If you are looking to gain a better understanding of what it really takes to bring an old and untouched Victorian house back to life. Here, we share our insights on the best way to redevelop this type of property and the kind of challenges you can expect along the way.

victorian house Project: Balham, South East London

1. creating plans

Before any build can start creating plans and finding a building company you can trust is key to the project’s success. You can work with a design and build a company like us or choose an independent architect.

The potential challenge with going directly to the architect is they often want to put their unique style on the build, which is great if that’s what you want. The only issue with this option is it usually increases the build cost above the norm to incorporate the special details and bespoke design features. So keep this in mind if you take this route.

We have seen many clients take this path and go to tender only to find they cannot afford the resulting high build cost. So be careful when choosing this option and try to set a realistic budget for your architect to work to as early on in the process as possible.

You could consider having your architect plan in some cheaper alternative design options, just in case. Remember going to tender can take a couple of months to complete and if you can’t afford the the returning build cost, it could cause a significant delay in getting the build underway.

You need to keep in mind even if you choose the builder you want, they may not be available to start the build in a timeline that works for you.

Most good builders are booked and busy well in advance. It can take anywhere from 3 - 12 months to get a committed start date from them. It’s not uncommon for clients to have to pay a mortgage and cover the cost of rented accommodation at the same time.

Short term this might be managable but this can get costly or cause logistical challenges if the build start date is delayed.

2. Why use a design and build company?

The beauty of using a design and build a company like PBM is we will be executing the build ourselves. So once your committed the build can scheduled in to the diary straight away, while all the planning period and design process is taking place. Your basically hitting the ground running and will know eactly when the build will commence.

We will prepare the plans and handle the planning application too, while sharing our many creative build ideas, with over 20 year of build experience and working at this high level and scale of build in the residential market.

As part of the overall service we offer you real time and up to date build costings for the labour and materials.

We will support you in sourcing bespoke materials and use our trusted specialsts to carry out the work if required.

Need an interior designer, we’ve got one, need 3D drawings to visualise the space, no problem. We will share our experienced build team, and technical know how.

Most importantly we will help you to calculate the real world build cost and find cost effective solutions. The pandemic has caused many price increases and created an unstable environment with constant flucuations in prices, both in materials and the labour market.

Our service offers you transparencey, clarity and peace of mind. We assist you in working to a manageable and realistic budget for your project.

3. demolition phase

This phase can be challenging as additional costs can arise as unforeseen issues are often uncovered at this stage. Your property is being demolished to some extent and sometimes with period properties, this can be extensive.