Out with the old

Amanda and Steven Ivil’s can-do attitude helped them transform what was a rundown 1960s bungalow into a contemporary family home

WORDS IFE ADEDEJI PHOTOS BRUCE HEMMING

THE IVIL FILE

NAMES Amanda & Steven Ivil

OCCUPATIONS Event company owners

LOCATION Southampton, Hampshire

TYPE OF PROJECT Renovation & extension

STYLE Contemporary

CONSTRUCTION METHOD Block, render & steel frame

PLOT SIZE 1.1 acres

PROPERTY COST £500,000

BOUGHT 2013

HOUSE SIZE 279m² (original property size 158m2)

PROJECT COST £280,000

PROJECT COST PER M2 £1,004

TOTAL COST £780,000

BUILDING WORK COMMENCED April 2013

BUILDING WORK TOOK 10 months

Original bungalow

The perfect opportunity

Amanda and Steven Ivil had been patiently waiting to move for a while. They were already in their ideal area; all they needed now was their perfect house with a bigger garden for their family and pets to enjoy. “There was no pressure to move, so we decided to take our time looking for the right property,” says Amanda. The couple drove around their desired region, taking note of roads they particularly liked. They then registered with several estate agents and were quite specific about locations they wanted to live in. Backed by a good knowledge of the location, they were quick to show interest or refuse when an agent alerted them to a property for sale. “We ended up looking at several houses,” says Amanda. “We even saw one that we’d have to demolish and build from scratch, but the numbers just didn’t stack up, so we pulled out.”

Having kept in contact and built up a good relationship with the agents, the Ivils were the first people to view what would become their future home. “We were warned this would be a total gut job, but we knew we wouldn’t get a house of this size in this location at the price we were going to pay for it,” says Amanda.