Tools of the Self-Building Trade
Self-build is a phrase that is becoming ever-popular in the housing market. Hold on, what exactly is “self-build”? It’s a property you build yourself. It doesn’t have to mean LITERALLY by yourself, but you put yourself in the position as architect, planner, foreman of your property and let skilled workers do the task you tell them to do. More people are opting for the “self-build” route – in fact, the army of “self-builders” in the UK outnumbers the amount of properties being developed by any professional developer. The purpose of self-build is to produce a home to your precise specifications, not a boiler-plate design that commercial developers use.
I’m sure you’re formulating this thought right about now: “I can’t plan, and manage a house build”. The pleasant news is that getting involved with a self-build project doesn’t mean you inevitably have to get stuck in with the actual building (in point of fact, just 5% of self-builders actually take a role in the actual construction of the property). Even when it comes to design, quite often this is delegated to a professional designer.. Self-build, more often than not, is about you articulating (in plain English), what you need to the property designer – who then develops a plan based on your prerequisites. This plan then becomes the draft the builders follow. See? It’s not required to have any hands-on engagement in self-build. Having said that, the Do It Yourself enthusiast can use self-build as an opportunity to save some money by helping out with the aspects of self-build they have experience in – it’s your call as to how much involvement you want during the construction.
Self-build sounds pricy, but in reality it’s broadly speaking cheaper than purchasing an already built home of the same specifications (up to 30% cheaper). Not only that, self-built houses fetch a good price too – as much as 25% higher than the development costs, so you can view self-build also as a means to invest your money, rather than just a home to live in
You must ensure the team of workers you choose are total professionals and that they work well together. For sure, you will require builders with experience of some rather potentially dangerous machinery used in building, such as floor saws, wall saws, angle grinders, road saws and stihl saws. Professionalism brings safety to the build too.
This article is only an introduction to self-build, and I trust it will inspire those of you who are perhaps a little daunted by such projects. It needn’t be time-intensive, and you won’t need any specific skills, but you will need to be cautious as to who you employ, and you will need to carefully work out the budget of the project.
