Existing Loft Conversion

[Kendo666]

Hi all - I hope you can guide me in the right direction!

I bought this house just over 5 years ago (ex-LA mid-terrace), and it has a bedroom in the loft (3rd bedroom). My lawyer at the time told me it did not have planning permission, but as my options at the time were limited, it would be OK as long as I bought it and insured it as a 2-bedroom house (as opposed to 3). I would like to know the best way of finding out what would be required to make it official (and find out what work would be required). I've heard horror stories about councils making people rip apart loft rooms, so I'm wary.

I know there's a lot more to it, but it looks (to me) like it may have been done to a certain standard >10 years ago. It has a fire door off the upper hall, with a pukka staircase, velux window, sockets, lights, radiator. What I really want is somebody to tell me everything I would need to do to make it a room officially.

Thanks in advance for any guidance/comments received.

 

[noseall]

What I really want is somebody to tell me everything I would need to do to make it a room officially.

For free.....

The floor joists need to comply.

What remains of the roof timbers need to be structurally sound.

The stair case i.e. treads, risers, hand-rail, spindles, stair ceiling headroom (2m clear) etc needs to comply.

The thermal insulation between rafters as well as venting needs to comply.

Electrics.

Heating.

Steelwork (if applicable).

Fire reg's.

Etc, etc.

 

[Kendo666]

Thanks for your reply. I didn't say I wanted anything for free, I just wanted an idea of how to go about finding out, without the threat of a council busybody demanding that I spend a fortune that I dont have.

If it is over 10 years old, and it all seems fine (the roof easily survived all recent storms etc.), could the council still make demands of me?

 

[noseall]

If it is over 10 years old, and it all seems fine (the roof easily survived all recent storms etc.), could the council still make demands of me?

only if you wish to regularize (legalize) the extension.

I guess if someone dies in fire in your loft-con and it is found to have some illegal irregularity then i guess there will be severe consequences.

Similarly would you not want to make sure everything is ok?

I guess if it aint broke then why fix it. Perhaps an independent inspection by a structural surveyor may clear things up.

 

[Kendo666]

Thanks for the help. I take it I could pay a suitably qualified person to look at it and he/she would let me know everything I would need to do. I assume these folk are not obliged to report deficiencies to the council? As you may have guessed, councils make me paranoid!

At the end of the day I would be aiming to carry out whatever was required to be able to call my house a 3-bedroom house, and hopefully increase its value accordingly.

Thanks again!

 

[^woody^]

Whilst it is 4 years for planning enforcement action, a loft conversion may not have needed it in the first place

With regards to building regulations, there is actually no time limit for enforcement action related to life safety issues. And no inspection by anyone other than the local council will let you lawfully call this a bedroom

No person however qualified is going to be able to tell you what you need to do, because it is not their place to do this, so not only will this be pointless, but in all likelihood they are more likely to go overboard with recommendations purely to cover themselves

A regularisation application now and an inspection from the council will just require the bare minimum of work if anything - unless of course the structure is in a complete unsafe state

Household insurance may be invalidated too if the bedroom is unlawful