‘Stressful 16-month home renovation gave me psoriasis – but it was worth it’

When Talia Barry walked into her new family home her reaction was emphatic.

“I actually cried the day we moved in, thinking I’d made a terrible mistake,” she said. “My daughter cried too, and I kept saying: “It will be really nice... one day.”

Talia kept her promise, although it took almost a decade and a six figure sum to reinvent the dated and damp fixer upper.

The Barry family – Talia, 51, an accident and emergency consultant, her husband Jim, 52, who runs NHS software company Healthrota, and their four children – bought the four bedroom, four storey Victorian townhouse in Dartmouth Park, north London, in 2013.

Over the first few years they smartened up the house as best they could.

In 2020 they decided they were ready for a full scale facelift and hired Charles Tashima Architects to draw up plans for a two-storey rear extension to house a large kitchen and a home office.

They decided to convert the loft into an en suite bedroom.

The rest of the property also got a once over, with new insulation, windows, flooring, and redecoration.

A top-to-bottom refurb is a big investment, both financial and emotional, with many factors to consider before going ahead.

Anyone considering upgrading their home needs to do a thorough cost/benefit analysis first – particularly in an environment where building costs are high, house prices are stagnant, and borrowing to fund a build has become more expensive.

According to the latest research from housing analyst Barbour ABI many homeowners are backing away from major renovations, considering them too expensive to justify during a cost of living crisis.

It found that across Britain the number of home improvement planning applications fell 19pc between 2021 and 2022, with the biggest drops in less affluent areas where money is tighter and profit margins lower.

For the Barrys the cost/ benefit analysis went like this:

Their house had already increased in value by 2020 so investing in it made financial sense. They could use savings to do the work, so they didn’t need to worry about loans and interest rates.

And as things stood their house didn’t fit their needs. With children ranging in age from 12 to 24 all wanting their own space, and three family members working from home – at least some of the time – they needed to rethink it completely.

Finally, since they plan to stay indefinitely they will be around long enough to enjoy the results of their efforts.

Work began in 2020.

Moving out and renting during the 16-month build was prohibitively expensive so the family, their labrador and two cats, plus a Ukrainian woman and her pets who stayed with the family for six months, remained in situ for the duration.

“It was awful. I got psoriasis in the middle of it because it was so stressful,” says Talia.

But by 2022 the builders had cleared out and the stylish, flexible family home with its two offices and airy kitchen makes the pain feel worthwhile.

The project cost £175 per square foot, and the house value has increased, partly because the local market has grown in the past decade, and partly because of the improvements the Barry family has made.

Profit is a moot point in this case, since Talia envisages living in her remodelled house long enough to be able to watch her grandchildren playing in the garden.

“We didn’t do it looking for a profit, we just wanted a better space to live in,” says Talia. “Building work is expensive and awful, but it is so nice to live in a place you have made how you want it. I don’t think we will ever sell it. It is our final resting place.”

And this attitude is one which buying agent Jemma Scott, a partner at The Buying Solution, is seeing more and more.

“I have seen a big shift from those trying to make a quick buck on a hastily added extension or conversion to those looking to make a meaningful and sustainable difference to a home,” she says.

“Whilst it has to wash its face in terms of investment it doesn’t necessarily need to be a X or Y return on investment. The value is in the enjoyment and usage.”

Should you do a kitchen extension?

The kitchen is the beating heart of the home, and a modern, open plan multi-purpose living space is high on many homeowners’ wish lists.

How much will it cost?

Building costs vary around the UK, but Ben Ridley, director of Architecture for London, said extensions in the capital tend to cost around £400 per square foot (excluding VAT and professional fees, which will add 30 to 40pc to your final bill).

Paul Archer Design suggests budgeting around £300 to £500 per square foot for a kitchen extension.

Will it boost the value of my property?

Profits will depend on the quality of the work and your location. Buying agent Ben Horne, head of country buying at Middleton Advisors, said that a great kitchen extension could add up to 20pc to the value of a property. Buying agent Craig Fuller, of Stacks Property Search, puts the uplift at a more modest but still substantial 15pc.

How long will it take?

This is a real how long is a piece of string question, depending on the size and specification of your plan, plus the amount of groundwork required. Paul Archer Design estimates six months for an extended kitchen, but a larger project could take up to 14 months, said Ridley.

Don’t forget that if you are going to need planning permission then your time frames are going to expand. Paul Archer Design estimates that it takes around six months to draw up plans and get the necessary consents. Tendering for a builder can also be slow going.

Stress levels

High. Your kitchen will be out of commission, services will need to be regularly switched off, there will be dust everywhere, and by the time you are done your entire ground floor is going to look like a bomb hit it, while your garden will also take some punishment.

Should I go for it? 

Horne’s view is this depends on whether you plan to stay on in the property, for the medium term at least. If the answer is yes you will get to enjoy the space and should – hopefully – see price uplift down the line. This point is valid whatever sort of project you are considering.

