How do I bathroom / kitchen / extension? etc.

Hmm interesting, ta - we don’t have specific needs / wants but just don’t want it to feel rubbish! I’m the same on not wanting black tiles around a cuboid box that seems to stick out of the roof, but beyond that I don’t have specific ideas - the roof space is pretty big and what will make it look good (or not) seems to be quality of how brickwork matches existing house and incorporates chimneys, how to fit the staircase in on the landing with high ceilings, and cladding of the dormer (assuming we get one).

This is even before I decide whether or not a rear extension would be better for enhancing living space, and we can probably only afford one at a time… however that is complicated as we will have a raised patio out the back (not more than 1m high, but don’t know what is under it and it seems to make hitting permitted development eaves heights tricky).

Any recommendations for architects so I can have a chat would be appreciated too - are you suggesting @Sheppz might be able to help (on normal commercial basis obviously)?

before I decide whether or not a rear extension would be better for enhancing living space

That should be a very quick/easy thing to work out no?

Loft = bathroom and bedroom(s) or office
Extension = more living space

You either need the extra bed and bathroom or you don't.

For us the greater thing is what loft + extension costs Vs. moving.

https://www.colourflooring.co.uk/ is where you should be looking for modern references.

You either need the extra bed and bathroom or you don't.

I mean there is a bit more to it than that? It would give better office space and a nicer master bedroom so we can have a decent guest bedroom, but is that essential? Vs a rear extension which doesn't give those things but makes the downstairs more pleasant to live, cook in etc.

Which of those is "need"?

Yeah this.
For us it was the inverse, the quality of life gains from a side return were worth more to us than an extra bedroom (and we got a loo put in downstairs).

How often do you need an extra guest room?
How often do you cook/live?

we have a new child on the way and guest room allows family (not all in UK) to come and stay, plus loads of our friends aren’t local so the guest room could mean we get to see people more if we can invite them.

The extra room lets us do something we couldn’t really do otherwise (have people over lots) whereas the extra kitchen / diner space is just more pleasant. How do you weigh those up? They’re both quality of life gains, just different ones.

Edit: realise this has got me into my torment over what to do which is a diversion from the ‘how to’ bit - which I kind of hoped would help answer that query! Hope I don’t sound too defensive - I just really can’t tell which bit would actually make the biggest lifestyle improvement, hence indecision...

I can't comment on toys being dragged across it - we had a dog frequently traipse across it with its sharp claws with no issues. this was in a high traffic area (the kitchen) and I'd say it's sufficiently hard wearing to withstand even the worst abuse. think it gets a lot of use in industrial/commercial spaces. I've posted them before but will try find the pics of our old flooring again for reference

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we have cork now in our living spaces (extension + living room) and while it is lovely, it is definitely not as robust as marmoleum. I think it will put up with a dog but not sure it would withstand kids gouging it with toys, gravel embedded in shoes etc.

Extra room might be a home office which well away from the rest of home life in the loft has benefits.

Loft conversion company, you dont need the added expense of an architect.

You need inspection hatches, its in the manufacturers instructions and haven't heard its changed to CO detectors.

Doesn't sound defensive at all, its really tough to weigh up and comes down to personal preference.

If you wanted to go nuts, you could draw out your week as a user flow and make pains/gains as per https://blog.prototypr.io/journey-mapping-pain-points-success-moments-ac2d6cbcafae and that may help you decide?

Worth noting extensions will be a lot more than lofts, and cost is always a consideration.

Based on what?
If you are happy with the bog standard, then sure.

👍

Edit; missed the other post.

Personally I'd say in your subsequent post you've given a series of very sound needs that imo outweigh the nice-to-have of a bigger living area. So I'd treat the loft as a priority.

Your first post read more as "it'll make our bedroom nicer". Which to me would (as Chris said) make an extension more important.

Cheers

Based on working with a couple companies experienced in it.

It's entirely subjective and totally personal so you can't really make blanket claims like that.

My neighbour just got a loft company in and they did an awful job, total shit show, I'd burn it down and start again, but, he was happy as he only did it to get extra money from the house when he sold.

Not saying you cant get a good job with just a loft company, but it all depends on what you want.

Worth noting extensions will be a lot more than lofts, and cost is always a consideration.

Ta. Yeah conscious of this although it is hard to know how much - for us, I think rear extension wouldn’t need to be massive to improve the space (we’d just need room for a bigger kitchen without sacrificing too much dining room) but the patio out back makes it feel like it would be expensive for not many Sq Ft extra. Then again, as @hugo7 implies, we’d use it all the time. Loft we’d get more extra space for the cash, maybe use it less often but it would actually open up the chance of people staying with us much more, if we had a decent sized guest room.

In an ideal world we’d do loft for closer to the £45k end of the range plus a small extension that just allows us to have a nice size kitchen which (in my unrealistic dreams) costs not much. However I also like nice stuff and will probably be sad with the cheap versions of either, and I’m not sure if the same £ per sqm applies if you go small enough so the rear extension probably still ends up costing £££

Yup maybe my first comment wasn’t too clear! It feels pretty balanced to me as I can completely see the attraction of a rear extension and just having some lovely living space. TBH I think if the rear looked easier to do, that might also change my calculations a bit - the fact it might be complicated because of the patio is another reason that puts me off. If unsure, do the easier one…

If that means you are qualified to recommend which companies do good ones in SE London then that would be magic!

There could be a smart way to do the kitchen, new big openings and rearranging may achieve the same as an extension.

it might be complicated

This is one of the things that puts me off extending ours. Our neighbours have a big extension that looks like the Before from that Love your Home VR program thing. It's a fucking awful load of boxes stuck onto the existing building. So I reckon to do ours well will be a big metal load. At the other end mate who's bought near us has the sort of shaped house and garden that a toddler could design an extension and revised layout for.

I have absolutely no idea of the reality, but in one of the episodes of that show the architect designed a side extension made of wood that didn't require any excavation works.

Edit: here Your Home Made Perfect, Series 3: 3. Natasha and Gael: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000wvy2 via @bbciplayer

To me that seemed like a brilliant idea, especially in a situation where you don't need loads of extra m². It was never really explained why but in the program they didn't go with the wood extension. My cynical guess is builders being typically conservative. Anyway thought I'd mention that as if it's viable it could be a way for you to have that small and cheap extension.

A good reference of that kinda thing here: https://yardarchitects.co.uk/timber-frame-two
I think it may be due to stigma around a wooden extension not being a real building, that’s why we swerved it! But tbh that may have been a mistake.