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ecospace adds value to your property and is cheaper (and easier!) than moving home, or building a traditional extension or loft conversion.

If you’re looking for a fast, recession-busting and non-stressful way to boost your live/work space and add value to your property during the downturn, take a look at an architect-designed ecospace studio - the original and best contemporary garden studio.

Far cheaper (and faster) than moving house, or building a traditional extension or loft conversion, an ecospace studio provides a stylish, multi-purpose solution for home working, guest space, a home gym or playroom - in as little as 12 weeks (including a usual installation period of about four days), and at a typical cost of £18,950 plus VAT & delivery. This compares to a cost of £10,500 for stamp duty alone on a standard £350,000 property purchase*, while a small and basic single storey 4mx4m extension can easily cost up to £28,000 excluding VAT**. A garden studio will also add value to a property, for example, one graphic designer’s £16,000 ecospace in north London increased his property sale value by £50,000.

*£10,500 stamp duty value based on 3% of £350,000 (HM Revenue & Customs, 2008-9) and excluding the additional costs of moving home eg: removal, conveyancing and estate agent’s fees.
** RICS (The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) Property Makeover Price Guide Summer 2008.

With press headlines predicting a further drop in house prices in 2009, and an uncertain jobs market, many property owners are still wary of the financial burden of moving home in order to boost their living space, while a traditional extension will cost far more, take much longer to build, and has the added stress of finding a suitable builder and project-managing the works for weeks if not months.

An ecospace studio is easily achievable in terms of meeting planning requirements - in fact in most cases you can order your studio and have it erected without any planning issues. In some circumstances - for example, if it exceeds certain size restrictions, or you live in a restricted area, planning permission may be required. But because ecospace studios are designed and produced by architects, a complete ‘turn key’ solution including a planning application can be provided.

With clients including Chris Beardshaw - the award winning garden designer/TV presenter and the editor of Grand Designs Magazine/director of Grand Designs Live Show - ecospace studios meet the growing trend for home working as rising numbers of e-workers and home-based business owners see the work/life benefits of working from home. These include graphic designers, architects, photographers, lawyers, musicians and producers, as well as doctors, physiotherapists, chiropractors and life coaches.

For home owners simply requiring an extra room or flexible living space, the studios offer an affordable way to increase home square footage, while for those at the top of the market, an ecospace will also provide a great home cinema or relaxation room for the growing ‘homedulgence’ trend for living the high life without going out, as we spend more leisure time at home with friends and family.

And the total flexibility of an ecospace studio means you can choose a modular or bespoke-size studio, and fit it out to meet your exact specifications (there are hundreds of combinations), and all at a fixed price - without those extra unexpected costs typical of building projects and expensive over-runs. Once you’ve decided on the required size and usage of your studio, you then choose the style - flat or mono pitch roof, and specify the ‘plug on’ modules you require to extend the live/work area. These include integral workstation and storage, kitchen, shower and cloakroom pod options, together with mezzanine level chill out pads. Configurations and window positions can easily be altered to suit your particular space and you can choose from 20 different flooring colours.

The green bit: Pretty much everything is eco with an ecospace! The structure uses sustainable wood and cedar cladding, and is manufactured in the UK. It has an organic low maintenance sedum** planted roof, which has high insulation properties and aesthetically reduces the visual impact of the studio, low energy Scandinavian underfloor heating, high performance insulation and Scandinavian double-glazing for all year round use. And, of course, if you use it as your workplace you will reduce your carbon footprint by cutting out commuting.
** The sedum roof is planted with small plants, herbs and succulents.

An ecospace is engineered to last and built to house building standards. Maintenance free western red cedar cladding is used for the exterior walls, and premium grade smooth birch plywood is used for internal finishes so no conventional plaster boarding or decorating is required, eliminating potential plaster ‘cracking’. And, minimal site preparation is needed as long as the site is relatively flat - so there’s no need for conventional foundations or a concrete base as the studio is engineered to simply lie upon adjustable steel bearing shoes. The fast track ecospace installation service also means that once onsite, the studio is fully insulated, heated and ready for use in just days.