If you will be moving on soon you have to calculate how much the project will cost and how much added value you can expect immediately – take soundings from local estate agents and get quotes for the work before you act. As a general rule of thumb, the more expensive the area you are in the easier it will be to recoup the cost of a build.

In a high value market like Oxford, Daniel Parrott of agents John D Wood & Co, thinks a kitchen extension will pay for itself. The work, he estimated, would cost around £350 per square foot, but the resale value would be £500-per-square foot plus.

If you do decide to build, says Carol Peett, managing director of West Wales Property Finders, you should think beyond one massive open plan room. “Be careful to ensure that the property remains user friendly by making sure you still have a separate utility room for muddy boots, dogs, and washing machine,” she says. 

“A utility room and a small downstairs loo and shower room are probably the most requested things for country property searches.”

And to maximise value Fuller believes owners need to think carefully about the design, prioritising natural light and good access to the garden. Incorporating energy-efficient features and environmental building materials will add value and reduce long-term operating costs and add to the appeal,” he adds.

When would it be a bad idea? 

“More isn’t always better,” said Andrew Harwood, of Strutt & Parker’s Sevenoaks office. “If the house sits on a smaller plot and is already a good size and well-proportioned, it could well be detrimental to its value if you over-extend and drastically reduce the garden size.”

Kitchen extensions are amongst the most expensive home improvements, because of the cost of the fit out. 

Building costs have gone up, as have borrowing costs, leaving many people trying to extend on a shoestring. If money is tight Ridley suggests it might be better to work with what you have got, and shelve grand designs plans. 

“Where budgets are tight, we are sometimes advising against any extensions at all,” he says. “The money is often better spent on a full internal refurbishment and low energy retrofit.”

Should you do a loft conversion?

An extra bedroom or two could make the difference between staying in your current home or stretching yourself to upsize.

How much will it cost?

Budget around £250 to £350 per square foot, plus VAT and fees, said Ridley. Paul Archer Design estimates around £200 to £250 per square foot.

Will it boost the value of my property? 

This kind of project, says Parrott, could add around £150,000 to the value of a property in Oxford, making it a sensible investment. “Unlike ground-up extensions, loft conversions often offer a more cost-effective option, repurposing existing space rather than involving new structural elements,” he says.

Parrott’s only words of caution to owners of smaller homes looking at extending into the loft is not to forget about storage space – few buyers will want a four-bedroom house with not enough space for their family possessions so think about built-in cabinetry wherever you can.

How long will it take? 

Around five months.

Stress levels 

Medium. Work will be contained to just the upper floor, leaving your living space reasonably unaffected, although there will be noise to contend with.

Should I go for it? 

If your house is small – think two bedrooms and a box room – then Peett thinks the answer is yes. Not only will it give you extra space, but will widen your pool of potential buyers when you can to sell.

“If there is potential to do a decent attic conversion consisting of a bedroom and bathroom in a two bedroom house, it is fairly safe to say that this will increase the value of a house far more than the cost of the work as it then converts a first time buyers’ home into a potential family home,” she says. 

“Having a second bathroom really helps the desirability of a property as a family home as well as the value.”

At the seaside a loft conversion can pay particular dividends, said Charlie Hambly, of John Bray Estates in Cornwall. “A property near the coast may not have views of the estuary or sea on the ground floor,” he says. 

“Pushing higher into the roof space could unlock a totally new aspect which could achieve a premium when it comes to selling.”

When would it be a bad idea? 

An unbalanced home – one with loads of bedrooms but a small garden and not much living space – might work fine for you but will not appeal to many future buyers. And with house prices looking flat, if you plan to move on within the next couple of years anyway you might not recoup your money.

Should you build a garden room?

With living space at a premium many homeowners are looking beyond the back door for space to create a home office, kids’ playroom, or gym.

How much will it cost? 

Around £50,000 says Parrott.

Will it boost the value of my property? 

“It would be very difficult to see a tangible short-term gain,” says Parrott. “Certainly, no-one builds garden offices to add value.”

How long will it take? 

Much depends on whether you pick an off-the-peg pod, which can be put up in days (excluding foundation work). Building from scratch would take around two months, says Ridley.

Stress levels 

Low. If you have direct access to the back garden then you should barely notice your builders, and you can close the doors and forget about the chaos.

Should I go for it? 

If you really need the extra space, for example as a place to work from home, to the extent that your other option is moving house, then there’s a definite financial argument in favour of a home office when compared to the cost and inconvenience of renting a desk outside the home or even moving. 

If you yearn for a yoga room then you’ve got to see it more as a lovely little luxury than a practical investment.

When would it be a bad idea? 

If you have a modest-sized city garden then losing precious space could turn off future buyers, particularly if it is a family home. If you possess a great big country garden or a long, skinny, badly proportioned city garden then it would fit in well as an extra amenity.

“Garden rooms work particularly well for long and narrow properties that aren’t especially well oriented in terms of light, and they can add interest to the shape of a garden,” says Fuller.