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Thursday 31 July 2014

Assessment Of For Sale Self Build Land

The moment you have found a building land for sale for your self build land project, you have to ensure its suitability for your self build home that you have in mind. Further site investigation is also needed. You have to survey the plot and ensure it meets your requirements. It is essential to go with an open mind when viewing a land for sale, it may be not easy to imagine your dream house on a staked plot of land that may have become overgrown. In assessing a building land for sale there are four basic areas to consider and they are the following:
Conditions of the plot
Good ground conditions of your self build land are important as this will form the foundation of your home. To employ a specialist is necessary in order to ensure that the plot is not affected by flooding, agricultural pollution or industrial pollution. Land for sale that has been filled in may be contaminated and should be tested.
The incline of the land for sale requires more extensive foundation work to be factored into your budget, so it needs to be noted. It is also good to come and visit the site to view the surrounding areas, this will give you a feel for the size and cost of housing along with the type of neighborhood it is built on. You should make sure to pay attention to the local amenities available.
Planning Permission
If you are choosing a building land for sale with outline planning permission, the land may cost up to 500% more than without land. Although the process of obtaining planning permission is time-consuming you will be rewarded for your efforts.
Purchasing a building lot for sale without planning permission will result in an initial saving and increased profit once planning permission has been granted.
Utilities and services
The services and utilities go hand in hand with proximity to existing housing. If the self build land for sale is next to an existing building, planning permission may not only be more likely but the costs of connection to water and electricity supplies will be cheaper too.
Public transport, shops, and schools are a large benefit. While at first they are easily overlooked, during resale time they become key facts of a successful sale.
Legal considerations
You need to ask your solicitor to look into planning permission, boundaries, access, and title issues that you will come across when buying building land for sale.
The above basic areas to consider are our guide in assessing a building land for sale that we choose to buy.
If you are planning to build your home yourself then one of the first things you need to do after planning your budget and finances, is to find and buy a building plot and in order to help us decide to buy a land for sale we need to consider the four areas stated above. Always remember that a successful self build home begins in choosing a good building plot in order to build and make your dream house come into reality


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5870246

Building and Tiling Your Own Home?

If you're looking for a new home and just can't find quite what you want, then perhaps building your own home to your own specifications would be a good idea for you? Don't take on this challenge lightly though, it's the biggest DIY job you'll ever undertake, even if you call in the professionals to do the work and you simply oversee the project, you'll need to dedicate a lot of time and effort to the job, and if there are problems along the way, you could find you need more money than you had budgeted for too.
www.prsbathrooms.co.uk
There are many advantages and disadvantages to building your own home. Let's look at the positive points first. The project is likely to cost you less overall than simply buying a new build house. If you buy a kit house this will reduce the costs further, and if you tackle some of the work yourself you will save even more. The level at which you contribute your own work to the project will depend on the time you can spare, and your skill levels, but even if you complete some of the more simple tasks involved such as laying the floor tiles or decorating, you will save money, and it's nice to get involved when you're creating your own home. Self build homes are exempt from VAT too!
Of course the great thing about a self build is that you can tailor your home to your needs without compromise, adding in specific rooms for hobbies, and making each room the perfect size for you. As you're building from scratch you can add in hidden cables and energy saving devices as you go. You can make sure you home is green and energy efficient and well insulated.
But there are a lot of issues with a self build property which once you've truly considered may make you reconsider and simply opt for a home that is already standing. Firstly finding a plot of land and getting planning permission can be problematic and time consuming. If you need a mortgage, they are especially tricky to get for a self build project, especially in these tougher economic times when banks are more and more reluctant to lend.
Building any home will take time and it's unlikely that nothing will go wrong so you have to be prepared for issues to arise and to perhaps have to make some compromises. No matter whether or not you employ someone to oversee the project, they will need to speak to you on a regular basis, so you will need to have plenty of time available.
You'll need extra cash for the project. Don't set a budget that includes every penny you have. The truth of the matter is that most self build projects go over budget. Don't forget that while you are building your new home, you will also be paying for the property within which you live. Some people choose to live in a caravan on site, but this can get very stressful, especially when many projects over run by quite some time. It might seem fun in the summer months, but can soon become miserable if yourself build project runs into winter.
You don't have to spend a fortune on tiles in order to get decent quality tiles. Why not order in bulk online to save yourself a lot of money and to get a great deal.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6878537

