‘Restoration Man’ George Clarke has many strings to his bow, including skills as an architect, builder, lecturer, writer and TV personality. He spoke to What Mortgage about clever ways to make the most out of limited space and expressed his sentiments on the current housing situation in the UK. Rebekah Commane reports
“Small can be beautiful”, Newcastle man George Clarke told What Mortgage, referring to the decreasing size of the average affordable property in the UK, particularly in the capital.
“If it’s ridiculously small of course that would be a problem, but most places aren’t. You’d be surprised how much you could do with small spaces if you can be creative.
“The plus side to having a small house is, obviously, they cost less as price is based on the number of bedrooms and square footage. I’ve seen some lovely small places that have maximised every square inch by using creative thinking and design.
“One of the problems in this country is that we’ve got into the habit of thinking all rooms have to be separate, individual spaces rather than open plan, which can make a better use of space. A third of our day is spent in the bedroom, but we’re asleep, so think about how things can fold away, pop out, etc.”
He referenced a property that featured on series 2 of Channel 4’s ‘Amazing Spaces’ that was “incredibly clever.”
“The guy who worked on it was a yacht designer and was a genius at packing things away. That’s the direction I believe we should be going in, considering the lack of available space to build huge properties on.
“Small can be beautiful so long as it’s done in a creative and clever way.”
Self-build projects
When it comes to self-build projects and doing up derelict homes, George advises that most of the pitfalls surround the financial aspect and deciding when it’s a good idea to tackle projects yourself versus when an expert is required.
“Of course securing the finance is one of the first steps in self-build; if people can magic the money out of thin air they wouldn’t need a mortgage, but it’s very rarely that will be the case.
“Most of the self-build projects I’m involved with are buildings that are not in a mortgage-able state so you must get the right product for the job and to protect yourself so that finance is available to you at the right stages in the project.
“You’ll want to avoid putting too much on credit cards or taking out personal loans against something like that, so managing the finance is one of the most important elements.
“Make sure you get all your costings and timings right and stick to them as much as you possibly can.”
He says it’s often the case that self-builds don’t go by the original plan, so money management is everything.
“If you’ve never done it before the building game is incredibly complex. It should be a linear process but it’s more of a zigzag as certain things need to happen at different times.
“Even the most ordinary self-build can be complex; Getting people on site at the right time, getting competitive prices, managing your cash flow, paying your bills. Money management is everything.”
Renovating properties
When it comes to doing up a property in need of renovation there are pros and cons to be considered, according to George.
“It’s fantastic to do up homes needing renovation because you’re building it yourself, putting your own stamp on it and you can get it at a reduced price because of its condition.
“Particularly if you’ve got any DIY skills, like painting and decorating, it could give you some financial comfort and pride in what you’ve achieved to add value to a property by putting in some hard work yourself.
“I’ve seen a lot of empty homes and there are a lot of first time buyers who want to get their hands on them because they know they’re going to get them at an incredibly low rate.
“When it comes to ‘fixer-uppers’ be realistic about the skills you have to do the work needed. These days you can’t do DIY electrics, or messing around with gas and boiler installation. If it’s bordering on being derelict you have to make sure you have the right people onboard at the right prices to get the property back into a habitable space.
“If you’ve got something which is generally habitable but just a bit tired, they’re the perfect properties to buy as you’re not over-extending yourself.”
Natural light
In terms of what his clients are looking for and what is trending in architectural design, George says everyone is looking to the light.
“Natural light is the way forward. All of my clients are looking at getting as much light in as possible, and having fantastic views.
“When it comes to environmental efforts, which are on trend at the moment, people are generally looking at projects that have some longevity to them. There’s a massive amount of recycling going on. For example, people are looking at kitchen worktops that their parents might be throwing out when they redecorate. The old worktop can be used as a door or for some panelling, etc.
“By saving money like this on the aesthetics there is more of a budget for the build itself, especially for first-time buyers.”
The Green Deal
Although many industry professionals believe the government’s Green Deal initiative, which offers finance for various energy saving projects in the home, is a non-starter, Clarke believes it’s a worthwhile project.
“It’s a fantastic idea but it’s getting bad press. There is a lot of red tape still to contend with, so I hope that doesn’t get in the way of a great scheme.
“I know there are concerns about the rates for repayments.
“There are other projects that aren’t as high-tech as the likes of solar panelling that can be done initially to save on energy, such as changing your boiler. If you update it you can save on how much you’re spending on bills.”
The Scottish icehouse
From a design perspective, George has had many highlights in his career but references a converted icehouse in Scotland as among his favourites.
“The client asked me to redesign a new extension onto this mad, semi-subterranean icehouse that was an amazing project, especially in how affordable it was.
“The guy bought if for six or seven thousand pounds from a local farmer who had been using it as a storage shed. He did most of the work himself and got the most amazing, unique, ecological project for less than £100,000, whereas you would be paying up to £300,000 to purchase a standard house in the same area.”
The Secret Millions
George is passionate about helping those interested in building to get into the industry and this led him to front up the Channel 4 TV show ‘The Secret Millions’, which gave out-of-work young people the opportunity to receive training from retired builders while renovating a derelict house.
“I think one of the mistakes the government has made in terms of formal education is expecting everyone to learn in a formal classroom environment, when some people just don’t work this way. Meanwhile, the building industry needs young adults to learn skills in the trade in a practical way, so it makes sense to get them out and about and hands on seeing how projects come together.
“On the show we gave these kids an opportunity to work on a building site, but there was also the bonus of putting empty houses back to use in an affordable way for people who massively need it.
“That was a pilot scheme and at the minute we have 1,500 young adults waiting to go through that same programme, so the demand is definitely there.”
Housing crisis
On the issue of the housing crisis the architect acknowledges that the government has made some effort to improve deposit availability with first-time buyer schemes but says the crux of the issue is a lack of actual housing.
“We’re never going to solve affordability issues if we don’t build more houses in a cleverer way in areas where people are working.
“In rural areas there are some decisions to make as some people don’t want to leave the areas where they grew up.
“It comes down to supply and the individual price of every house is going to stay incredibly high. We need to work out ways of building houses that are more affordable but don’t look out of place on a green belt or in cities.
“We can’t all be NIMBYs (Not In My Back Yard) and still expect our kids to have affordable homes in the future.”
