Loft conversions that adda proper roomto your home

A rooflight conversion is the simplest: no change to the roof shape, Velux windows in the existing slope, and it only works where head height is already generous. A rear dormer is the workhorse of South East London: a flat-roofed box built out from the rear slope that creates full standing height and floor area, and typically makes room for an en-suite. Hip-to-gable conversions square off the sloping side of a semi or end-terrace to gain width, and are often paired with a rear dormer.

Mansard conversions rebuild the roof at a steep pitch to maximise volume and are more common on terraces where the planning context suits. L-shaped dormers over an existing rear outrigger suit Victorian and Edwardian houses. We recommend the type after measuring your roof, not before: and if a conversion will not give a usable room, we will tell you that a rear extension is the better spend.

New floor structure normally spans off load-bearing walls on steel beams, clear of the existing ceiling joists so the ceilings below are not disturbed. Steel sizes and padstones are designed for the actual spans. Dormer cheeks are timber framed, insulated and finished in tile, slate, zinc or render, with the flat roof covered in a single-ply or built-up membrane laid to falls.

Staircases are set out to comply with going, rise, headroom and width, and made either as a straight flight or with winders where space is tight. Insulation is fitted between and over rafters with the ventilation path maintained, and plasterboard is upgraded where fire resistance to the stair requires it. En-suites need waste routing planned early, which is why plumbing is coordinated at design stage rather than improvised on site.

Many loft conversions fall within permitted development, subject to volume added, materials, how close dormers sit to the eaves and whether any part faces a highway. Flats, listed buildings, conservation areas and previous extensions change that, so we confirm the position for your specific property before design work starts.

Building regulations always apply. Inspections cover floor structure, stair geometry, insulation, ventilation, escape windows or protected stairway, interlinked alarms and electrical work. We make the application, meet the inspector at each stage and hand over the final certificate as part of the contract.

The variables that move the price of a loft conversion are the type (rooflight, dormer, hip-to-gable or mansard), the amount of structural steel needed to carry the new floor, whether an en-suite is included and where its waste can run, the number and specification of rooflights or windows, and the finish level of joinery and decoration. Access for materials and scaffolding matters too, particularly on terraces with no side access.

We survey the roof, confirm head height and the structural approach, then issue a written estimate with the scope set out item by item so you can see what is and is not included. That is deliberately different from a rate per square metre, which hides exactly the items that later become variations. Where an en-suite, fitted eaves storage or a full redecoration of the landing below is optional, it is priced as an option rather than assumed.

Most clients ask us about resale value. A properly converted, building-control-signed-off loft adds a declarable bedroom to the property; a boarded loft with a ladder does not. That difference is the reason the sign-off documentation is part of every contract we run, and why we hand it over rather than leaving you to request it later.