Home improvements and building

If you are undertaking improvement or building work on your home, here is some useful advice.

Before work starts

• don’t forget to contact our planning and building departments as necessary
• if you have adjoining or shared walls, give your neighbours a party wall notice
• if your home is listed or you live in a conservation area, check if there are any restrictions on what changes you can make.

Budgeting, quotes and specifications

• make a detailed list of everything you would like to have included
• compare quotes item by item and not just by the overall cost of the job
• check that VAT is included in the final cost
• set aside some money for unexpected problems
• if you are thinking about taking out a loan or using another form of credit to pay for the work, consider the full cost of the credit including the interest
• if you take out a loan or another form of credit to pay for the work, check the requirements of the agreement
• a cooling off period may apply if you take out credit. This is a set period of time from when the credit agreement was agreed, during which you have the right to cancel
• include costs for labour and parts in your overall budget
• when purchasing items shop around and check online
• agree who will purchase items and be responsible for making sure they arrive on time.

Finding a trader

• carry out checks to find a good trader. TrustMark, a non-profit organisation, promotes local, trustworthy and reliable tradesmen
• check online for websites with a feedback option to rate traders, but be wary of relying completely on the reports
• be clear about whether you need building regulation certificates for any of the work you are doing
• be prepared, look for a trader well in advance of when you would like the project to start
• be careful about using anyone who comes to your door cold calling.  They may be rogue traders.

Contractual information

• obtain written quotations and ask for them to be broken down so that you can see the price of work and materials for each item
• produce a list or specification of what work you would like to have done
• discuss who is responsible if there are delays and who pays
• discuss and clarify house rules, for example no smoking in the house, or no muddy boots
• check if you will be given a timetable for the work
• agree how payments will be made
• check if there any health and safety aspects you need to be aware of.

During work

• agree a single point of contact for the project
• have regular on site meetings
• raise any issues as they arise, don’t wait for the end of the project
• check that you are actually paying for the work that has been completed
• check that your our Building Control department has signed off key stages of the work, if they are required to.

Finishing work

• clarify what you would consider to be the end of the project. Make this clear at the very start and put this in writing so everyone knows
• be clear about when you will be required to make the final payment and what it covers
• remember that you are entitled to withhold a reasonable amount of money to ensure problems are put right.

Tidying up and snagging

• clarify at the start what marks the end of the project and make a note of this
• have a clear idea of when the final payment is due
• you have a right to withhold a reasonable amount of money if work has not been done to satisfactory quality
• keep a running list of items that are outstanding to form your snag list
• if the trader is reluctant to talk to you, you can get advice about from the Citizens Advice consumer service.

Post completion

• have the correct forwarding details for your trader
• make sure that you have paperwork for items purchased by the trader and certificates for work, instructions and warranties.