Self Build Mortgages - Everything You Need to Know

en.wikipedia.org

A self build mortgage is a specialist type of mortgage designed for people who want to build their own home or perhaps take on a major renovation. There are lots of reasons people choose to build their own homes. It's a cost effective way of buying a home because the final market value may be much greater than the price of the build, including the land. There is also greater scope for putting your own stamp on your home and it can minimise taxes such as stamp duty as this is paid on the land and not on the building.
There are many variations of these mortgages and one of important things to consider is when the lender will agree to release the loan amount to you. This can make a huge difference to both how smoothly the build runs and your stress levels! Some lenders will make the loan available to you in order to buy the land and others will want to wait until building works have begun. Lots of people whose lenders fall into the latter category fund their build, initially at least, by selling their current property and moving into rented accommodation.
There are two ways in which lenders will release funds to you. An arrears stage payment means that the lender releases the funds as the various stages of the building project are completed. This can be a bit of a problem if your lender delays the release of your money, as you'll have to find the money to keep your project going.
An advance stage payment mortgage means that the lender will release the funds for each stage of the build as they are due to begin, virtually eliminating the cash flow problems caused by arrears stage payments. Cash flow is one of the major headaches of any building project as the costs for building and project management often rise during building, perhaps due to unforeseen structural problems in the case of major renovation works, for example. Remember to allow for a contingency of around 10% of the projected cost of your build.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3017568

Wednesday 30 July 2014

Self Build Site Insurance



internationalhealthinsuranceforexpatriates.com
With some 13% of all new houses built every year in the UK being self builds, and 20,000 self builders spending in the region of £2 billion a year on land and building costs, self build site insurance is now almost a common place insurance.
This is great news for self builders as this means with more insurers coming into this specialist marketplace and competing for your business, you can get self build site insurance at a realistic price.
So why do you need self build insurance? Building your dream home either as a new build or by conversion is probably the most difficult and stressful project you will ever undertake. However, with such substantial rewards, it is clear why so many people self build.
Whether renovating or building your own home, insurance is a key element which cannot be ignored. If you have inadequate insurance, you will be left open to major financial loss as well as unnecessary stress.
Self Build Site Insurance is the solution, giving you peace of mind that your dream home is fully covered, from the very moment you exchange on a plot or building right up to the day you finally move in.
There are number of insurance packages available, all with the aim of providing a self builder with complete security for the entire project. These packages are available for most projects, large and small.
A typical comprehensive Self Build Site Insurance policy will have the following benefits and protection: Building Works, Temporary Works & Materials;; Conversion project - up to 110% of the Professional Reinstatement Cost; Own and Hired Plant, Tools & Equipment cover; Employers, Public and Personal liability.
Some insurers will also offer cover for Defective Title, Contaminated Land Indemnity, and, Restrictive Covenants etc to ensure you are fully financially protected no matter what is thrown at you!




Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/85166

Self Build in Britain - The Way Forward For Social Housing

Recent reports suggest that Britain has a Shortage of affordable housing. Although the reports are recent the actual cause of the problem stems back to the 50's and 60's when mass produced concrete buildings were erected in an attempt to re-build the housing stock that had been destroyed during the war.
These mass building schemes led to the unsightly and unsustainable housing that have blighted our cities for years. Because of their poor design and construction they soon became maintenance nightmares for local authorities. Housing that was to last for generations started to become health hazards and uninhabitable in some cases in a short period of time.
Each government who has been in power ever since has been able to sweep the problem under the carpet and manage to cobble together a fix it for now plan, but no long term solution. It has now been laid heavily on our current government to find a permanent long term remedy for this most amazing farce of modern history.
At the end of 2007 the government pledged £8billion to go towards new housing. They want 3million homes built by 2010. This seems pretty realistic until you realise how much it costs to build.
Without architects, surveyors, land, materials and plant costs; labour alone is going to suck many a zero off that £8billion. At present tradesman whether brickies, plumbers or sparks are all demanding at least £150 a day.
Now your new building site has 20 tradesman working a 5 day week each earning £150 a day, for roughly 6 to 8 weeks per house. Do the maths, this is just one site in the country. And that's labour only remember.
Each developer will want to make a profit so the houses built will be of a quality that maximises that profit margin. The people who will be eventually living in these houses will get no say as to how they were built.
Self Build In Britain The Way Forward.
Imagine if you will a forward thinking in touch with the people Housing Association. This HA applies for it's share of the £8billion budget, say it gets £250,000 to spend (probably a bit optimistic but hey this is imaginary). Instead of turning the project over to a developer they hand it to a architect and a group of people in housing need, who will design and build their own homes.
Once given this opportunity you got to decide how do you intend to build. Are you going with what has become to be known as traditional build, bricks and mortar, or you going to go the even more traditional (even though it died out it was used extensively in this country and some dwellings are still standing after 400 years) post and beam method.
Lets take bricks and mortar first.
Once you have your plot of land you will have to clear it, level it and then dig foundations. Depending on the soil type you may have to reinforce your footings with wire cages. You then fill these trenches with concrete, build walls to ground level, lay more concrete for oversite slab (this'll be your ground floor) build the walls to roof height add roof start on the inside of house. This is a very sparse over view of what is typically a skilled trades job. For the novice it's a nightmare.
Post and beam
You mark out the area of your house on the plot. Scrape back the topsoil. Your foundations are between 12 -18 2' holes filled with concrete and topped with a concrete slab.
Frames are constructed out of timber. The frames are then lifted in turn into place with their feet sitting on the concrete pads. Floor and roof joists are added to secure the structure and the roof is then put on. The frames are infilled and cladded adding windows and doors as you go. Decide how you want to divide up the living space (no internal walls are load bearing all loads are transferred to the posts and then in turn to the foundation pads) add electrics, plumbing etc.
This style of build can be done by anyone who has a basic knowledge of DIY. And if you don't have the basics it can be learnt in next to no time compared to bricks and mortar style builds.
Well if our imaginary HA is as switched on as we hope it will come to the conclusion that if they go with the bricks and mortar option they're not going to get many houses for the £250,000 government handout. More than likely if they were to go down this road they are going to end up sub contracting labour to tradesman, or they will have to limit the scheme to people who can lay bricks and plaster walls etc, which defeats the object if you want to have a group open to everyone in housing need.
The above is not completely imaginary. During the late seventies Lewisham's (South London) switched on council actually sorted out one of these schemes and followed it up with another a few years later.
Everyone involved were either unemployed or on low incomes. Yet they all got financed for the scheme.
So if the government gets it's finger out and invests the money in the people and not the developers it could quite easily see the 3million homes by 2010.
Here's a couple of Stats:
A quarter of a commercial builds cost goes in the skip as waste.
70% of the land in this country is owned by only 1% of the adult population.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1266028

Tuesday 29 July 2014

Can Self Build Help to Overcome a Shortage in the Supply of Properties in the UK?



