How do you start a self build home​?

When you're looking for a home to buy, you no doubt have a picture in your mind of what it would ideally look like. Perhaps it's a traditional cottage sited in a chocolate box village with rolling hills to look out on a sunny day. Maybe your ideal home is something more futuristic with angles and the melding of modern and traditional materials with open living spaces.

The concern with such dreams is that it is difficult to capture their essence and compromises have to be made, usually because of other constraints such as the property's proximity to good transport links, or the catchment area for a good school for the children, or the idyll of the location is marred by the lack of desirable amenities. 

And that's the chief problem with searching for the next home: there's always something you have to compromise on in order to get the rest of what you want.

But what about buying a home in a good location that meets your needs for work, school, nightlife and so on, but matches your perfect picture of living within it? 

It's not for everyone, but you might want to consider planning and building your own home, since you will be in control of how the layout works. And you have to be prepared for the machinations of the process from finding a plot of land through to the point that you can move in.

You'll also need to consider the amount of time needed to move your ideas for the home from the drawing-board through the design, from paper to the reality of achieving the build, from lining up all the professions that need to be involved to moving into it and stamping your personality on the new home.

As well as employing an architect, you'll need to think about the project management aspect - do you take up the role? Or do you get a seasoned professional manager in who will drive the project onwards? Then there are all the trades that need to be considered as well as the legal requirements such as building regulations and the planning in the first place.

And, finally, there is the finance.

Building your own home can be very satisfying and rewarding when it's finished, and it is often a cheaper option overall than buying an existing property and bringing it up to your specifications before you can move into it.

But you'll need to think carefully about the approach to financing it. Unless you're sitting on a large pile of money, the chances are that you'll need to supplement whatever you do have with a loan.

The traditional mortgage will not suffice in this case, since the mortgage company is looking at the value of the existing property and the level of risk of lending to you before giving you an offer for a certain amount. Without a property to base this assessment on, the lender is not in a position to provide you with a standard mortgage.

But loans for such projects do exist. 

According to Government statistics covering the period to end of October 2022, just over 8,000 new individuals were added to the register of those wanting to self-build their own home - if you plan to go ahead with your own self-build, you'll need to apply to join the list.

There are two types of loans: arrears and advance, which, as their name suggests, allows payment after each section of the planned work is completed, which will need to satisfy the lender too, or the loan is provided before the next section of work is dure to start, respectively.

Typically, you'll need to find a large deposit before the loan company will even consider providing you with the money - this means finding at least 25% of the projected cost.

Some lenders will also consider lending on the earlier stage of buying the original plot of land before building starts, but this is something you need to factor into your overall plan.

Those who watch Channel 4's series Grand Designs will be aware of the stress that a self-build can cause to the prospective owners, particularly when the budget runs over and the participants are holding down a full-time job to provide a continuity of funds for the project (particularly where the loan payments need payment), particularly where there are overruns on the time and budget.

It can be a very satisfying experience building your property to your specifications, but, because of the enormity of the undertaking, you'll need to plan every stage in detail to minimise the impact. 

In addition, you'll need to consider the legal aspects of the planned purchase and the overall build.

If you are planning your ideal home to be built from scratch and are looking for experienced conveyancing solicitors, look no further than Homeward Legal. 

Our conveyancers will start work on your plans as soon as you agree to the quotation and appoint them to represent you. 

Homeward Legal will also provide a quote that will not change - what you are quoted is what you pay for standard conveyancing process, which means you can effectively budget for your conveyancing needs.

There are some unforeseen items that might arise during the purchase and/or sale, which includes a specialist flood assessment report, but the solicitor discusses these and their cost as they come up. 

In addition, to protect the homebuyer further, Homeward Legal operates a ‘no completion, no fee' promise, which ensures that, should the purchase or sale not go through as planned to completion status, no payment is required.

Call  to get your conveyancing quote started, or to discuss your concerns with your plans to move.

Or you can get a quick quote, using Homeward Legal's easy-to-use quote generator.