Buying a Listed Building?
10 Things to Check Before You Start Renovating
Buying a listed building can mean owning a unique part of Britain's architectural history.
It can also mean discovering 300 years' worth of alterations, repairs and surprises once work begins.
If you're considering buying or have recently purchased a listed property in Devon, Somerset or elsewhere in the South West, understanding the building before starting renovation work can potentially save significant time and money.
Here are 10 things worth investigating before starting a listed-building renovation.
1. Understand Exactly What Is Listed
One of the biggest misconceptions is that only the attractive or historically important-looking part of a property is protected.
That isn't necessarily the case.
Listing can cover the entire building, internally and externally, along with fixed objects and, depending on the circumstances, certain structures within its curtilage.
Before designing alterations, establish exactly what you're dealing with.
Search the National Heritage List for England, examine the listing information and, where necessary, obtain specialist heritage advice.
2. Establish What Requires Listed Building Consent
Owning a listed building doesn't mean you can't change it.
It does mean changes affecting its special architectural or historic character may require Listed Building Consent.
Potential examples include:
- Altering internal layouts
- Removing historic fabric
- Replacing windows
- Changing doors
- Altering fireplaces
- Changing roof structures
- Constructing extensions
- Removing or altering historic features
Listed Building Consent is also separate from normal planning permission.
Crucially, carrying out works that require Listed Building Consent without obtaining it beforehand can be a criminal offence.
When in doubt, establish the consent position before work starts.
3. Look at the Roof Properly
Roofs can represent one of the largest costs in a historic-building renovation.
Don't just look at the slates or tiles from outside.
The structure underneath is equally important.
Look for:
- Failing or slipped slates
- Water penetration
- Rot to rafters
- Insect damage
- Problems with principal trusses
- Previous structural alterations
- Failing wall plates
- Defective leadwork
- Poor chimney detailing
- Inappropriate modern repairs
Historic roofs can often be repaired successfully while retaining substantial amounts of the original structure.
But you need to know what you're dealing with before setting a realistic renovation budget.
4. Understand Why the Building Is Damp
"Damp" is one of the most commonly used words when discussing old buildings – and sometimes one of the most misunderstood.
Moisture can come from numerous sources.
Before recommending a treatment, establish the cause.
Possibilities include:
- Defective gutters and downpipes
- High external ground levels
- Failed drainage
- Leaking roofs
- Cement render or pointing
- Plumbing leaks
- Condensation
- Poor ventilation
- Water penetration
- Inappropriate modern finishes
Installing a chemical damp-proof course or covering walls with impermeable materials isn't automatically the answer.
Traditional buildings need to be understood as complete structures.
5. Check What Previous Owners Have Done
Some of the most expensive problems in historic buildings aren't original.
They're previous repairs.
Over decades, buildings may have accumulated cement pointing, gypsum plaster, concrete floors, unsuitable insulation, spray foam, altered roof structures, replacement windows and questionable structural repairs.
These can sometimes interfere with the way the original building manages moisture or loads.
A good renovation strategy therefore isn't always about adding something new.
Sometimes it's about carefully removing inappropriate previous work and repairing the original building correctly.
6. Investigate the Structure
Cracks don't automatically mean a building is falling down.
Likewise, an old building standing upright doesn't automatically mean everything behind the finishes is sound.
Potential structural issues include:
- Historic settlement
- Failed lintels
- Rotten wall plates
- Decayed beam ends
- Altered trusses
- Inadequate previous extensions
- Movement between different phases of construction
- Poorly supported openings
- Failing retaining walls
Where significant movement or structural alteration is suspected, obtaining appropriate structural engineering advice early is usually money well spent.
7. Inspect the Windows and Joinery Before Replacing Them
Historic windows can be remarkably repairable.
Don't assume old timber automatically means replacement.
Traditional windows may be capable of being repaired, spliced, draught-proofed and redecorated while retaining considerably more original material.
Where improved thermal performance is required, options such as secondary glazing may also be possible.
Historic England advises that complete replacement of historic windows should be approached carefully, and replacement windows in listed buildings will normally require Listed Building Consent.
8. Check the Services
A beautiful historic property can still contain decades-old electrical and plumbing installations.
Before committing the renovation budget entirely to visible finishes, establish the condition of:
- Electrical installation
- Incoming electrical supply
- Water supply
- Drainage
- Heating system
- Oil or gas installations
- Hot-water system
- Broadband/data provision
- Septic tank or private drainage where applicable
Upgrading services can involve significant disruption, particularly where routes need to pass through historically important floors, walls or ceilings.
Planning those routes before work begins is far better than deciding once rooms have been finished.
9. Build a Contingency Into Your Budget
Opening up an old building inevitably reveals things that weren't visible during the initial survey.
You might remove a ceiling and discover damaged joists.
Lift a floor and find drainage problems.
Remove cement render and discover damaged stonework.
Strip a roof and uncover decayed rafters or wall plates.
That's the nature of historic-building work.
A sensible renovation budget should therefore include a contingency for unforeseen works rather than spending the entire budget against the original visible scope.
The amount required will depend heavily on the condition, age, complexity and level of investigation already undertaken.
10. Get the Right Team Involved Early
This is probably the most important point.
A successful listed-building renovation often involves collaboration between the owner, architect or surveyor, structural engineer, conservation officer, specialist consultants and contractor.
Bringing the contractor into discussions early can also help bridge the gap between what looks straightforward on a drawing and what is practical once the building is opened up.
It allows construction methods, sequencing, access, temporary works, materials, programme and costs to be considered before decisions become expensive to change.
Should Buying a Listed Building Put You Off?
Not necessarily.
Historic properties can be extraordinary buildings to own and restore.
The important thing is going into the project understanding that renovating a 200- or 300-year-old property isn't the same as refurbishing a modern house.
The objective shouldn't simply be to make an old building behave like a new one.
It should be to retain what makes the building special while carefully adapting it for another generation of use.
Planning a Listed Building Renovation in the South West?
South West Heritage & Development Ltd undertakes the restoration, renovation and redevelopment of historic and traditionally constructed buildings throughout Devon, Somerset and the wider South West.
Our work includes:
- Listed-building renovation
- Historic roof restoration
- Structural timber repairs
- Traditional carpentry and joinery
- Lime mortar, pointing and rendering
- Masonry repairs
- Historic windows and doors
- Drainage and external works
- Complete refurbishment and redevelopment
Whether you've already purchased a historic property or are investigating a building before committing to a major renovation, getting the right advice early can make a considerable difference.
Contact South West Heritage & Development Ltd to discuss your historic-building project.