Demolishing your old house to make way for your new bespoke home
So you have decided to demolish the old place to make way for your new bespoke home, on the face of it, demolishing an old house may seem like a quick and easy job. Sure, your old property can be bowled over in the blink of an eye, but a lot needs to happen before the bulldozers can get to work.
Demolishing in Perth
From the time the house becomes vacant, it will take a couple of months to gain the necessary demolition permits, make the necessary preparations on site and then carry out the demolition work. The length of time this all takes is the biggest misconception when it comes to ‘demolish and build’ projects.
It’s also important to remember that the old property you are demolishing will have been built according to the building and planning codes that applied at the time. This means you might not necessarily be able to rebuild in exactly the same spot. Planning and building codes evolve over time, and what is called the ‘building envelope’ may have changed, too. New conditions may therefore be in place that might have a bearing on the size and height of the home you want to build. With this in mind, we strongly recommend that you do not demolish the old property on your block until after you have both planning approval and a building contract in place. Only then can you go ahead and demolish with confidence, knowing you can build the home you want, at a price that has been agreed.
How much?
The cost of demolition will depend on the size of the home, the materials that were used to build it, how big the block is and whether there are additional structures such as sheds, pools and fencing to be removed. As a rule of thumb, it costs from about $15,000 to bowl over a two-bedroom, one-bathroom weatherboard home, up to $25,000 or more to flatten a substantial brick and tile two-storey.
Bear in mind that the more you get the demo company to do the better it will be because to get a contractor back to remove a tree fence or back shed after the event will end up costing more the entire block needs to be cleared.
Its not only the house that’s being knocked over, if it’s on a sizeable block, there could be vast amounts of vegetation to be removed and sent to the tip at extra cost.
What happens when?
Before you can apply for a demolition permit, the block has to be fenced off, and services such as gas, power and water disconnected.
The old dwelling must also have been rat-baited for two to three weeks, depending on the requirements of the local council, this will stop all the rats running next door as soon as the old home has been pushed over and this will need to be done before you can submit your application.
The demolition permit will then usually take between five and 30 days to come through, depending on the council you are dealing with. Your subcontractor can then schedule your job. The actual demolition will typically about a week, depending on how much is to be salvaged from the old house.
Where does it all go?
Some demolition companies do little in the way of recycling and will send the bulk of the old house to landfill. Others will take several weeks to strip out recyclable materials as the relevant sub-contractors become available to remove items such as bricks, roof tiles and paving. Even mature trees such as frangipanis and grass trees can be recycled. Generally speaking, the more that is recycled or salvaged, the longer the demolition process will take. Some companies provide low quotes based on a high percentage of salvage and a longer demolition timeframe, but this could prove a false economy if you’re paying rent or making mortgage payments in the meantime.
If you plan to salvage items from the old property yourself, do let your demolition contractor know this before you sign a contract with them as they may not have factored this into their quote. They may have provided a lower quote because they planned to sell some of the materials they were removing from the site.
Sadly, hanging on to salvaged materials so that you can use them in your new home is only worth doing if you are prepared to pay a big premium. It may make ecological sense to recycle in this way, but unfortunately it doesn’t always make financial sense. That’s because the labour costs are higher when working with recycled timber and bricks, for example, than if you’re buying new.
Handy to know
Asbestos: Common in older properties and usually easy to identify, normally it’s a blueish colour and the back of the sheet looks to be sprayed in a mesh finish, asbestos must be dealt with by a licenced asbestos removal specialist. Any asbestos removal should be stipulated in the demolition quotes you obtain.
Things like septic tanks and bores will need to be de commissioned and filled in and if the old home has a pool or an undercroft the hole will also need to be filled in and compacted in layers so not to cause a settlement issue for your new home.
Also you may look for plants that you may be able to reuse in your new home, plants like dragon trees and frangipani are always good to keep and replant.
Risks
Demolishing a house can be a pretty full on and it would be good to keep the adjoining land owners in the look as it may impact them as well.
Demolition companies will usually recommend that they carry out dilapidation reports on surrounding properties before commencing demolition.
These reports record the condition of neighbouring properties before demolition begins, its very handy to have a line in the sand and saves a lot of interesting conversations latter in the process.
Once the old house has been demolished, most builders get their own dilapidation reports on the adjoining neighbouring properties to establish their condition before they start building your new home.
Contractors: Using a recommended contractor is always advised. Companies that take short cuts, such as burying waste on site only for it to be dug up again during your build, will end up costing you time and money in the long run.
The site need to be raked to a depth of around 600 to 700 mm to ensure that there is no building material left under the soil.
Fences
You will need to establish whether dividing fences are staying put, at least for the time being, or whether they will be removed as part of the demolition contract. When talking to your neighbours about your plans, remember that they will soon be living next door to a building site, so it often pays to be generous.
Good fences make good neighbours, so if there is a lot of vegetation close to the fence it would be good to have a chat to them and address it up front.
Obstacles
Tree roots can often extend out across property boundaries and the removal of trees on your block may therefore disturb your neighbour’s garden beds or paving. Again, it pays to be patient, courteous and considerate towards your neighbours. Your nominated building supervisor can provide guidance and will work with everyone to make sure all activity on your site causes minimum disruption.
Clever home designs have a has a list of recommended demolition contractors and will happily arrange quotes for you, but we suggest you engage the selected contractor direct as arranging for an old house to be demolished is a simple process. We’re always happy to review any quotes that you obtain so that you can be sure all the detail has been covered.
For more information contact me directly, I look forward to being able to help.
