How much value will an extension add to my home?

It is one of the questions that we get asked a lot at Orb Planning. It makes sense. Building a home extension can be a huge hassle and our clients want to be sure that their extensions are not only going to provide them with their dream home, but also pay off when they come to sell their homes.

So the team at Orb Planning was very interested to spend some time playing with the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) home extension calculator recently. The calculator is aimed at helping property owners work out how much value they might add to their property if they were to extend.

Using your postcode or local authority and the expected size of the planned extension, the calculator gives you an idea of how much value you might add to your home with the extension. For example, a 15m2 extension in Islington (one of the many areas Orb Planning covers), could be worth a whopping £117,420.

The calculator also shows how this figure compares with the rest of England and Wales and gives you the average prices per square metre for property in your area (it’s £7,828 for Islington, in case you’re interested!).

It is not an exact science - as the ONS points out on its website - there are all sorts of things that the calculator does not consider, such as the quality of your build and the type of room you are building. But we think it is a useful starting point for helping you decide whether an extension is going to be the right choice for you and your home.

Take a look for yourself!