6 Things To Consider When Building A New House

Building a new house is undoubtedly one of the most exciting projects you will ever undertake. However, starting a build from scratch can also be stressful and overwhelming if you fail to prepare correctly. Careful planning will ensure that you feel confident about what each step of building entails and help you to guarantee that your new house becomes your dream home. Consider these six things as you kick off the once-in-a-lifetime process:

Budget

First things first, you should always set aside time to understand how much it costs to build a new house and set a realistic budget. Start by thinking about exactly what kind of resources and labour you will need and collect a number of quotes to get an accurate estimate of how much things might cost. One of the best things about building a new house is being able to add special features that are unique to you, so don’t forget to consider how much these might cost alongside all of the essentials like groundwork, surveying and plumbing. Having an accurate budget in place will mean you avoid any nasty surprises later on in the build process and ensure you can actually afford what you’d like to achieve. 

Layout

Once you know where you’ll be building a new house, plan a suitable layout. Get creative when drawing up some floorplans and be inventive about how the different rooms and areas within the home can fit together. While it’s important to make sure that you have the rooms you need in the right places, make sure that you consider your lifestyle and the way you plan to use the house. It can be a good idea to start with the social spaces and work around these, whether you want to build a new house that’s open plan or would prefer something compact and cosy.

Energy efficiency

As the cost of energy bills continues to soar, thinking about the energy efficiency of your new house should be high on the priority list. By building a new house that is as energy efficient as possible, you can reduce the running costs of your home and boost its value on the market if you are hoping to sell. There are different things you could consider to achieve this, like underfloor heating and aluminium radiators. These technologies can be more costly in the short term but their long-term benefits should far outweigh the initial expense.

Heating system

Plumbing and heating are expensive parts of any new house build, so have a careful think about the different options available for your new home heating system. Central heating powered by oil and gas boilers is pretty standard in most homes, but this type of heating system is expensive to run and not the most energy efficient option. At Pipelife, we recommend investing in an air to water heat pump when building a new home. A much more efficient and sustainable solution, heat pumps are able to operate at much lower temperatures by extracting heat from the air and transferring it to the areas of the home that need it.

Smart technology

If you’re into your tech, building a new house can be a very exciting opportunity to make your home as smart as possible. There are all kinds of bits of modern kit that you could opt for like smart controls for your appliances and lights and smart control systems or thermostats for your heating. Choosing a smart thermostat will also help to make your new house more energy efficient as you can have better oversight of when your home is being heated and prevent unnecessary energy use. 

Fixtures and finishing

Last but not least, make sure that you allocate time and budget to the special finishing touches of your new house. Carpets, wallpaper and lighting all help to make a house a home, so use the opportunity granted by starting from scratch to choose fixtures that you really love. You may want to go all out with different colours to express yourself or maintain a neutral look if resale value is on your mind a little further down the line. 

If you are building a new house and want some further guidance about the best heating systems or smart technology, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the expert team at Pipelife today.