Redoing the hall, what's involved in new walls for stairs etc?

[Adam]

I have the opportunity to buy a house which fell through many months ago. The terms are good as they have found somewhere and are desperate to move. One issue I have is how the stairs are part of the lounge. I'd rather close this off and create a small hallway. I think this would be better for TV viewing and the layout of the lounge itself.

So here is the layout today:



Here's kind of what I'm looking for:



Note that the layout in to the kitchen is different.

I have tried to highlight what I mean in red. My mother in law lives in an identical house and hers had been closed off when she bought it, not sure if someone had done this themselves or if it had been built like this.

What do I need to consider with this? How much is it likely to cost? Is it worth doing?

I'd lose some space in the downstairs toilet, that's not a problem for me as it's bigger than we need and wasted space today plus the bathroom needs doing anyway. I'd need to reposition the door.

The hall would open in to the lounge and you would need to walk through the hall in to the lounge. The stairs are angled in to the lounge today, I'd need them to be straightened so they end just outside the downstairs toilet (allowing enough room for the door to swing open).

The door for the kitchen is currently under the top of the stairs. Is there a way that the stairs could be closed off but still use the same position for the kitchen door? If we close off under the stairs entirely we would lose some space under there for storage etc. If it was closed off, I'd put a large sofa against the new wall which closes off the stairs.

Is it worth speaking to an architect about something like this? I can't imagine I'd need planning permission but it's worth checking I guess.

 

[Adam]

Can't see a kitchen on the current layout image?

Top right, I had to crop it.

Hi there,

How much of this would you be prepared to do yourself?
If none, you're best off getting a carpenter in to advise.
The framework for the staircase wall won't be difficult to put in just a stud wall with plasterboard.
A lot of it will hinge on whether that toilet wall is supporting in any way, where the plumbing is etc.

Architect would be able to help but it would cost you a few hundred for something you could measure yourself with the assistance of a chippy/general builder.
That few hundred would cover the wall between your stairs/lounge.

I can do very little myself unfortunately due to knowledge and a lack of time. I used a good carpenter in the pass so will get him around if we choose to buy it. This is a pretty big gripe for me.

you're going to need a whole new staircase, you won't be able to remove just half of it...
the two drawings are of two different places (or at least they are inconsistent if they are the same place!)... be careful to make sure you don't end up with a bathroom that is too small, also having a door opening onto the landing of a stair isn't ideal...
having a straight run of stair into a very small landing will make it difficult to get furniture up and down the stairs too.
you could just put a wall up on the current stair to close it in and leave the landing where it is - as this is where the door to the hall opens on both existing and proposed drawings, what difference will it make to the layout of the sitting room?

Ouch, that sounds expensive. So the 2 pictures are firstly the house I'm looking to buy as it stands today (with my additions in red) and the second one is another house which is exactly the same size but has the layout I am trying to achieve.

Fair point about the furniture but it's a small price to pay. I want the lounge to be closed off ideally but I know this has knock on effects with regards to the kitchen door etc.

This may be one of those things I may have to plan if I actually move in. Scary!