These are the questions people ask us before they ring — what a loft or an extension really costs around Bognor Regis and Chichester, whether it needs planning permission, what Building Control will want to see, and how to tell a good quotation from a cheap one. Every guide is written by James Reilly, who has been building on this stretch of the coast since 2008, and every rule and figure in them has been checked against the source it comes from, which is linked at the bottom of each guide.
Prices on these pages include VAT at 20%, the same as the rest of the site, and match our price guide. Planning and Building Control rules are the ones in force in England in October 2026.
Jump to: Loft conversions · extensions · renovations, kitchens and bathrooms · choosing and working with a builder.
Loft conversions
How much does a loft conversion cost in Bognor Regis?
Rooflight, rear dormer and hip-to-gable prices including VAT, how they compare with national figures, the fees on top, and the three things that move the number.
Read the guideDo you need planning permission for a loft conversion?
The permitted development rules for dormers, hip-to-gables and rooflights, the conservation area trap, Lawful Development Certificates and current fees.
Read the guideDormer, hip-to-gable or rooflight: which loft conversion suits your house?
Rooflight, dormer, L-shaped, hip-to-gable, mansard and roof lift compared — which suits a terrace, a 1930s semi or a bungalow, and how to measure head height.
Read the guideConverting a chalet bungalow loft: what you need to know
Chalet and ordinary bungalows: extending dormers, knee walls and purlins, insulation and condensation, escape windows, overlooking and planning.
Read the guideHow long does a loft conversion take? A week-by-week guide
From first drawings to the completion certificate: the approvals, the notices, and a week-by-week build for a rooflight, dormer or hip-to-gable.
Read the guideLoft conversion building regulations in plain English
Structure, fire doors and escape, stairs and headroom, insulation, sound, ventilation and electrics — and what Building Control will check.
Read the guideWhat lofts cannot be converted
The roofs that genuinely cannot be converted, and the far larger number that only look as if they cannot.
Read the guideDo I need to tell my neighbours about a loft conversion?
When the Party Wall Act applies to a loft, and how to tell the people next door before a letter does it for you.
Read the guideThe 4 year rule for loft conversions, and what replaced it
Four years for work finished before 25 April 2024, ten years after it — and why the building regulations side matters more.
Read the guideExtensions
How much does a rear extension cost per square metre in West Sussex?
Our £2,400–£3,600 per m² band explained with a real 50m² Bognor Regis job, national figures, what the rate excludes, glazing, and Southern Water build-over costs.
Read the guideDo you need planning permission for a rear extension?
Permitted development depths and heights, the larger home extension route, two-storey and side extensions, conservation areas, fees and what the neighbours can say.
Read the guideParty wall agreements explained for homeowners
The three kinds of work that need a notice, the notice periods, the 3m and 6m rules, what happens if the neighbour says no, surveyors' fees and who pays.
Read the guideSingle-storey or double-storey extension: cost against space gained
Cost per square metre, value added, planning and the 45-degree rule, foundations and disruption — and when a loft is the better second floor.
Read the guideBuilding near the coast: flood zones, foundations and salt air
Flood zones and flood risk assessments, groundwater, clay and trees, foundation depths, and the materials that last on the West Sussex coast.
Read the guideExtending in a conservation area: Chichester and Arundel
The permitted development you lose, Article 4 directions, who decides in Arundel and the National Park, listed buildings, and the materials planners expect.
Read the guideRenovations, kitchens and bathrooms
Removing a load-bearing wall: what it involves and what it costs
How to tell if a wall is load-bearing, the engineer and the steel, Building Control, party walls, fire safety in open-plan houses, and what a knock-through really costs.
Read the guideKitchen extension or kitchen refit: which makes more sense?
Refit, knock through or extend: the cost of each, what adds value, planning and Building Control, and the questions that decide it.
Read the guideHow much does a bathroom refit cost in Bognor Regis?
Like-for-like swaps, full refits, en-suites and wet rooms priced including VAT, what moves the figure, the regulations, timescales, and grants and VAT relief for adaptations.
Read the guideGarage conversions: cost, planning and what can go wrong
What a garage conversion costs, when planning permission is needed, the Building Regulations, parking, annexes, and the five things that catch people out.
Read the guideDo garden rooms need planning permission or building regulations?
The 2.5m height rule near a boundary, the 50% rule, the 15m² and 30m² Building Regulations thresholds, toilets, sleeping, offices and annexes.
Read the guideChoosing and working with a builder
How to compare builders' quotes line by line
Quote or estimate, provisional sums, exclusions, VAT and payment terms — how to put two prices side by side and see the same job.
Read the guide15 questions to ask a builder before you sign
Insurance, company and VAT checks, references, deposits, Building Control, party walls, guarantees and waste — and how to check each answer yourself.
Read the guideLiving at home during an extension or renovation: what to expect
Dust, noise, kitchen downtime, builders' hours, toilets, skips, your insurer and asbestos — and when moving out is genuinely worth it.
Read the guidePrice match guarantee
We will never compromise on quality but we will match any like-for-like price.
The words doing the work there are like-for-like. A quotation that comes in cheaper is usually describing a different job underneath. A shallower footing. A thinner unit of glass behind the same three words. Making good dropped, so the decorating lands back on you at the worst possible moment. A scaffold nobody priced, arriving in week three as an extra.
None of that makes the other builder a crook. It makes the two pieces of paper impossible to compare until somebody opens them both up, which is the whole reason ours arrives as over two hundred itemised lines rather than a figure at the bottom of a page.
So bring the other quotation to the site visit and we will go through it against ours, line for line. Either your price gets matched, or you find out what the cheaper number quietly leaves out — and either of those is worth an hour.
Read the price match guarantee terms — what counts as like-for-like, how long a match holds good, and why one builder's total can sit a fifth below another's before anybody has lifted a tool.
Next step
If the drawings exist, send them and a priced quotation comes back. If they do not, the site visit is the way to find out whether the job can be done at all.
Or the landline on 01243 256796, or WhatsApp if it is easier to send a photograph. Reply within one working day, every time.