Build New or Renovate: An Architects Perspective
Whether you’re thinking about purchasing an existing home, renovating a current home or looking at building a new home, you will need to do some essential planning to ensure the best outcome. This can appear to be a daunting decision and process. So, whatever your journey, make sure you do intense research and find a team of professionals who can help, support, assist you and have your back along the way. With the right support, this can be a streamlined process into your dream home.
Buying an existing home
When it comes to buying an existing home there are a number of items to consider. After ticking the obvious boxes such as budget, financial investment, potential growth in value, proximity to services, shops, schools, hospital, work, etc., you’ll need to examine how suitable is the existing house for your current needs.
Start looking at the layout of the house; will the layout suite your requirements now and over time?
Include consideration of a growing family or rental income opportunities.
Assess the amount of solar access and adequate shading through the year where trees, neighboring buildings or a hill might block solar access.
Look for adequate ventilation and the orientation (View and solar) of specific rooms and opportunities to increase cross-ventilation. This will not only influence your comfort but impact on heating and cooling through the year.
Beware of a mouldy smells, typically found in badly ventilated spaces. Mould can have a negative impact on your health.
Look closely for any termite activity or damage, failures in structures, water damage; from rising damp or a leaking roof or cracks due to foundation movement.
Look out for extensive maintenance that might be required due to ageing or high maintenance materials. Doing these checks at the start will help you foresee any future issues and avoid any extra unforeseen costs.
While assessing the current suitability, think of the possibility of extension and renovations that might be required and engage a designer about future opportunities and limitations.
Renovating
You either have just purchased a home or might have been in your home for a while when your needs have changed and you see the potential for a renovation, extensions or a lift-up and infill. You might also consider this from a wise investment perspective.
There are many strategies you can adopt to meet your changing housing requirements which you can discuss with your designer in terms of cost, feasibility and practicality. Only the best outcome must be achieved, so it’s important to consult a professional early in the process.
Undertaking renovations or extensions to your home open up opportunities for some new vibrance and alter the functional layout and size of the house. It can also:
▪ Add additional space or rooms.
▪ Improve thermal comfort by upgrading the glazing and shading performance.
▪ Improve thermal mass opportunities.
▪ Add solar panels and batteries to reduce costs.
▪ Add fans and openings to increase ventilation and air movement.
▪ Add more insulation in the roof.
▪ Improve water efficiency equipment.
▪ Change the look and feel of the house.
Before starting the process, consult your designer who will be able to determine which areas of the home can be adjusted and which changes are practical and feasible. They will also consider the impact on the structure by the proposed changes.
Always remember to be mindful when considering extensive renovations as this can be costly and at times may even exceed the budget of new build.
Building a new home
If renovations or extensions of an existing home still does not satisfy your requirements or you have trouble finding your vision in an existing house, it might be worth building a new custom designed home. A custom home can be designed around your preferences, style, needs and expectations and is more likely going to suit all your housing requirements.
Sites differ in many ways such as topography, views, orientation, soil conditions, prevailing breezes, landscaping, size and always negates a different design response. When looking for a site it’s important to know your list of requirements. Get professional help involved early in the process to advise you on best attributes of each site and how each can impact on functionality, budget and this will assist you in making the right decision.
Design and documentation are a collaborative process, where the client and consultants become valuable team members with equal input. It is an engaging process with constant inclusive communication. The design will make use of plans, elevations and 3D sketch drawings to explain every step and allow input from team members including from yourself.
Putting together a home design which reflects your needs, requirements and own vision is an intensive task, but the right design is able to bring your ideas to life in the simplest and most efficient way.
Guest Post: Anton Stadler B.Arch. www.informdesignstudio.com.au