House Extension Loans and Finance

Home extension loans are designed around your plans — borrow between £1,000-£35,000 to help fund projects of all sizes. Here are a few types of house extensions you could fund with a home improvement loan from us...

Conservatory and orangery loans

Bring the outside in with a conservatory or orangery, adding extra space and more natural light.

Loft conversion and dormer conversion loans

Whether you’re setting up a home office or welcoming a little one, a loft extension is a great way to add space without having to move house.

Single-storey extension loans

A single-storey extension expands the ground floor, typically to create more space for a new kitchen, living room, utility room or dedicated home office.

Multi-storey extension loans

If you want to add space upstairs and downstairs, a multi-storey extension can be applied to any side of the property. Detached and semi-detached houses with external spaces like gardens or driveways are ideally suited to projects like this.

Wraparound home extension loans

If you have enough space to the side and the rear of your property, a wraparound home extension could be the best option for you. This type of remodelling creates an additional L-shaped space, which can be open plan or used as a new separate room.

Cellar or basement conversion loans

Get the extra space you need without any impact to your property’s external appearance. Will you transform your basement into a playroom, home gym or secret cinema?

Garage extension loans

Whether you’re in need of some extra space for a new vehicle or considering converting your garage into a multipurpose room, you can also use an unsecured home extension loan for garage conversion or extension.

For more advice, take a look at our guide on choosing the right house extension type for your home.

To be eligible for a house extension loan, you must:

• Be aged 21 or over
• Be a permanent resident of the UK (and have been living in the UK for the past three years)
• Be in permanent paid employment, self-employed or retired with a pension
• Have an income greater than £10,000
• Have a good credit history
• Have a bank or building society account

We’ll ask for your address history from the last three years, your employment details (including annual income) and your bank details, so make sure you have this information to hand before applying.

It’s quick and simple to apply for house extension finance:

• Fill out our online application form in minutes
• Receive an instant decision
• If accepted, read and sign your credit agreement
• The money will be with you in just two working days

With a loan from us, you can borrow funds up to £35,000 and repay this over 2 to 7 years.

Whether you need to fund a full project or just one aspect of it, our loans can help.

You have a range of options when it comes to financing your project and the best choice for you will depend on your own personal circumstances. These include:

Applying for a home improvement loan

A personal loan gives you access to the money you need quickly so you can treat your family to a new extension sooner. All you need to do is pay the loan back (plus interest) over a series of fixed-rate monthly instalments.

As personal loans are unsecured, you won’t need to put up your house as collateral either. Your loan provider will make a lending decision based on your creditworthiness, personal circumstances, loan amount and term. This means that, if you have a good credit score, you’re more likely to get a lower interest rate whereas if you have a less-than-favourable credit history you may find a secured loan gives you the greatest chance of being accepted.

Remortgaging your home

You’ll be able to free up some cash by increasing the borrowing on your mortgage, either by taking out a larger mortgage with a new lender or by switching deals with your current lender. An alternative to remortgaging could be to simply borrow additional money from your current lender, though to pay for the extra cash you’ll need to pay more each month or extend your mortgage term.

As your mortgage is a secured loan, there is a risk your home could be repossessed if you fail to make your repayments so don’t remortgage unless you’re confident you can pay back what you owe.

Taking out a second mortgage

You could keep your existing mortgage but take out a second secured loan against your home. This could be a good option if you have sufficient equity in your home to pay for your extension, as a second-charge mortgage uses your home’s equity as collateral.

A second mortgage may have lower interest rates compared to a credit card or personal loan. However, do keep in mind that you’re likely to pay off a mortgage over a much longer period of time so the total amount payable may end up being a lot more.

Using your savings

If you have the savings squirreled away, you can save yourself paying any interest charges by upfronting the money for your home extension yourself.

That said, home extensions aren’t cheap so think carefully before spending a large amount of your savings in one go. Think about how long it will take to replenish your savings, and what you’ll do if you need access to money for a rainy day later down the line.

Paying by credit card

This could be a good option if you need access to a relatively small amount of money quickly, particularly if you’re on a 0% introductory rate.

Do make sure you’re able to pay the full amount off in time, though, to avoid being charged excessive interest.

Conservatories are often considered a type of property extension. However, the main difference is that 75% of the conservatory roof and more than 50% of the conservatory walls should be made from translucent material (most often glass).

A conservatory is also likely to be built against the property with the main exterior wall kept intact whereas a single-storey extension won’t have any exterior walls separating it from the existing structure. You can find out more about different conservatory types here.

A house extension might increase your council tax when you sell the property, but it won’t impact you when you’re still living in it.

If your extension increases your property’s value, this could impact your council tax. Any changes to the council tax band, however, will only happen once you sell the house.

The increased council tax band may be a consideration for potential future buyers, but it won’t impact your council tax bills if you’re planning on living in the property and enjoying the benefits of the extension yourself!

This will depend on the scale of your project. The construction of a smaller single-storey extension can be built in less than 12 weeks, whereas more complex two-storey structures can take over five months to complete.

These timeframes do not include planning and design time, so the full project could take up to a year from start to finish.

With Novuna Personal Finance, you can apply for a home extension loan at any stage of the process. Maybe you’re getting your budget sorted at the very start of your project, or you’re needing to top-up your funds for the finishing touches? With our quick and simple online application process, the money could be with you in two working days so your project can run smoothly without unnecessary delays.

The rules around extending your property are complex, so it’s always best to speak to a specialist and conduct thorough planning permission research yourself before getting stuck in.

As a general rule, though, for single-storey extensions you can extend your house by up to three metres (or up to four for a detached property) without planning permission. If you apply for prior approval, you’ll be able to extend your house by up to six metres, or eight metres for detached houses.

If you or a previous owner has already extended the property, you’ll need planning permission regardless of the extension size.