homebuilding.co.uk 121The Build projecT advice
1
researchBuilders
The‘goto’routeforanything
thesedaysseemstobethe
internetandthereareseveral
companies,manyofwhomadvertise
ontelevision,offeringlistsof
buildersandtradespeoplewho
haveregisteredwiththemand,
presumably,beencheckedoutand
ratedaccordingly.Therearealso
thevarioustradeorganisationsand
warrantyproviderswhocanprovide
youwithdetailsoftheirmembers.
Forme,recommendation,
especiallyfromanotherself-builder,
is thebestwayofobtainingnames.
Eitherway,alwaysmakeyourown
enquiriesbytalkingtoyourlong-
listedbuilders’previouscustomers
andlookingat theirpreviouswork.Serialself-builder
DavidSnelldishesout
therelationshipadvice
andprovides 15 top
tipsto makesure
youandyourbuilder
remaina matchmade
inheaven15 ways
to get
the best
from your
builder
2
geTTheBesTqualiTy quoTe
Don’tbesurprisedif youhear
nothingforagesafterrequestinga
quote.If it goesontoolongthenit’sa
poundtoa pennythattheydon’twant
thejobandif youbadgerthemtoomuch
youwillgeta pricebutit’llprobablybe
ridiculouslyhigh.
Sizematterswhenit comestobuilders.
Thebiggerbuildersmaygetbacktoyou
quicker,buttheyalsohaveoverheads
that’llmeanthatthepriceswillbehigher.
Themediumbuildersmayputyourplans
outtoa quantitysurveyor(QS)andthe
pricemaybeinflatedbecausetheQSwill
wanttocoveragainstalleventualities.The
smallerbuilderswillgivethebestprices
buthavelessopportunitytoporeover
plansandpricethingsup.
Helpthemandyourselvesbysending
yourplanstooneoftheestimating
companies,suchasEstimatorsOnline
(www.estimators-online.com),which
providesyouwitha listofcosts,itemised
bytrade,andanindicationofthebuilder’s
profit,whichwillneedtobeadded.Self-buildingis asmuchaboutbuilding
relationshipsasit is buildinghouses.The
onethatyouhavewithyourbuilderis
oftenthemostimportant,asit is themost
likelytobefraughtwithdanger.
It’sanoddrelationship,especiallyfor
manyfirsttimeself-builders.Whileyou
are,ostensibly,theprincipalpartner- remembertheultimatedecisions,
includingtheauthorisationofpayment,
areallyours– it’softenthebuilderwhois
theexpertthatyouarerelyingonandthe
sourceoftheadviceandtheknowledge
thatenablesyoutomakethosedecisions.
Here’s 15 ofmytoptipstonavigate
therelationshipbetweenself-builderand
builderandmakesurethatyouavoidany
pitfallsalongtheway.3
keepaneyeonThe plans
As the project progresses, the plans will
undoubtedly change. Always retrieve old plans and
specifications and replace them with the up to date
ones. Failure to do so leads to disputes and, worse
still, to things being done incorrectly. For example,
if the electrician has a plan showing a door opening
one way and the carpenter has another showing it
opening the other, the light switch will be on the
wrong side. Before any trade starts it pays to make
sure they have the right plans.image: getty images
david snell
Theauthorof
BuildingYourOwn
Home,david is a
serial self-builder
and has been
building homes
for 50 years