Self-build How to design and build your own home

If you’ve ever dreamt of designing and building your own home, this book is for you. Becoming a ‘self-builder’ doesn’t necessarily mean learning to build a house physically from scratch. Anyone can be a self-builder – you can do so without ever having to lay a brick yourself. Self-built homes can also be more individual, better designed and more economical than buying from a developer. This book is designed for homeowners and self-builders, whether aspiring or on the brink of starting a project. It provides a jargon-free, step-by-step guide to the process of designing and building your own home, distilling all of the practical information needed to make your dream house a reality. Carefully crafted to offer friendly, easy-to-understand practical guidance and packed with watch points, hints and tips, it also highlights the potential pitfalls and suggests ways of avoiding them. Including indications of costs and timescales, Self-build demystifies the process of budgeting, finding a site, gaining planning permission, designing your home and all of the surrounding issues to do with sustainability, planning, regulations, procurement and the use of building contracts. Beautifully illustrated with over 230-colour photos, diagrams and plans, it provides all the inspiration and ideas you need to bring your own project to life. Featured houses include: Amphibious House by Baca Architects Corten Courtyard House by Barefoot Architects Haringey Brick House by Satish Jassal Architects Shawm House by Mawson Kerr Architects Sussex House by Wilkinson King Architects The Pocket House by Tikari Works Architects.

1. Why self build 2. Project Preparation 3. Finding and Assessing a Plot 4. Appointing an Architect 5. Design Influences 6. Rooms & Layout 7. Getting Planning Permission 8. Building Regulations 9. Procurement & Construction Methods 10. Preparing for Construction 11. Building the House 12. Case Studies Useful contacts

Julian Owen is an architect with over 30 years’ experience of running his own practice in Nottingham. He has authored several books including Home Extension Design, andis a founder and director of ASBA Architects, a network of locally-based practices that markets it members to self-builders and members of the public who wish to alter or extend their homes. In 2004 he received an MBE for services to architecture.