Repurposing lost cottages for 21st century lifestyles

From out-dated family homes to old cottages long surrendered to ivy, government incentives are seeing properties of all types enjoy new leases of life, says Colin Reilly of Michael Fitzpatrick Architects.

Support in the shape of SEAI grants and Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant (€50,000) are providing opportunities for homeowners to upgrade existing homes or revive ramshackle cottages, while generating work for the construction sector.

“We have seen a big rise in extensions and renovations, especially spurred on by the new grants,” says the Butlersbridge based architect.

SEAI grants offers financial support across numerous categories such as €6,500 for a heat pump and maximum of €1,500 for ceiling insulation, while the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant can chop a handsome €50,000 off your bill for qualifying properties. If a property is derelict then a further €20,000 top up is available in addition to the vacant home grant.

“That has created a lot of work in recent years. We see people considering very old cottages that they might have overlooked previously.”

Amongst the clients Michael Fitzpatrick Architects encounter are people who own a farm where there is “an old cottage in a bush”. Until these grants became available, they never would have considered renovating properties that stretch the idea of a doer-upper to the limit.

However, others are also increasingly drawn to such sites; and for good reason.

“If you are building on a green field site you have to prove there is a housing need and you’re from the area and so on,” explains Colin, “whereas if there is an existing structure on the site anyone generally can come in and buy it and you have side-stepped those housing need requirements. It’s almost a cast iron approval for everyone.”

Amongst the many merits of the grants, they are protecting an important element of rural Ireland’s built heritage.

“You are trying to maintain the architectural features that make them what they are: typical features like sash windows, chimneys, the simple form of the structure themselves. That’s what makes them good, it’s what gives them character. So you try to maintain the character and history of the vernacular cottage or farmhouse.”

The property owner initially pays for the refurbishment, and the grant is paid upon the project’s completion.

The grants team come out and review the property. All going well they give approval and the clock begins ticking with 13 months to complete the job.

“That puts an added bit of spice to the deal,” Colin acknowledges with a laugh.

Michael Fitzpatrick Architects have a pool of trusted builders to carry out projects so Colin’s clients are not experiencing delays in employing a team undertake renovation works.

“Our go-to guys generally accommodate us. However, they are saying it’s becoming more and more difficult to get subcontractors and trades people. I hear that a lot,” he concedes.

Space

In terms of reviving a cottage that has lain derelict for significant periods there are often many issues.

“A lot of these little cottages might only consist of three rooms, so obviously that’s not really suitable for modern day family life, where you typically have multiple rooms and myriad requirements for a home. Nine times out of 10 you are looking at extending them.”

The extension will require planning permission unless it is limited to a maximum of 40sqm to the rear of the house; such modest extensions don’t require planning permission.

However you may be surprised to discover that planners often favour contemporary extensions on cottages and older properties as it highlights the contrast between existing and new.

“When approaching a building, it should be possible to clearly distinguish between the original structure and any later additions. Contemporary extensions establish a deliberate contrast with a traditional dwelling, allowing the historical development of the building to remain legible- here’s the 100 year old cottage, and here’s the 21st century extension beside it.”

“If you extend a cottage in the exact same style of the cottage, it can be a pastiche – it doesn’t reflect the time in which it was built. However, say you had a client with more traditional taste and didn’t want a very contemporary style, there are ways of doing it, but it requires a skilled designer at the helm.”

Colin cautions that when adding extra occupancy to a property, the local authority are likely to want you to upgrade your wastewater treatment system.

“This is something people forget about, and is additional cost.”

Tricky

The experienced architect reams off problems vernacular cottages are very likely to present, ranging from rising damp, an absence of any insulation, structural issues, no foundations, and undermined roof.

The Celt wonders if any of these are fatal to the renovation project?

“There’s nothing that’s insurmountable,” Colin assures. “Most things we can get around.”

At the minimum the client will be required to retain three walls of the original cottage, typically the front and two sides.

“Sometimes it can be very tricky to hold on to them because when you take out the rear wall, often a side wall wants to come with it. The work involved in keeping those three walls standing can often be more than what it would be to build a new one, but you have to keep them in order to keep the character, and avail of the grant.”

Case by case

Architects will take a ‘whole house’ approach – heating, ventilation, insulation to bring the house up to the required Building Energy Rating (BER). Invariably insulation is a key consideration. “When you are dealing with stone walls you need to focus on breathable building materials, if insulating internally. There is a downside to that – if you are insulating internally you are adding to your wall depth and eating into your floorspace.

“You can externally insulate, which doesn’t have the negative effect of taking away from your internal floor area, but it’s not always appropriate. You might have nice architectural features on the outside of the building you want to maintain, so you can’t then cover them with external insulation – you have to decide what’s the appropriate solution on a case by case basis.”

In terms of creating living space in the roof space, such as a mezzanine, Colin doesn’t rule it out.

“If you are dealing with an existing roof, often times there is not a lot of attic space, so that would limit you. But in a lot of instances the roof is shot in these buildings so that when you have to replace them anyway, that gives you an opportunity to change the angle of the roof and create a bit of space up there.”

Cosy

While open plan houses remain popular, Colin has noted an increasing demand for what might be termed ‘zoned plan’ homes.

“When you are within an open plan Kithcen, Dining, Living space, you don’t want to feel like you are rattling around in it. People are closing off living areas with sliding doors and pocket doors and creating features like a double-sided fireplace that subdivides a space, so it’s not one cavernous volume – it divides it into smaller areas and creates more intimate, cosy spaces. That works quite well and we see that becoming quite popular”.

“Maybe people have lived in an open planned space and they find it can be a bit echoey, and might like the flexibility to close off part of it in the evening time and make it cosier.”

Budget

Grants will only get a renovation project so far; ambitions will still be tempered by budget.

“When the client comes to you with a limited budget you are going to want to minimise the floor area you are dealing with, because floor area equals Euro signs basically. If someone comes to you with €100K budget, a big chunk of that is going to be eaten up by getting the existing structure up to scratch in terms of heating, plumbing, insulation and electrical work.”

To discuss your renovation project with Michael Fitzpatrick Architects, contact 049-436 5800 or email: info@mfarchitects.ie