When is a good time to start my project and how long will it take?

December 18, 2014

When is a good time to start my project and how long will it take?

Everyone will have a different reason why they decide to start a project at a certain time or indeed why not to begin at a certain time.

There seem to be better times than others in the year to start particular projects, both on paper and on site. One needs to consider weather conditions, work commitments, school holidays and so forth.

For instance, the weather here in the UK is not conducive to external works from about early October through until about February or March – as there are more rainy days and less daylight hours. Moreover since many people want to ‘move in before Christmas’ you will find most good builders have a full schedule of work and cannot begin your project until after the New Year anyway, unless you have secured their involvement early on.

Plan ahead

However, at VORBILD Architecture we believe there is never a bad time to start thinking about an upcoming project. This is because the single most important thing to consider is the planning aspect.

In fact, the sooner you start planning the ‘what’ ‘when’ and ‘how much’ the better. And believe it or not this often means it can work out less expensive for you. Why? Well, for example, we would not charge you more to design your project regardless of whether it took six months to design or two – the only difference would be that you would be able to spread the fee out more.

Example scenario

Let’s look at an example scenario. Let’s assume you are planning to have a rear extension to your house, and some redecoration to improve how your house ‘works’ or ‘flows’. This is along with a desire for visual change in terms of interior decoration.

Firstly, you will probably do some initial research and may find you need:

planning permission for the extension (allow two months)
drawings for the extension (two to three weeks at least)
and quotes from builders (another two to three weeks).

So your process is already about three to three and a half months. This is a reasonable time, yet in our experience an unnecessarily tight timeframe.

Consider factors such as your work commitments – how often would you be able to spare an hour for a good concise meeting with your architect? You may need two or three before planning submission, and depending on the size of your project, more would help. The more you tell us about your plans, expectations and ideas for your home as a whole, the more the end result will be to your liking. Your time in this case is a very well spent investment.

In conclusion then, there is no time like the present to make a start on planning your dreams for your home. We will look into finances, obtaining permits and enlisting professional help. And don’t be afraid of the time factor. It can work to your advantage, we can help guide you through this with careful planning and make sure your budget works in a cost-effective way.

Seeking advice?

If you are planning a change to your home, or planning to make a purchase for renovation do consider calling us – our experience and broad thinking at this stage can add huge value. We are happy to have an initial chat over coffee after seeing the site and to help you determine the best way forward.