Extending your house is one of the best ways to get more pleasure and use out of your home. This can also add more value to your property should you decide to sell it in the future. On the other hand, if you want to try and start with an extension project without any proper planning, design, construction and law knowledge, chances are it will go horribly wrong. But before you start, what are some of the things that you have to know to make the house extension project go as smoothly as possible.

Check the Building Regulations in Your Area

Even though you do not need any planning permission for your house extension, because you will use permitted development rights, you will need to get a building regulation approval. The building regulations are the ones that set out the requirements for the fire safety, structural integrity, damp proofing, energy efficiency, ventilation as well as other important aspects that will ensure that the building will stay safe.

Are You Living in a Conservation Area?

For those living in conservation areas, you might be subject to various development rights. Every local area has its very own policy for the conservation areas although the basis is to prevent character loss. It means that things such as changing the windows or roof needs to be approved first. An attic conversion might also require a planning permission in conservation areas.

Determine the Minimum Sizes

Although the legal minimum height of the ceiling has already been removed, there is still a practical height. The standard ceiling height is 2.4 meters and the practical minimum height is 2.1 meters. This is particularly worth thinking about with basement and attic conversions.

There are also minimum sizes of rooms to ensure that you will not divide up space to make your property look bigger than its actual size. The minimum size of the room will depend on the type of the room. …read more