With the fall in property prices and the credit crunch suppressing demand for property in the short term, everyone seems to have forgotten that the UK is still suffering with a shortage of the right properties in the right areas and available at the right price!
However, within the next year or two, as the property market recovers, we will soon see media stories of the shortage of properties available in the UK for first time buyers and smaller one to two people households.
www.wallchan.com
The second issue is that developers and planners can't just work together without involving communities. We've seen the dramatic fall in new homes being built in 2009 - from the average of around 240,000 a year to around 70,000, that's a drop of 71% whereas the general demand for property has only fallen by 50%, suggesting that developers are NOT building properties that people really want. For new builds to be successful in the future, it is essential that developers, planners and the community work together to understand local housing needs and all compromise to ensure people's housing needs are fulfilled.
One option that may help ensure this happens is expanding the self build market. Many people dream of building their own home. Five million people watch Grand Designs every week, but only 15,000 to 20,000 people actually build their own home every year. This clearly suggests a desire to build, but something is getting in the way.
According to BuildStore, the UK's biggest self build company, people want to build their own home because they:-
1. Are not satisfied with the existing supply of houses.
2. Want the choice and control over design and layout.
3. Can choose the location they live, subject to land being available.
4. Are able to gain financially such as becoming 'mortgage free' or investors, building to sell or let at a profit.
5. Can achieve a personal ambition and reward.
6. Have the ability to choose innovative products.
7. Want a more eco friendly and sustainable property.
So how can developers, planners and local budding self builders work together to reduce property supply at a local level? The answer is Custom Build.
Effectively homebuyers would work with developers (and in turn with planners) to use their project management and building skills to build bespoke properties on tracks of land they already own or purchase in the future. According to BuildStore, custom build would work as follows:-
1. The developer would ensure roads/utilities etc are supplied.
2. The developer would offer a full build and project management service, or the buyer could choose to just use their tradesmen.
3. Plots would be sold with either a full building contract, or a contract to build to a certain stage.
4. The buyer purchases the serviced plot from the developer before the build starts either with cash or via a specialist mortgage.
5. Buying in this way means the consumers can have early input into the property's layout, fixtures and fittings, creating a bespoke home.
6. The customer would pay for the land and then pay the developer at each stage of the build.
There are issues with building in this way in that the land and buildings would have to 'work together' from a visual perspective, so if one person wanted the equivalent look of a Grade II Listed building, and someone else wants a 21st Century modern build, the two are unlikely to work side by side.
As a result there may be some initial issues that the planners would have to consider, about what would be acceptable and it's likely that the bigger developers would be less keen to work to this model. However, the small to medium sized developers could do very well out of custom building. They would have to worry less about upfront finance and would instantly be selling 'off plan' a property that someone actually wanted and would pay for in advance a lot more than the normal 10% to 20% deposit.
However, this kind of building isn't likely to kick in until the credit crunch subsides, lenders are happy to lend again and developers and planners come on board to support this new way of working together to satisfy people's demand for property.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2188152

Self Build Without the Problems!

Despite a depressed housing situation, self building your own property is still a popular way to end up with a dream home. The self builder can either take the savings of not having a building contractor, or get a much better spec for the same money he would have paid a contractor to do the job. There is a great sense of satisfaction in seeing the finished project in all it's glory and thinking 'I have built this!'. Self building takes a great deal of time, effort, thought, blood, sweat, tears, and not a few lessons painfully learned along the way.
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From my own experience I will indicate a few pitfalls to avoid, and a few pointers to provoke you to think seriously about the project before commencing, or if you have already commenced, to improve as you go along.
  1. Make all your major decisions with regard to the self build house at the start of the process and try not to change your mind about them. This will save you a lot of money, a lot of time and the tradesmen a lot of heartache. Changes are costly for this very reason: the tradesmen not only have to make the change, they generally have to amend whatever has been done previously before they start to change anything. Changes can also complicate the issue if tradesmen have already given a fixed price for the job.
  2. Make sure your self build project is drawn by an architect that has his head screwed on and his feet on the ground. Some architects just think of a job as an opportunity to express themselves or increase their portfolio. Remember it is you who will have to live in the house, and if you do not intend to sell, think of eventualities like a bedroom on the ground floor for an elderly parent, or even an elderly you! Also use an architect that is not scared to visit the site and talk to the tradesmen. Conflict between the architect and tradesmen is not a situation you want to be in.
  3. Use only tradesmen for your self build that have been recommended on a recent project. If you do not know them personally, go and see their last job, or at the least obtain references, ideally three, from people who had work done by them. In this way you will save yourself from having to look at- and live with- a poor job at the end of it. Good tradesmen may not always be the cheapest- sometimes they may be- but be careful that you do not assess them on price alone.
  4. In these times of difficult trading conditions, the following is happening: some tradesmen will give a price below cost, then during the project will come to the self builder and say 'I need x amount of pounds to finish the job'. Of course, if you say no, he will walk away. At that stage, with work done, any other tradesman coming behind will a) not want to do it and b) not be cheap.
So think wisely of your self build before you begin!


