last two decades, ranging in contract value from below £100k, to over £1m. By going back through old drawings and contracts to assess the extent and actual final cost of those projects, I have produced an algorithm that can predict the likely cost of any residential project. It takes into account the size of any newly built extensions, the area of the house that was refurbished, the relative budgets and aspirations of the owners, and the date it was built. Whilst the data does not produce a builder’s quote, it does produce a very early estimate of what I would expect the builder’s quote to be. Whilst it is tempting to believe that “of course, I can get it built for cheaper”, I would temper that with a warning. Building work is expensive. It is hand-made, in Britain. Have you ever heard anyone say, “Now that we have finished doing up our house, we are wondering what to do with all the rest of our money?”
Which page should I use?
All pages will give you the same estimate of the costs. However, for smaller projects, typically a kitchen extension or minor ground floor works, there are fewer questions to answer and so I have provided a simplified version in order to save you time. General refurbishment, or new build estimates are also available.
Who am I?
My name is Michael Worthington. I run my architectural practice in Queens Park, in north-west London, and have been designing and managing residential projects for private clients for the best part of two decades.
You can contact me by emailing on mw@michaelworthington.co.uk or call me on 07970 631966
Or visit my website at www.michaelworthingtonarchitecture.com