- Discover the major costs involved when building a kitchen extension.
- How to keep your kitchen extension budget under control.
- Find out how to get planning permission for your kitchen extension.
- The key benefits that a kitchen extension can have on your home
- Most common kitchen extension mistakes.
Kitchens are often considered the heart of the home, being the primary space where friends and family come together to socialise and entertain. As a result, many homeowners take on the project of building a kitchen extension to help expand this valuable living space.
While kitchen extensions are an excellent addition to your home, they can be considerably expensive, so it’s crucial to plan and budget accordingly to avoid any costly mistakes.
There are many aspects to consider when building a kitchen extension from size, design, measurements and materials, so it’s essential to have a solid plan before any work is undertaken.
This article covers all you need to know about kitchen extensions, including costs, planning, the benefits and most common mistakes.
What are the costs involved in a kitchen extension?
The cost of a kitchen extension will vary greatly depending on the size of the project. Kitchen extensions require planning permission, approval of building regulations, maintenance costs and the expense of new flooring, units and kitchen accessories.
The different elements of building a new kitchen extension can be broken down into the following stages, helping you to create a realistic budget.
Kitchen extension building costs
The average cost of a single storey kitchen extension is around £1,500 per metre squared and approximately £1,900 to £2,200 per metre squared for more bespoke projects, including new windows and doors.
Kitchen finishes with higher speculations can increase costs by up to £3,000 per metre squared. A complete redesign of the kitchen interior is often around £500 to £900 per metre squared.
If you are converting another room into your new kitchen, this is often £1,000 to £1,250 per metre squared for garage conversions, £1,150 to £1,850 per metre squared for cellar conversions and £3,000 and £5,000 for basement conversions.
Foundation costs can be a significant expense depending on your ground conditions. For an assessment of your ground type, speak to a structural engineer or local authority.
Keeping kitchen extension budgets under control
Creating your dream kitchen can be an exciting project, but it can be a challenge to stay within budget with so many costs to consider. As a result, it’s essential to have a thorough plan before undertaking any work.
You could use an online kitchen extensions calculator to help you factor in all the costs involved and gain a precise estimation of what your budget should be.
Using standard building materials is an excellent way of keeping costs low as they are easily accessible for builders and are easier to negotiate at a low price.
Also, keeping windows and doors as standard sizes will help to reduce both time and money. However, sticking to standard sizes doesn’t mean that you can’t be creative in your design choices. Including interesting patterns and bold colours will provide your new kitchen with that extra pizzazz. Visiting kitchen showrooms and browsing online can help you find the best designs and materials for you. We’ve also written a handy guide on revamping your kitchen cabinets to keep costs even lower.
Setting aside additional funds
Many building projects end up going slightly over budget, so it’s always wise to set aside additional funds as a backup. Where possible, it’s best to at least have 10% of your overall budget on hand, should you need it.
Unforeseen costs could include storing building materials, renovation insurance and additional maintenance costs.
Kitchen extension professional fees
We’ve mentioned the significant kitchen extension costs, but what about the many other additional fees involved? With kitchen extensions being an important project, you may wish to call upon the expertise of an interior designer.
Design fees for a kitchen extension can range between 3 – 7% of the total building costs. If you’re struggling to envision your new kitchen layout, there are plenty of free virtual kitchen design websites that can provide you with a rough idea of how things should look.
There are the planning drawings and construction drawings to consider, which can both be between £2,400 – 3,600 at a minimum.
You will need a measured survey of the current property which can be between £500 – £1,500, depending on the size of your house.
There is also the cost of structural engineer fees to design the foundations and make any structural alterations to the existing space. These costs can range between £500 to £1,000.
Will I need planning permission for my kitchen extension?
Planning permission isn’t always required for every kitchen extension. To find out whether you need planning permission for your kitchen extension, contact your local planning authority through your local council. If you go ahead with your kitchen extension without planning permission when required, you could be asked to reverse all the work done, so it’s crucial to check.
What is the cost of planning permission?
For kitchen extensions that require planning permission, costs can be around £200, though they can vary depending on the size of the project and whether you reside in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
A certificate of lawful development in England costs £234; however, planning permission can also require additional reports such as £200 plus for a tree report, £600 plus for a flood zone risk assessment and £720 plus for an ecology report. If your home requires an archaeological report, this can cost a few thousand pounds. Listed homes will also need a historic building report.
How much are building control costs for a kitchen extension?
