If programmes like Grand Designs have taught us anything, it’s that building your own home can be as perilous as it is rewarding. We’ve all seen those moments when projects stall, budgets vanish, and homes sit open to the elements over winter. But while it makes great television, it doesn’t have to be reality.
Behind every successful self-build is a strong working partnership between borrower, broker, lender and builder. When those relationships work in harmony, the experience will be proactive, predictable and rooted in cashflow confidence rather than crisis.
A small but steady market
Self and custom build remains a niche but resilient part of the housing market. Latest government figures show that between October 2023 and October 2024, the number of individuals registered for a self-build plot rose by 2%, with 64,851 people now on local registers.
Demand is steady, but supply is tightening. The number of planning permissions for serviced plots fell by 18% in the same period, a reminder that while enthusiasm is growing, the availability of suitable land is not keeping pace. That makes access to the right finance and guidance more important than ever.
Finance that supports
It’s important to work with a self-build lender that has designed its processes to reduce stress, not add to it. Lenders with close advice partnerships, like ours with BuildLoan, will be confident enough in their processes to offer a cost-based, advance stage payment model to ensure funds are released before each build stage. This way, borrowers don’t have to wait for valuations. It’s a small but vital distinction that helps self-builders stay ahead of cashflow shocks, particularly during the expensive early phases like demolition and groundworks.
Each build will benefit from close monitoring through monthly build reviews and check-ins, allowing any emerging issues, from cost inflation to delays, to be addressed before they escalate. This way, if extra funding is needed, a further advance may need to be arranged mid-build, with interest-only payments during construction to keep costs manageable.
Continuity of oversight is also key. It’s important to choose a lender that ensures every self-build case is handled by underwriters with the seniority to stay with the application from start to finish. This helps to ensure speed, consistency, and a genuine understanding of each project.
Collaboration that evolves
Regular communication can also make the difference for a straightforward build. For example, we hold monthly operational huddles to keep communication open, while brokers have direct access to underwriters for complex queries. One of the benefits of this is the feedback loop into lender processes which means you can continually improve the process.
As interest from foreign buyers in the UK rises, having a foreign currency option that supports self-build cases with this type of income is also key, alongside affordability assessments reflecting the borrower’s post-completion position. Our own broker feedback has led to the introduction of Service Level Agreements for self-build cases, which recognises the time-sensitive nature of each stage in the eventual push to completion of the build.
Service that anticipates
In 2024, Darlington completed our biggest year with specialist intermediary BuildLoan for more than a decade and we expect that to continue in 2025 despite a shrinking market. While others have scaled back, we’ve doubled down on service and that commitment has earned Darlington another shortlisting for Best Self Build Lender at the Build It Awards 2025.
True partnership means anticipating issues, not just reacting to them. With the right lender and broker by their side, self-builders can navigate uncertainty with confidence, building lasting trust and a home at the same time.
And finally, if you are able, please join me, digital BDM James Travers, and Tom McSherry, national business development manager at BuildStore Mortgage Services on Thursday 20th November at 10.30 for our upcoming webinar: “Self-Build Myths and How to Overcome Them”.
Chris Blewitt is head of intermediary distribution at Darlington Building Society
