Organizing a Self-Build
Self-build is a term that is getting ever-popular in the housing market. So what is “self-build”? It’s a property you build yourself, as the phrase indicates! Not quite literally by yourself, but you place yourself in the position as planner, foreman, architect of your home and let trained workers do the task you order them to do. “Self-build” is pretty much recession-proof due to the relatively low costs involved (compared to purchasing a home) - in fact, the army of “self-builders” in the UK outnumbers the amount of properties being developed by any professional developer. The function of self-build is to create a home to your precise specifications, not a template that the large developers work to.
I’m sure you’re formulating this thought right about now: “But I’m not a builder”. The pleasant news is that self-build doesn’t have to involve you with the physical aspects of the property building (as a matter of fact, just 5% of self-builders actually take a role in the actual construction of the property). Even the design aspects are often finalised by a professional designer. Self-build, by and large, is about you articulating (in plain English), what you need to the house designer - who then develops a plan based on your demands. This plan then becomes the blueprint the developers work to. Easy, eh? It’s not required to have any active involvement in self-build. Having said that, the DIY fan can use self-build as a chance to save some cash by helping out with the aspects of self-build they have experience in - it’s your call as to how much engagement you want during the construction.
Self-build sounds pricy, but actually it’s in general cheaper than buying an already developed property of identical specifications (roughly a third cheaper). That’s not all, self-built homes fetch a good price too - up to 25% higher than the actual build cost, so self-build can be simply an investment, rather than a house to live in.
You must make sure the team of workers you select are 100% competent and that they work well together. Without doubt, you will need workers with lots of experience, particularly with specific types of construction machinery, such as ics diamond chainsaws, block and slab splitters, power / disc cutters, floor saws, and wood saws. With a skillful team, you are also raising the safety levels of the development.
This article is simply an introduction to the concept of building a property by yourself, and I hope it will inspire those of you who are perhaps a little disconcerted by such projects. It needn’t be time-intensive, and you won’t need any specific skills, but you will need to be careful as to who you hire, and you will need to cautiously work out the budget of the project.
