An Open-Minded Approach to Domestic Property Developments

Most of us feel a sense of trepidation when friends or family ask for advice on a personal issue that broadly crosses over with our professional expertise.

Here Austin Fletcher founder and director Wayne Fletcher shares his ‘exploratory and open-minded approach’ to domestic property developments.

Anyone who has ever worked in IT becomes their grandparents (or parents in my case) default laptop trouble-shooter and I’m sure doctors and nurses face a constant barrage of enquiries about everything from a prolonged headache to much more intimate ailments.

I try to take a more exploratory and open-minded approach when asked about domestic property developments. The scale of some work isn’t always too far away from some of the smaller commercial developments I have worked on, so I wanted to better understand why there appears to be such a divide between the domestic market and the commercial one.

Why don’t more domestic clients appoint a project manager or even a quantity surveyor? TV presenter Kevin McCloud often despairs when a first-time developer opts to take on all these roles when building their dream one-of-a-kind-spaceship-inspired house on Grand Designs, and he’s usually right. It often turns out badly. These professions, to some, are seen as an unnecessary cost. Why spend money on consultant fees when it can go towards upgraded finishes instead?!

A decision which appears justifiable until they realise the build is going to take six months longer than originally thought and the contract value has just gone up another 30 per cent due to ‘unforeseen costs’ and ‘extras’.

The number of domestic projects I see without a contract in place is even more concerning. “He said he wouldn’t sign one” or, “The ones that would sign a contract were a bit more expensive.” Two responses I often receive. There could be several reasons why a builder will not sign a contract, but you can rest assured – none of them will benefit you, the client.

Realistically most domestic builds are on a much smaller scale than what we see on TV, and rarely require the level of project management support seen in a commercial setting. However, whether you are building a £50,000 extension or a new build house at £500,000, as the client you still require value for money, a level of cost certainty and an element of reduced and calculated risk. This is where the advice and support of a quantity surveyor is vital.

When considering the project overall, undertaking early cost advice during the design stages and the provision of construction contracts are not costly exercises and should be considered on all construction projects, regardless of scale. Each project, and you as the client, will have specific requirements and the consultant’s services should be tailored accordingly.

Usually, the absence of key consultants in a project comes down to a lack of knowledge and/or a misunderstanding of how the process works. Unfortunately, the realisation of how much value they offer, often comes too late.

There doesn’t need to be such a gap between the two styles of working. When I’m asked about home developments, I’ll be looking for the opportunities to make the process as painless, risk averse and cost-effective as possible for my clients.

If you want to bend my ear, I’m happy to chat – just not about your dodgy laptop, please!