How do I bathroom / kitchen / extension? etc.

Beginner question on home improvements requiring the use of professionals; how do you know whether you need an architect, technical drawings, room specialists or just a builder?

I've got a standard 1960's mid-terraced house (floor-plan below), I'd like to knock the wall between the kitchen & the lounge down, install new modest spec kitchen, rip up tile flooring for the whole of the downstairs & replace with something nicer (probably wood).

I'd like to get quotes from people but have no idea what the above would actually cost so don't want to waste people's time if we're miles away from the cash - could anyone take a guess on a ball-park figure please?

Phase two would be a single story extension out the back but we don't really need that for a few years whereas knocking through would make a definite improvement now.

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If you know exactly what you want, then in my opinion you don't need an architect. The question will be whether the wall you want to knock down is load bearing, if it is you will need a structural steel put into place, so will need a structural engineer to guide on size etc.

I personally would try and get a couple of builders out, good ones will tell you what you need and and will also have structural engineers they have worked with before.

Seconding what @Sam_w says. A half-decent builder will advise you on the process anyway.
My experience:

1. Choose a builder
   
2. Get structural engineer to do some calculations
   
3. Share those with local council building control
   
4. Crack on with knocking down wall and inserting steel
   
5. Building control come and say 'Yes very nice'
   
6. Carry on with building work
   

And there was me chirpsing you with calving shed conversion layouts ... 😜

If I was being picky I would reverse your order of point 4.... best to try and insert the steel before knocking the wall down, or at least prop it!

Have a builder coming round later (recommended to me by a friend who is currently using them for the second time and the same builder also did said friend's bathroom - all happy it seems) to look at the outside rendering and our top floor bath/shower room. I fully intend to just gesture vaguely in the direction of the room and plumbing and say "please to make fix" and see what he says. Then point at all the other broken shit in the house and work out some sort of as an when arrangement over time as we get the funds to do bits.

Please use terracotta tiles if a 60's terrace (I really hope they are not the tiles you talk of ripping up).

The benefit of an architect is they will consider every little detail (if they are good).
I recently had a bit of a nightmare with my bathroom floor as I have been planning it all myself and had no idea how to build up a sub floor resulting in a 50mm threshold change when going tie/out of bathroom.

Luckily the architects I used for the extension still tolerate me and were able to spec up the floor to reduce that threshold, whereas the floor supplier was giving out a bit of a blanket recommendation.

You defo don't need an architect, but they will bring a finer level of detail and consideration than a builder alone (as that's their job) and hopefully add a "delight" factor to the space, whereas a builder will likely only add square footage.

You could of course just crowd source every decision like I have done.

As King of the Castle said, you'll need a structural engineer regardless, so I'd be inclined to do self design > structural engineer > good builder.

What you are after isn't massive so shouldn't cost loads, I would imagine sub 10k but no real idea.

You've got a loft to do first!

You can also use an online calculator for the structural calculations if it's a straightforward knock through. Which should save a bit of money. That's what I did, building control accepted it and the house hasn't fallen down

I paid £65 to get calculations in two hours from this website:
https://www.beamcalculation.co.uk/start-calculation/

It's quite simple to use but I got my builder to do it to make sure it was right.

He assured me that all a proper structural engineer does is put their measurements into a calculator like this anwyay.

Then for knock thru I paid this - NB London prices may be more!

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That included some extra plastering elsewhere in the house that at a guess added £200 or so to the price.

PEDANT

I have photos of our house where we couldn't get a steel in before removing walls, much mess was caused. Also only time I saw builders wearing hard hats, seemed a bit futile to me, if a massive wall is going to fall on you not sure a hard hat is of much help.

As King of the Castle said,

Might get that printed on a mug.

I paid £1850 (as part of a larger job) to have a 4m RSJ put in and made good (London firm)

Thanks all - that's very useful. I'll start looking for structural engineers & decent builders in SE London then!

@chrisbmx116 - the current tiles are a bit terracotta-y now you mention it but I doubt they're the kind you're talking about, the house was "renovated" in the 90's so everything original has already gone.
The tiles actually radiate cold to the point of being unbearable at the moment so they're going to have to go.

Current thoughts are cheapish (Ikea?) cupboards, plywood doors, not sure on the top yet, wood (maybe herringbone) flooring.

Bookmarked thank you.

That seems crazy cheap!

Definitely the best thing we've done to the house in terms of impact, and not the priciest by a long way

Oh yeah and factor in building control (for us that was £195) and whatever you are doing with the floor where the wall used to be (we just bought one big floorboard for something like £20 but if you redo the whole floor that will obviously cost you)

Building control was by far the worst value out of all that, he literally just poked his head in the door, muttered 'steel yep good' and walked out.

There is that classic Edinburgh apartment which used full Ikea cabinets and swapped out the handles which transformed things wildly.

Here ya go:
https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/edinburgh-ikea-kitchen-cabinets

This is also a great reference:
https://www.eckfordchong.com/mid-century-home-brixton-london

I have a 60s house and did a ‘modest’kitchen about that size - white magnet units, cheap tiles, solid wood worktop , forbo floor - cost about 14k including Bosch appliances and a 60cm smeg gas range. Including striping out the old and replastering ceiling and screeding the floor.
So 10-15 for a kitchen , 1-2k for the opening and plastering 1-2k for new floor
Plus contingency / extras - £12-19k ?

Costs for me for a new kitchen and raising an exiting steel in a 60s build as follows:

The room and kitchen are bigger , and I'm in the North West , so not quite like for like with yours:

1. remove existing steel, add new thinner steel to sit inside ceiling cavity, brace 1st floor joists , make good. 2k
   
2. Pronorm kitchen, silstone quartz worktops, Neff built in appliances 16.5k fitted
   I looked at Ikea or DIY Kitchens carcasses with custom fronts, bust the custom fronts I found were not cheap at all, all in it pushed the cost close to the above , with an increase in coordination and project management overheads
   
   

There will be some additional plumbing and electrical work, but this has been included in a wider scope of works, so I don't have standalone costs for just the kitchen.

flooring- if tiles are cold it's likely wood will also be cold (though not as cold). You may benefit from some kind of sub floor insulation if the tiles are laid straight over concrete. Im also having to do this.
Reasonable engineered wood seems to start at ~£30 per sqm, cheaper stuff has a very thin layer of veneer and much less solid looking lower layers, and i suspect is a false economy. Labour / fitting costs will depend on the amount of prep needed

Doubtlessly, i could get the kitchen and appliances done cheaper, but all depends what you want

UFH in a kitchen is a nice idea I think.

Built in soundsystems for bathrooms - is this a thing people spec? I like the idea of having them but not sure if it's a total pita