The Self-Builder Diaries Chapter Three: Finding a Builder

As we were strangers to the area, we relied heavily on Tim and Tom to recommend a local builder.

Early on, in the Zebra Architect days, we had meetings with a company that had a lot of experience in building by the river.  They were keen to take it on and the debate was about whether they should undertake the whole build or just the groundworks.

In the end, though, when it came to quoting for the job they were out of sight.  It was looking like not much short of £1M on top of what we had already spent.  We thought they were overpriced and allowing too much for the restricted site and the slope.

We hired a quantity surveyor (more cost) to give us a baseline for comparison.  Disappointingly, the answer was much the same.  We began to despair and contemplated abandoning the whole project.  We even started the process of offering the plot for sale, hoping to at least recover some of what we had spent.

Then T&T introduced us to a small local builder that they had worked with before, who was willing to take on the job at a (more) reasonable price, and keen to gain experience in Passivhaus construction.

Thus we signed up with RDS Build, Rob Shaw’s company, and got the show on the road.

Chapter 4

With a builder signed up, it was time to take on getting planning.