With property prices continuing to rise, more homeowners are opting to renovate by way of adding an extension to their home to make room for their growing family, rather than move.

This approach has many advantages; you get to stay in an area you are familiar with, the kids may be settled in the local school, not to mention the hefty fees avoided that come with moving!

If you’ve decided you want to stay put and extend your home, here is the process to get you started

Plan
With renovating comes a lot of practical considerations. For example, where will you stay whilst the renovation is underway? Does your home layout allow you to stay on site or will you have to move? How much value will the extension add to your home? All of this will determine whether you decide to add an extension, and to what extent you will go in terms of size and scale.

Budget
The big question – what is your budget. This is something you want to determine early on, and stick to. Renovation costs can quickly get out of hand if not carefully considered before the work starts. A builder can quote you for the job and will likely add 20% to cover unforeseen costs that arise throughout the renovation.

Design
Take plenty of time to design the layout of your extension as making changes once the building has commenced will be expensive, especially if the changes involve moving walls and plumbing.

Source a builder
One of the most important decisions you’ll make when extending your home will be which builder to engage for your renovation. Look for a builder who specialises in extensions and make sure you feel comfortable working with them and their time frames before signing any paperwork. Get multiple quotes, testimonials and examples of recent work they’ve completed. Always ensure you use licensed, registered tradespeople so work conforms to regulatory standards.

Apply for permits
Before any work commences ensure you have all of the building permits for home extensions approved from your local council. The first step in this process is a planning permit that authorises any work to commence.

If you’re thinking of extending and want to talk it through, contact us today! Our QBCC Licensed, highly skilled in-house team of tradespeople are able to manage every stage of your extension through to completion.