You can see all these images on my personal blog (the one you’re reading now is the business/architectural one) at:

MarkStephens.net

See below for just one typical example of this gorgeousness (Lough Talt, Co. Sligo):

Some have called me the unofficial tourist ambassador for the West of Ireland which got me thinking…

I should play this card to my advantage; let’s push to get more people to visit Ireland and then when you’re here why not buy a house. All the better if you decide to live here but don’t worry about pricing the locals out of the market; there’s more than enough to go round and anyways most of the wrecks aren’t wanted anyways (sorry to say). Even better why not buy one of the quaintly named ‘Ghost houses’ (a bit like ye old pirate ship) that are going dead cheap and just need a little tarting up.

And then when you’ve bought a house and you need to do it up, why not get yourself an architect to help get you through planning and make your dream home a reality (ahem). It’s not a straightforward task and I guess my next job is to put together a fact sheet on the steps and pitfalls of buying and renovating an Irish property (so watch this space). Even if you don’t decide to buy in my locale (basically Connacht), I’d be happy to recommend other architects I would trust throughout Ireland that do similar work.

So this isn’t one of my flippant posts, (well maybe the bit a about the ghost houses was) but if you’re interested then CONTACT ME…

What will really scupper your dream home is all the stuff that the architect has no control over. The items listed below are fairly general to rural Ireland with an emphasis on Mayo Planning:

* Site suitability – I work with several consultants that specialise in the tests for septic tanks, effluent treatment units and percolation/polishing areas. These specialists will work with me and your site to achieve the best solution to ‘get it through planning’ whilst still achieving EPA guidelines.

* Water – You’re obviously going to need a potable water supply. Obviously the best solution is to connect to a mains supply but unless you’re in a city/town then this is a non-starter. You can connect to a group water scheme (if there is space) but bear in mind you might need to pay a hefty deposit prior to connection (€2000+ in some places). You can also drill a well but you’ll probably need to test the water as part of the planning application.

* Road Safety – Now this can be a really troublesome one; you’ll need clear visibility up and down the road. This visibility is set by a set-back distance from the access junction and being able to look without obstruction a minimum distance up and down the road, this distance is set by the speed of the road. Your architect as part of the planning permission will need to supply a site visibility diagram where the triangles of visibility (at a specific height) are shown. The Council obviously doesn’t want to give a planning permission that creates a road hazard; your architect however can analyse the best position to create a site access; work with solicitors (if required) to obtain visibility over neighbours’ lands.

What you can be assured of is that your architect should do his upmost to address each planning ‘challenge’ and work diligently to solve the problems one by one.

Comments as ever welcome…

1. I know exactly what I want, I just want you to draw it up.

The architects skills go way beyond ‘just drawing things up’; if you know EXACTLY what you need then you may need someone else other than an architect.

2. I’ve had a few goes at drawing up a plan but I just can’t get it right. I don’t want you to draw anything until I’ve got it right.

I’m not going to even start on this one!

3. I’ve been looking at this book of plans and I’d like this one on page xy

I’d even written a FACT SHEET on this!

4. Phone call at 10.55pm; turn Grand Designs NOW on More 4+1 and copy that!

Same as 3. really

5. I really like the big 2 storey, Georgian Mansion look with columns and large bay windows on either side.

Just so there’s no confusion; here’s the Mayo Design Guide for one-off Rural Houses, read this and then weep.

I’ll be adding to this list when I hear something good (bad)!…(and yes, I’ve heard all of these). Comments as always welcome…

Now I’m not talking about how you find a site, how you get the money to buy the site, how you appoint your architect (ahem), how you get your planning permission, how you draw, specify and detail your house, or how you get the money to finally build your house. What I am talking about however is the impetus to actually get started and to finally start building…

The answer is straightforward, you need to make your current living conditions uncomfortable. The more uncomfortable the better. the worse the living conditions – the quicker you’ll get your house built. Look at the success stories on Grand Designs, all the ones on time the self-builders are living in a caravan on the site and unless you’re absolutely loaded then the trick to getting your house self-built within a reasonable time frame is to live uncomfortably either in temporary accommodation or a caravan on the site.

Now, I’m not going to slag off the house we lived in whilst self building our house as I still know the landlord (also the house has been subsequently refurbished), let’s just say it was not the best or warmest house I’d ever lived in and we self-built our own house over a two year period. In my experience if you want as I say to get your house built in a good time frame then GET UNCOMFORTABLE!.

Now I’m talking about project managing your own build; the alternative to getting your house built quicker is to employ a main contractor; I worked with 2 separate clients recently – the first was main contractor led and the client was living in the house after 7 months; the second is just finishing now – 4 years later. It’s a little mathematical calculation each self-builder needs to make – how much money do you have, how much do you want to save (self building as opposed to going the main contractor route) and how badly do you want to move into your house. Don’t forget also that as well as big savings when self-building/project managing there are also big headaches and an incredible amount of time is required ordering and signing for materials, coordinating and getting tradesmen on site…the list and headaches are endless.

There you go, comments welcome as always and below is piccie of our one we did earlier:

Our self-built grass roofed underground house.

In these highly litigious times; the appointment of an expert witness is unfortunately all-too common and this blog post follows the excellent CPD course I completed at the RIAI on becoming an Expert Witness recently.

Firstly, what is an ‘Expert Witness’?

A dispute starts:

a. Claim is made by Person 1.

b. Claim is rejected by Person 2.

c. That rejection is inturn rejected by Person 1.

In order to settle the dispute, unbiased Expert Witnesses are appointed to investigate, prepare reports and then possibly to present those reports in court in order to provide evidence to support their findings.

Who can be an Expert Witness?