Building regulation costs will be dependent on the size of your kitchen extension, with prices ranging from £250 for a project of 1-10 metres squared and £900 for 80-100 metres squared.
How much for a party wall agreement?
When building a kitchen extension, you are required to tell your neighbours if the building work affects your shared property boundary, also known as a party wall. For a surveyor to arrange a party wall agreement, this will usually cost between £700 to £1,000 per neighbour.
Kitchen extension door costs
When redesigning a kitchen with an extension, many homeowners choose to include bi-fold or sliding doors. However, whilst bi-fold doors are trendy as they let in substantial amounts of light into the kitchen, they can be very costly. You can expect to pay around £1,400 to £1,800 per metre squared for sliding doors, so it’s important to factor this into your overall kitchen extension costs.
Kitchen extension lighting schemes
A lighting scheme for a kitchen extension can be a worthwhile investment as it allows you to operate ambient lighting on different circuits – allowing for customisation and greater lighting control. A one-hour lighting consultation can be just over £100.
Kitchen extension flooring costs
There are many options available when it comes to kitchen flooring, but more homeowners are opting for concrete as it is both hard-wearing and can create a chic look. Concrete flooring can cost between £120 to £144 per metre squared.
Kitchen tiles are a less expensive option, and with so many styles available, you are sure to find a colour and texture to suit you. Kitchen prices can vary significantly from just £10 per metre squared to up to £70.
Kitchen heating costs
If you already have a reasonably new boiler, it is likely to be sufficient to deal with the additional heating requirements when building a kitchen extension. However, if your boiler is over ten years old, upgrading to a more energy-efficient one could help you save more money in the long term. A replacement boiler is around £2,300.
What are the benefits of kitchen extensions?
The most significant benefit of adding a kitchen extension is adding substantial value to your property. For example, a single-storey kitchen extension could increase your property value between as much as 5 – 10% and 20% for a double-storey.
Assessing the value your new kitchen extension will add to your home is vital during the budgeting stage. It’s essential to ensure that the costs do not outweigh the benefits. To gain an accurate figure of how much value could be added to your home, it’s advised that you speak with an estate agent.
Kitchen extensions can also save you significant amounts of money by preventing the need to move house. A common complaint amongst homeowners is that the kitchen space is too small. Rather than splashing out on an unnecessarily large and expensive property, simply expanding the space you already have could save you vast amounts of hassle and funds.
Common kitchen extension mistakes
With all the rushing around when building a kitchen extension, it’s all too easy to overlook these crucial areas:
Not keeping the building site tidy
When building a new kitchen extension, it’s essential to keep on top of all the rubble and clear it up regularly. Rubble management ensures that dust does not pile up in your home and makes it much easier to resume normality once the project has finished.
Not covering up furniture
To avoid dust ruining your furniture and other items, it’s always best to place valuable home furnishings into storage. If you cannot do this, consider covering everything with dust sheets to keep everything intact.
Keep children away from the building site
It may seem obvious, but building sites are not safe places for children with tools and heavy materials scattered about. Therefore, the builders must clear away tools and machinery at the end of each day whilst also keeping children away from the area.
Avoid kitchen extensions during the winter
When building a kitchen extension, the project is considerably easier if you start at the right time of the year. Laying foundations and dealing with groundwork during the winter months can be challenging, with the possibility of experiencing frozen ground. It can also be difficult for bricklayers having to work outside during freezing temperatures. There is also the possibility that you may be without heating for a few weeks, which is much more manageable during the spring and summer months.
Not researching your builders
With kitchen extensions being a considerably costly project, it can be tempting to go with builders that provide the lowest quote. However, it’s essential to do your research on local builders, reading Google and Facebook reviews to ensure they will do the job correctly. With kitchens being such a valuable living space, cutting corners and doing things cheaply could lead to potential disasters further down the line. As a result, it pays to have everything completed by a professional and have everything completed right the first time.
Andrew Griffiths once said when renovating the kitchen, you should “always spend on things you touch the most.” Kitchen taps most certainly falls under that category.
One of the more exciting aspects of kitchen extensions is getting to choose new kitchen appliances and accessories. With a brand-new kitchen, you want to choose appliances that will elevate efficiency and be in keeping with your new style. An instant boiling water tap is the perfect addition to any kitchen, helping you save time as you no longer need to wait for the kettle to boil. Available in a range of chic designs, Fahren UK has the perfect hotwater tap to suit your new kitchen.
