Airey house loft conversion... certificate

[evette]

Hi..we have imherited a lovely airey house im the country, it is solid and been lived in up until recently fine with no probs..do we really need to get this certificate as we dont need to get a morrgage on it? Ww reslly want to do the loft as its a massive space up there..anyone achieved this?

 

[Notch7]

Im thinking you are saying: can I convert the loft without building regs?

There are certainly thousands of loft conversions done without regs.

I would recommend it -you could do structural damage to the roof and devalue the house.

 

[evette]

Hi..well yes..we only have about 50g to spend on it , so was going to tart it up,new kitchen bathroom, decorate throughout etc and do the loft out..we enquired to get the certificate and been quoted 45-50grand, leaving us then with nothing left so wouldnt gain anything by doing the work to then live there as it is.we have been told by a couple of structural engineers its not worth much more once with the stigma of prc house.we really dont wantto be mortgaged up again as we just wanted it nice to live in for a few years with the kids , not to make money on it...

 

[Notch7]

Wherabouts in the country are you?

£45k sounds high for a loft conversion, but it all depends on complexity and size.

 

[evette]

Sorry not the loft i meant the structural work they do to get the certificate to pass off as "safe"...someone came to look at the loft and he doesnt think it would be strong enough...
Do you own an airey house?

 

[wwwebber]

An Airey house is post war prefab :-

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airey_house

If you cant get it safe to existing regs then don't do it at all.

 

[evette]

In north west england..so you wouldnt bother doing anything until its done? The only companys who would sign this off are based down south so would mean us paying a team to board up here for the 6 weeks to get it done...we know all aboutvthe airey houses ut next doors have extended and had their loft done...but think they got help to structure it in the 80s..we cant find any info on thus house from anywhere..

 

[^woody^]

You would certainly need specialist design, and as part of that, and the building regulations approval, you would need an assessment of the existing structure.

A condition certificate would not necessarily help with a lot conversion, as it would not have the detail required for building regulations or design of the loft.

 

[evette]

Ok..so we could get someone to do the work to make the structure safe and enable a loft space and not necessarily get the specific certificate which seems to be a ridiculous price? (Another prc guy said he would charge us 5g to come up and sign it off if we got the builderd in)...
What started off as soemrhing to benefit our family and money issues seeming to turn into a nightmare costing us as much as buying a "proper" house.

 

[^woody^]

You have been given the wrong advice, or maybe you asked the wrong question to the wrong person.

Find a structural engineer firm that can design a loft and knows about concrete houses. Tell them you just want the loft designing but to bear in mind the house construction.

 

[ash_scotland88]

As far as I can gather is.
Structural engineer has told you it will be X amount to make the house safe for conversion.
This is too much for you so you're asking if it structuraly needs to be made safe.

How much do you value your children's life?

Also not getting building regs/structural sign off will devalue any work you have done and may make it unsalable in the future when that time comes.

Is going out to the side or back to create rooms a possibility?

 

[wessex101]

So is this an original un-repaired Airey house?

If it is I'd be very surprised, all the Aireys I saw were demolished or "repaired" in the 80's because they were one of the worst PRC houses to have structural defects. Steel tubes set in the concrete columns which rusted causing the concrete columns to disintegrate.

Has it still got those distinctive concrete panels on the outside? or has it been "repaired" and got brick and block cavity walls?

If it really is an original Airey I'd say demolition and re-building is probably the best bet. I certainly would not waste any money on a loft conversion or extension unless it has had the full "repair".

 

[evette]

Yes.. its original still with panels..my husband bought it early 80s for his grandma so i think it got missed being done as was privately owned...thanks for all your input so we defo need toget the structural work done as we need the loft for space and can then hopefully put some kind of extension onto the dining room/kitchen. Now the job of finding someone to do it...

 

[Leofric]

Airey house see Wessex 101 comments above .