Don't Move - Make Do and Mend

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Having the time and money to move house when your kids are outgrowing it is not something that many of us have free access to. We know it’s going to happen; our children grow as time goes by and eventually, if we are not settled in our ‘forever home’, we know that there will be a point where we will have to up sticks and move for the benefit of everybody.

There are so many things to take into consideration when you are planning a big move like this. If your children are of school age, there are factors that you have to think about such as whether they will be able to stay at the same school, changes of detail to local authorities and amenities, and whether the disruption will be worth it. It can be a huge upheaval for children to move house, especially if it’s far away from what they know and have grown up around.

It may be better to work with what you have got. If you aren’t renting and have your own property, there are things that you can do to patch you along until the time is right and you have the finance available, or things that you can set out for the long-term to avoid any unnecessary upheavals.

Conservatory

If you have space at the back of your house for a conservatory, it may be worth putting one on. It will offer another room onto your house, as well as giving a nice place to go and relax on sunnier days. It may even add value to your house. The average cost of a conservatory in the UK is anywhere between £12-15,000, which may seem like a huge chunk of money when looked at on a screen, but taken into account with a house move where thousands of pounds worth of fees may be going towards estate agents, solicitors, stamp duty and anything else that is demanding of your finance, it is merely a splash in the ocean. If it is not a bedroom that you are looking for but a new space for your children to do their homework, have a playroom or just get from under your feet for a while, a conservatory is definitely one of the cheaper and more financially-sound investments.

Extension

If you have a garage on the side of your house or room at the side or on the back (even on the front if you want to be that bold), an extension could also be considered. This is usually if you know that you will need more than just a conservatory; if your children are sharing rooms but are quickly growing tired and outgrowing one another, or needing their own privacy. You can get a lot out of an extension; if you are knocking through into a pre-existing add-on building such as a garage, then there is not much that needs to be done in terms of building work. If you are building on top of the garage, there could be space for as many as three rooms with the area that you are working with. You will need planning permission from your local authority to be able to go ahead with your new building work, and you may need to fall back on finance to help with the initial costs, as it can be quite a money-consuming job. Have a look around online for places that can offer you a good deal - poor credit secured loans are becoming more common and readily available for those who may not have a good rating. Look to see what options are available to you, as extensions can cost anything from £15,000 upwards.

Garden Room

Temporary fixes are often the best ones. If you have the space available in your garden, put up a big shed or place for your children to seek solace and spend some time away from the actual house. It may be that they just need somewhere to escape to and be able to do something independently; especially if they don’t have their own rooms to go and take some time to themselves. It could be the perfect solution to your problems, and it is certainly the cheapest route to go down. Have a look at online trading sites or put out an ad on social media - you may find that someone is trying to get rid of a shed. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure - the most frugal option of all!