Basically it’s anyone with a specialist knowledge that can investigate and present their findings in an unbiased manner. This work is ideal for the architectural profession as it is them (more than any other design professional) that is trained to see the overall picture on any construction project; the GP if you like of designing and building.

If you think about the level of expertise and training that EVERY architect would have from design, planning, Building Regulations, Construction, detailing, contract administration, inspections, certificates…the list is endless and it is time that architects started to undertake this work again.

Therefore, if if you have any need for an Expert Witness, please do not hesitate to CONTACT ME…

I can also put you in touch with other Expert Witnesses that have particular expertise in Structural Engineering / structural failures and experts with specific knowledge in specific areas concerning Planning, again CONTACT ME…

I demand and effective Building Control Poll

Misconceptions regarding Planning, Building Regulations/Control & Priory Court

Planning,Building Regulations/Control & Priory Hall contd…

Well it looks as if Ireland may get a better Building Control system. It’s not that the Building Regulations are poor (they are in many ways better than the UK if not Europe), the problem is with ensuring compliance.

They’re only in draft form at the moment and they’re a consultation document for public consultation which closes on the 24th May 2012.

Click here to view the Draft Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (pdf, 163kb)

In summary, the draft regulations propose the following:

1. Building Regulation Compliant drawings & documentation to be lodged at same time as Building Commencement Notice

2. The client/building owner must appoint an “assigned” professional, at the above stage, to inspect and certify, at Completion Stage, that the building fully complies with the Building Regulations.

The list of “assigned” professionals includes (currently) registered architects, registered building surveyors or a chartered engineers.

3. The “assigned” professional doesn’t have to be the person submitting the compliance documentation at Commencement Stage, but the documentation/certification/inspection on completion must be by an “assigned” professional.

4. The Completion Certificate requires the “assigned” professional to take legal liability for compliance.

The RIAI has several issues with the proposed draft regulations which I’m not going to go into here but my opinion is that I welcome the change but still feel the only way to properly move forward is with an effective Building Control system along the lines of the UK either with Local Authority Building Control Officers or via Approved Building Inspectors.

This also means that although lodging the drawings is fine, there is still no check upon what is actually on those drawings; and it appears that the draft regulations serve only to assign blame upon completion when the proverbial shit hits the fan; a move not actually or truly helping build quality.

I’ll probably be adding to this post over time but comments as always welcome in the meantime…

Sharpie, double ended: Fine Ultra Fine Permanent marker

1. Thinness:

No comparison the Sharpie UltraFine is at least half the thickness of the Staedtler Fine

2. Ergonomics:

Not much in it but I think the Sharpie has it again, better shape, easier to hold

3. Bleedthrough

Here I tested it on my Moleskine notebook, the Staedtler really shows through on the next page; again the Sharpie is the winner.

So I guess Bob Borson is right, the Sharpie is a gorgeous pen, especially for architects

Sounds good doesn’t it ? Fill in a simple form and you get an extra 5 years added to your planning permission.

Here’s the form in fact for you to fill in (the Mayo County Council version)

Too good to be true? Unfortunately yes.

Below is a photograph of a house near Westport where the planning history on the site went back to the 70′s. I came in after the outline planning permission was granted to undertake the ‘Planning Permission subsequent to outline’ in After an initial refusal (the proposed scheme was deemed not to be ‘single storey’ which was one of the outline planning conditions), the house as you see it (a double pitched, traditional design with a mezzanine over the kitchen/living area) was granted with an expiry date in May 2012.

House near Westport, County Mayo

Fast forward 5 years, planning is expiring and nothing has been built.

Fill the form in, pay the €62 and wait for the time extension.

Uh-Uh – refused due to road safety, local needs…..and lose €62 into the bargain.

The bottom line is that the planning authority is working to the current planning guidelines of the specific site in question; this means everything and anything can be raked up – from Septic tanks (very popular topic at the moment), road safety, local needs, maybe even the design!

Luckily, we started building at the beginning of this year and we’ve built up to wall plate as required by the Council. It was a bit of a rush getting everything ready, contracts signed etc… but the contractor (Howard Healy & Sons, Swinford) did his job admirably and we’re planning compliant with a month to spare, phew.

Conclusion

1. If you’re Irish Planning Permission is running out, don’t leave it until the last minute to extend as there may be unforeseen problems you’ll need to address.

2. Unless your planning permission was lovely and straightforward (highly unlikely) then be prepared to battle with newer, more stringent planning requirements.

3. If you need to get building within a planning deadline, it’s surprising how fast a shell can go up, find the money from somewhere and get started.

4. If you need an architect to help build to a specific deadline, prepare construction and tender information, form the contract between you and your builder and inspect/certify the project through the construction period – then please CONTACT me.

Photo in living/dining/kitchen area towards mezzanine

Comments as always welcome…

As well as the hard work getting the money to buy the land and perseverance to see the whole thing through; the answer to the above question on ‘What is the secret of building your own house?’ is straightforward:

Don’t get too comfortable.

You will have seen it countless times on Grand Designs, the couple having to live in a caravan at the top of the site whilst the house is constructed around them.

The fact that they have stepped out of their comfortable house and are living close to the build helps incredibly in terms of getting your house built on time.

Doing it this way means that there’s no excuses in getting your house built, it’s a matter of necessity when the living conditions in your caravan are limited and fractious. There’s no lovely big, centrally heated house to return to, no lovely deep baths to relax in…

So my advice for those wanting to self-build their house is (obviously after you’ve got the land ready and you’re property is sold) is to move out straightaway, move into the caravan on the site and GET STARTED!

Here's one we did earlier (our house at night)

Click on the image below to open the pdf (approx 1.7Mb).

For more information on Tim’s work visit www.TimMorris.ie