GRAND DESIGNS: HOW TO USE PLANNING PERMISSION TO BOOST YOUR HOME’S VALUE

How do you feel about adding thousands to your home without making a single improvement?

One of the magic words in property is ‘potential’, and getting planning permission to increase the amount of accommodation is a great way to add more value and widen your audience.

Among the many possibilities and things to consider are:

• Getting planning permission or building regulations approval.

• Loft and garage conversions.

• Home extensions.

• Redeveloping a house or land.

• Inspiring buyers with your plans.

So this week’s blog is all about turning potential into pounds and using planning permission to boost your home's value, without ever picking up a paintbrush.

GETTING PERMISSION

However you plan to increase the size of your home, you'll need either or both planning permission and building regulations approval from your local authority.

This means submitting detailed plans, so look at the aspirations of local buyers and show them that your home can deliver.

• If you're repurposing your loft or garage, you generally only need simple building regulations approval, unless you’re planning to extend beyond the current building line.

• A large home extension will almost certainly need full planning permission, but something smaller could get around that under Permitted Development rules.

• Homes in conservation areas will have stricter limitations on altering their external appearance, particularly the street-facing elevations.

In general, and unless you're planning something radical, most applications go through smoothly, particularly for the tried and tested examples we cover in this article.

CONVERTING A LOFT OR GARAGE

Garages and lofts have long been favourites for increasing a home's accommodation, and some of the most successful designs we’ve seen include:

• a luxury bedroom suite in the roof with a private bathroom and possibly even a terrace - peace for parents above the mayhem!

• a pair of children's loft bedrooms with a shared shower room to ease the strain on the main bathroom - great for growing families.

• a dedicated office, wellness space or guest room at the top of the house.

• an attached garage becoming a natural extension of the ground floor with an additional living room, den for the kids, granny annexe, or study.

• a garage at the end of the garden turned into the perfect studio or workspace away from the hubbub of the house, but still close to home.

Converting a garage or loft into living accommodation requires insulation, electricity, natural light, ventilation and heating, so remember to include estimated costs alongside plans.

ADDING A HOME EXTENSION

Have you ever envisioned turning your kitchen into a fabulous open-plan family space, or noticed the potential to add another floor and more bedrooms? Has a neighbour done it really well?

Extensions can truly transform a property's place in the market, and some of the best examples we’ve seen include:

• adding one or more bedrooms over an attached garage with a first-floor extension that blends seamlessly with the house and the street.

• filling in the side return of a period home to widen a kitchen and create a spacious and modern family hub across the back of a house, often with bi-folding doors spilling onto the garden.

• building an extra floor at the back or pushing out from the roof line with a large dormer to create more or bigger rooms.

If you'd like to know which extensions add the most value to a property in Cardiff, call us to chat about the homes we've sold and the features buyers adored.

REDEVELOPING A HOUSE OR LAND

Depending on the size and location of your home, you might get a higher price by selling to a developer or business who’ll turn it into something else. Here are some possibilities worth exploring.

• A large double-fronted home could be turned into separate houses or apartments, or even knocked down and replaced with a new building.

• A large garden could support building another house on it if convenient access is possible, and you might even be able to sell just that portion of your garden if you don’t want to move.
• A change-of-use application to turn your house into a nursing home, hotel, or even offices could attract commercial buyers.

Before you make a formal application, have a chat with your neighbours. Addressing their concerns early on could smooth the wheels to getting permission with zero objections or delays.

INSPIRING BUYERS WITH YOUR PLANS

Selling the potential of planning permission is about more than just bricks and mortar. It’s about painting a picture for buyers and getting them excited about something they can’t see yet, so make sure you:

• invest in good quality plans from a reputable architect to demonstrate exactly how your home could offer a buyer the lifestyle they aspire to

• get two or three quotes from recommended local contractors to give buyers a clear idea of the budget required.
• ask two or three local estate agents for their thoughts on how much value your plans would add to your home.

And when you do come to sell, you need to work with an estate agent who'll fill buyers with confidence about your home's potential  - so grill them on how they’d sell the future to be sure you’re in safe hands.

Could your home have thousands in extra potential?

We'd love to help you with ideas and inspiration, and we can even recommend local architects to draw up plans and advise you on the application process.

Getting the right planning permission for your property in Cardiff could help you seriously upgrade your next move, so call us on 02920 310555 or email us at info@harryharper.co.uk to see what’s possible.