Behind the glass door
Kevin and Gemma Manning more than doubled the footprint of their dated bungalow in Kent in just four months – all for just over £200,000
No strangers to major construction projects, builder Kevin Manning and his wife Gemma have turned a compact bungalow into a two-storey modern family home
Kevin and Gemma Manning are no strangers to major construction projects. Aside from the fact that Kevin works as a builder full time, the couple also renovated their previous home; extending and modernising their bungalow in Kent and adding a loft conversion. ey loved living there, but after having two children, Gemma wanted to live closer to some better schools – so it was time to move.
anks to Kevin’s hard work renovating the property, its sale could have afforded them the luxury of living mortgage-free if they were to buy a standard home. For Gemma, though, the lure of another renovation project was stronger. “I told Kevin we had more in us yet,” she says. “I managed to convince him that we should stretch ourselves as much as we could.”
e couple were committed to staying in the Broadstairs area, near their family and friends, and knew they needed a large garden for the children. ey focused their search on bungalows, which tend to come on bigger plots. However, the pair weren’t content to live in a single-storey home – they had much grander plans in mind.
Careful planning
Within five months of listing their home, it had sold and they’d found – and moved into – the perfect bungalow to renovate in one of their favourite areas of Broadstairs, with the sea right at the end of the road. ey also had a hunch they would be able to get planning consent easily; there were five other bungalow-to-house conversions on that road alone. “We just fell in love with it,” says Kevin.
Saying that, it was a perfectly acceptable family home without any alterations. is was important as the pair went into the project without a firm budget in mind, so they needed something they could live in as it was, in case works had to stop due to lack of funds.
Stressful? Perhaps, but they knew that with Kevin’s skills they could make it work and, of course, they had done it before. “We both have good jobs but nothing crazy,” says Gemma. “If Kevin wasn’t a builder, there’s no way we would be living in the home we are now.”
Clearly, saving money was important at every point in the project – and the pair were very good at it. To come up with a design, they spent hours perusing Pinterest and driving around other coastal properties, until they had a really clear idea about what they wanted.
e list included a large, modern home with a contemporary wood and render finish, full-height statement windows and balconies to enjoy the sea views. In keeping with Kevin’s skillset, they opted for a brick and block lower level, with timber frame on top.
In fact, by the time they spoke to an architect – someone Kevin often works with in the course of his day job – the drawings were so complete, he felt he could only charge £400 for his services. “We
wanted to use my skills to get an amazing house that we couldn’t afford to buy,” says Kevin. “So that’s what we did.”
Finding the funds
e couple’s initial hunch was correct, too: the design sailed straight through planning without a single amendment, taking only seven weeks to approve. e Mannings did take some precautions to ensure it would be accepted, though; being sure not to design the roof higher than the property next door and being careful the house didn’t overlook any other dwellings on the street.
e original bungalow was completely straight-across at the front, so Kevin wanted to build outwards to create a porch with a stunning glass-fronted centerpiece, with the rest of the new upper floor mimicking the original layout. A back extension would create a spacious kitchen/dining/living area – and they also wanted to build a two-bed garden annexe for Gemma’s mum.
After moving in May, coming up with the design and waiting for planning consent, works were ready to begin in October. To get
things started, the pair released £50,000 in equity from the sale of their previous bungalow, remortgaged for another £50,000 and committed to putting in as much of their wages as possible to fund the development. ey planned to use this money to renovate the bungalow into a two-storey property, with the intention of extending the house at some point in the future. Sadly, during the build someone close to Gemma passed away; they left her the final
£50,000 to complete the works. Gemma’s mother also gave the couple £25,000 to put towards the annexe.
Beginning the build
Naturally, construction went smoothly. Being a builder by trade, Kevin found it easy to navigate any minor setbacks and things proceeded quickly, despite the fact that he could only get stuck in on the property after work hours or on his days off. “It took four months from beginning to end to get everything done,” he says.
While the vast majority of the build, including the brickwork, the frame, the balconies and the footings, were carried out by Kevin
himself, he did have to call in some trades for the electrics, plumbing and plastering. But, again, his contacts meant he knew exactly who the best people for each job were. As he regularly contracts them via his building company, they gave him a bit of a discount, too.
ey installed underfloor heating in the new extension and three Nest smart thermostats throughout the property. is means they can easily control the heating in the part of the house they’re using at the time. “It’s a large home, so it’s really handy to be able to turn on the heating upstairs before going to bed, for example, without having to heat up the whole place,” says Gemma.
ere were a few things that came up that Kevin hadn’t tackled before, like the balconies, but this just provided more opportunity to extend his skill set – and save some more money. “I was quoted £9,000 by a company to fit them, but I found a system that I thought I could put together myself,” he says. “is cost just over £2,000 instead, which was a pretty good saving!”
A cold winter
e toughest part of the build wasn’t to do with the works at all – it was simply having to live in the property while construction was in progress. “I was asking the kids to keep their wellies on while they were in the house because it was so dusty,” says Gemma.
e family’s biggest challenge was coping through the winter time while there was no roof on the house. Kevin boarded up the hole where the stairs were, so the downstairs was completely sealed, laid some insulation and ensured the property was fully covered with scaffold and a water-tight wrap. ey fitted some scaffolding alarms to ensure it would be safe, but birds would set them off every now and then. What’s more, despite the insulation, the place was absolutely freezing. “We had to keep the heating on full blast at all times, but it was still so cold,” says Kevin. “For two months we had huge heating bills, in excess of £800 each time, but we were expecting them as it was a necessity.”
While there were some less positive moments, there was lots to celebrate. “It was amazing when the scaffolding came down so you could see the house from the street,” says Gemma. “It was also great when the new kitchen was fitted – it’s such a lovely big space, unlike the dark and dingy one that was there before.” In fact, the new kitchen diner is one of their favourite zones in the house, along with the wowfactor double height atrium/hallway space and, of course, Kevin’s value-for-money balconies where you can look out over to the sea.
Looking forward
Now the home is completed, they’re both very happy. Not only has this big and beautiful space improved their lives on a personal level, but it’s brought in more business for Kevin’s company, too. “I’ve probably got seven or eight jobs as a result of building this home,” says Kevin. “People have knocked on the door to tell us how impressed with it they are.” ey don’t think they’ll stop here, either – another project is definitely something they’d consider in the future. “We’ve completed two contemporary renovations now,” says Kevin. “We’ve both said that we might like to live somewhere a little more traditional, so maybe we’d tackle a brick home, rather than one with a render finish, in the future. You can never say never.”
For now, though, they’re content to enjoy the fruits of their labour. “Especially during lockdown, we felt really grateful that we’ve got such a beautiful home and I’m proud we’ve worked so hard to get it,” says Gemma. “It’s just a lovely place to be.”