Building a new home, whether on a family farm, a rural site or a plot in town, is a big commitment. Getting reliable, comparable quotes is one of the best ways to protect your budget. This guide explains how to prepare, what to ask contractors and the costs that often get missed.
This is general information. Costs, rules and schemes change, so check the current position for your own project.
Get the essentials in place first
- Planning permission. Contractors can give a rough idea of cost at concept stage, but firm prices should wait until you have planning approval and know any conditions attached to it. In the countryside, rural planning policy is strict, so check the planning position of the site before you spend heavily on design.
- Full drawings and a specification. Building control drawings, structural engineer’s details and a written specification of materials and finishes let every contractor price the same house.
- Site information. Any ground investigation, a topographical survey, and information about drainage and services help contractors price groundworks realistically.
Decide how you want to build
There are several routes, each with different risks. A single main contractor can build the whole house for an agreed price. Some people appoint a contractor to build to a weathertight shell and then manage the internal trades themselves. Others manage every trade directly. The more you manage yourself, the more time and risk you take on, so be realistic about your experience and availability.
Ask for itemised, comparable quotes
Send every contractor the same drawings, specification and tender information, and ask them to price in the same format, broken down into stages such as substructure, superstructure, roof, windows and doors, first fix, second fix and external works. That makes it much easier to spot gaps and differences.
Look carefully at provisional sums and prime cost (PC) sums. These are allowances for items not yet fully defined, such as a kitchen or sanitaryware. A quote with low allowances can look cheaper than one with realistic allowances, but end up costing more.
Costs that are easy to miss
- Site access and preparation: new lanes, visibility splays, site clearance and any demolition.
- Drainage: connection to the public sewer, or a septic tank or wastewater treatment system on rural sites. Discharges from private systems in Northern Ireland normally need consent from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.
- Utility connections: water (NI Water), electricity (NIE Networks) and, where available, gas or broadband. Ask for connection quotations early, as costs and lead times can vary a lot.
- Professional fees: design, structural engineering, building control fees and any warranty or inspection fees.
- External works: driveway, paths, landscaping, boundaries and gates.
- Contingency: a sum held back for the unexpected. Agree with your advisers what level is sensible for your project.
Warranties and mortgages
Most mortgage lenders want a new home to be covered by a structural warranty or, in some cases, a professional consultant’s certificate signed by an architect or surveyor who has monitored the build. Find out what your lender requires before work starts, because some warranties need inspections from the very beginning.
VAT
The construction of a new dwelling is generally zero-rated for VAT when carried out by a VAT-registered builder, and there is a scheme that lets some self-builders reclaim VAT on certain materials. The rules are detailed, so check HMRC’s current guidance or speak to an accountant before relying on them.
Choosing between quotes
Price matters, but so do experience of similar houses, availability, the proposed programme, the payment schedule and how comfortable you feel working with the contractor for many months. Take up references, visit completed homes if you can, and put the agreement in a written contract.
Planning a new build? Post your project to hear from suitable builders, or browse new build contractors, rural home specialists and architects. For planning advice on rural and replacement dwellings, see NI Planning Permission.