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/4526984

Monday 28 July 2014

Three Steps to Financing a Self Build

To finance your self build project, you need to make sure that you understand the differences between borrowing for a ready built home and borrowing to build.
When you finance an existing home, it's easy to estimate the value of the property and easier for lenders to work out how much risk they will be taking on when lending you money. Once you agreed a price and exchanged on an existing home, then you can go ahead with the purchase, the lender releases the money and you move in and start paying the mortgage.
With a self build, you need to borrow money in stages. For example, initially you need to buy the land, then it may be several months before you clear the plot. The next stage is the ground works for foundations and drainage and after more months waiting you finally start to see your property being built!
As a result, many lenders will not want to lend on self build projects as it requires specialist knowledge and experience and it's more work than a standard mortgage. So follow our three step guide to help you finance your property in the best possible way:-
Step One: Understand self build mortgages
Make sure you approach specialist and experienced lenders that will let you borrow money at each stage of the land purchase and build. Lending in stages often means that you can stay in your current property and carry out much of the build before you move into your newly built home as the costs of the mortgage start off with mortgage payments for the cost of the land, then a bit more for clearning the land and groundworks etc.
Step Two: Scrutinise the finance costs
Unfortunately you are likely to have to pay more for your self build mortgage, so it's important to compare costs from different lenders. For example, the lending criteria and associated costs for self build mortgages are typically:-
5% deposit for the land and build, providing that when you finish the mortgage is only 75% of the final valuation.
You can't now secure a self build mortgage on a 'self certification' basis. 
Typical fixed rates for self build mortgages are around 5-6%.
Fees for securing the mortgage range from £1,000 to 1.5% of the amount you borrow.
You are also likely to pay a little more on legals and survey fees too, so it's worth budgeting around £2,000 for these essential items.
Step Three: Find a lender that will be efficient and flexible on payments
When you are borrowing money in stages for building a new home, it's important to make sure you work with a lender that understands you need your money quickly, in advance of each stage of the build. You also need to find a flexible lender that understands you may go over budget and need to re-negotiate an increased loan during the build. It's no good working with a lender that takes months to make a decision. If they are too slow, you may lose your builder if you can't pay them or might not be able to pay for essential materials.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2188208

Sunday 27 July 2014

Why Now is the Best Time to Self Build Your Dream Home?



Just because there is a recession and 2009 is proving not be a great one for the housing market it is not all doom and gloom. Like most things you can always find the good or positive in bad or unfortunate situations and today is no different. Did you realise that this is the best time in years to build your own home from scratch. With cheap land and cheap labour and finance for self build available, now is the time to plan and build that dream home you once thought was unattainable.
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Grand Designs is proving to be one of the most successful shows on channel four with over 4 millions viewers each week. This means there are millions of us who either just love the show or watch with envy and wish we were building our dream house. Well now is the time to put your dreams into action.
In the past one of the difficulties self builders had was finding land. Any land available would be hard to obtain as the developers in the boom days would be competing for it left right and centre and prices would rocket. But now there is an increasing amount of plots available and even developers are selling off some of their land, some with planning permission in place. According to Liam Bailey who is head of residential research at Knight Frank estate agency land prices are down by 50%. This is why now is a great time to buy land and plan your self build.
While regular mortgages are not so easy to obtain these days, lenders are still keen to finance self builders. Why? Because generally you will end up with up to 35% equity which means up to a 60% mortgage once the build is complete.
Labour is becoming cheaper as most builders are feeling the pinch and have had to reduce prices. The most important part of hiring builders is finding competent companies that have access to all the right trades' people. Finding a building contractor that will take you through the whole build makes the whole project run more smoothly. Plus you want builders and trades people to take pride in their work, the last thing you need is to hire cowboys. So how do you tell a cowboy from a decent builder? Well for one they will be proud of their work and will happily point you in the direction of some of their previous projects. If you're looking through websites, make sure the site shows their name address and phone number, this means they have nothing to hide. It is very important to see examples of their previous work so check for any testimonials pages which should show pictures of past projects.
So if you want to be the next star on Grand Designs, or maybe just want to design and build your not so grand home, then there is nothing to stop, now is definitely the time to do it. Why not build your dream home and be one of the few who actually make some money in these gloomy times of recession.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2112987
 
 
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