Erection of Scaffolding temporary roof EH and MDC

Installation of new leaded light glazing MDC

Report on wall paintings, Further archaeological report and Engineers details for vault repairs EH

Further conservation work to wall painting and fireplaces EH

The entire investment in the property by the end will be around ₤580,000 with just over 5% of that having been grant aid. This has been achievable by not counting my own time and effort and spending many, many hours searching for the most cost effective contractors and materials.

The saving grace has been that property prices have increased hugely so we will still have equity left when the work is finished. But borrowing levels are higher than comfortable to achieve this. It has been unfortunate that a town centre regeneration scheme has been in place for the time work has been progressing but despite this building being prominent in the town centre we were told by Mendip District Council no funds were available for 8 Market Place. We also lost out shortly after we bought the building when the government removed funding from English Heritage as funds from the Heritage Lottery fund came through which private individuals cannot obtain. Later we had to turn down a section 3a grant from English Heritage as for our situation it was unsuitable for many reasons. This was a considerable disappointment as many within English Heritage had worked hard to make the offer available.

Be aware that you cannot quantify a job like this easily, costs are likely to increase as these projects tend to be organic and change to a certain degree depending upon what you uncover whilst working. It would be wise to have some sort of contingency available.

With most jobs the following principals apply which may be worth considering.

You can have a quality job done fairly quickly but costs tend to spiral.

You can have a quick cheap job but quality tends to go out the window.

You can achieve a quality job on a lesser budget but time will go ut the window

VAT
This project is subject to 2 vat relaxations. Firstly contractors working on site should only issue their invoices with 5% vat as the work is classed as conversion under vat rules. Secondly as the building has been disused residentially for 10 years and I can establish this formally by witness of public officials I can run the work as a self build project under vat rules. This means I can claim vat back on all the materials and most of the fixtures and fittings also the 5% charged by contractors can be reclaimed too. Sadly you have to save all your invoices to the completion and claim back at that stage.