Raising a house, how much and how?

I have a property 300mtr from wtr front. If it was riased it would have water views.

Is raising a house worth it just to get water views. Its probably worth 210ish now, and houses with bay views built in down stairs are around $380-$400, ones just on poles around $350-$360.

So what kinda cost is involved here;

a. Just to put it up on steel poles.
b. To raise it and build under neath.

Im sure its weight bearing, so would I have to put on a tin roof (tiles now)?

How high can it be raised off the ground (qld)?
 
G'day Dyna,

You might be VERY surprised at how cheap it is to simply lift a house. (I was...) Of course, the extra expense will come when you decide HOW to utilise the newly generated "downstairs" area.

But just lifting (without actually moving) is "way cheap" !!!

Regards,
 
If the current stumping was slightly imbalanced, then this would become an even more attractive idea (seeing as it may require some restumping). Which Im not sure if it does, but it occasionally gets a door jam.

So how much, Im very interested.
 
G'day Dyna,

The figure I heard (about 18 months ago) was under $5000 - now, that was just for the lift. After that, it's up to you what you wanted to do with the newly created area under (brick it in, leave it on the poles, etc).

Note that I HAVEN'T checked this myself - but my source was (I believe) trustworthy......

Regards,

PS - if you're moving as well as lifting, then forget the above - but a straight lift appears CHEAP!!!!
 
I believe that in QLD, it's between 150 to 200 dollars per post. This is for steel or concrete posts installed. If you wanted steel posts, there will be some bracing required as well. It may affect the spaces and rooms you can have downstairs. Extra costs apart from the stumps will be new stairs, re-plumbing etc - to 'make up' the new height of the house.

House height in Brisbane QLD is an 8.5 metre maximum from the highest point of the house to the natural ground directly below. This is usually from the top of the roof ridge to the natural ground below. You may raise it higher but will need to apply to Council and also get the neighbour's consent.

If however your neighbour are already over 8.5m, you may raise your house to match their height. You will still need to make an application to Council however, though approval will be more assured.
 
This is an excellent thread, I couldnt find this info on the web anywhere, and there are very few raising companies with web sites.

khangu that information is fantastic, thank you, 8.5mtr is about 11 ft higher than it is currently, so that is plenty.

what would be the likely reasons the council will say no? Neither house either side is raised, or at the back.

Could I get it raised, get the plumbing done and electrics and then do the building in at a later stage?

What would be the most appropriate material to build it in downstairs? (external) Its an old Qld cottage so its weather board. Would rendered brick look ok?

Would 80k be enough to fully complete the job?

The land is only 430sqm (approx) like most local blocks near the water. Will a raised house be ok on such a block?

Thanks in advance, Im excited.
 
Hi Dynamite,

Should the current stumps need "repairing" your account may be able to write off all the cost in the year that you pay for the work.

The downstairs area may be able to be turned into a 1-2 bed unit that could be rented out to fishermen or surfers.

Glenn
 
Im going to check the view this arvo by standing at the height of my gutters.

I am thinking the best way to go would be to get it raised, lay a slab and take it from there.

Wiring, plumbing, raising and new slab for $20k ?

I know a concreter, but no plumbers and sparkies.

Does anyone know of any links for raising houses?
 
Watch the new council regulations that come into effect Tomorrow (Wed) I believe.

If you are in the BCC they have dropped it to 7m under the eaves/soffits, if you are elsewhere check with your local council.

Raising the house is not all that expensive. My Dad (a builder) did a major renno about 12 months ago that involved the lifting and filling in under the house. To lift, restump and dig up and remove an existing concrete slab was under 10k all up.

It was a major renno and I think it ended up coming in around the 150k mark all up (also included renno work upstairs) - very nice house after.

May have a bit of a wait for a raiser at the moment as they are all very busy.

If you have any questions or need some names and numbers just drop me an email.
 
Rick thanks so much.

7m under the eaves huh, Im trying to figure out what that means, if the roof peak down to too eaves is around 3 metres high, that means the total is around 10m, so thats an increase right?

Do you reckon they will display the changes on their site, I hope so.

I reckon just building in with those would slats and having a rumpus/laundry downstairs would be good enough, the main thing is getting that view. In saying that it doesnt look as tidy.
 
I have thought of another obstacle. What if the house is not structurally sound? Who will be able to tell me if my house is ok to be lifted? Builder? Engineer?
 
interesting thread - I didnt know raising a house would be that cheap !

I like Glenn's idea to give the yield a boost as well :)
 
Yeah that idea is a goody, but its obviouslly only if your renting it out, and I presume thats why glen mentioned the downstairs flat.
 
Hmmm,
I got a quote to restump a 3br very recently, ~$12K + GST, I was told much more if I wanted to raise as well. That was only stump work didn't include plumbing slab etc. Have you got any quotes yet ?
astroboy
 
dynamite,

If you kept the building under 8.5m, you would not need to apply to Council. You would just need a building certifier to check the drawings / plans and stamp it approved for the builder to start work. Your builder should be able to take care of this for you.

Otherwise get a draftsman or Architect to draw the plans for you.

You should take care when doing the new plumbing to route the waste pipes to the outside. That way, when you do start building in underneath, you won't have to work around all that mess.

Also see if you can space the new stumps with the new layout in mind. This may mean reinforcing the existing beams to allow a more open space downstairs for the new rooms.

As to materials, to be sympathetic to the Queenslander 'look' you should use concrete stumps on the perimeter of the house because they have the same 'mass' as the old timber stumps.

They say you should build the extension from the second row of stump from the front of the house and keep the frontage similar with all the palings and timber stairs. This way your building won't look so strange with such a 'heavy' base.
 
good tips khangu.

this thread is turning out to be a wealth of knowledge for raising a house.

astroboy, I have seen prices for steel, and its half what you are suggesting. It may not be apples for apples though?

I have seen 8 houses in the area just today that are being raised, and being built in with weatherboard, so this would be the preference to keep with the neighbourhood.

So I should get an architect to draw up some plans, then what? take them to the restumper or a builder, or a engineer?

Thanks
 
hey dynamite,
thanks for that, mine were for concrete with timber across the front, I'll get some steel prices rather than concrete asap
astroboy
 
thanks Rick, thats where I will head.

Who should I consult though to see if the project is worthwhile? Or should I trust my own judgement.
 
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