Martin and other builders I asked to quote persuaded me that it would be a lot cheaper and easier to repair my house rather than build a new one and saved me a ton of money before I even began my project. I hired Martin because he had the clearest idea of what could be done and because what he suggested was closest to what I hoped might be possible. He quoted me a very reasonable price and was always willing to consult when I had another thought on alterations to the original plan. If something wasn't possible he usually had a practical alternative to offer. We eventually went with completely gutting the house. Martin installed underfloor heating, a new kitchen and bathroom, a new living room, a new stairs and first floor, raised the ceilings upstairs, installed a toilet and two bedrooms upstairs, two skylights in the roof, made good the roof, removed the chimney, added solid wall insulation, a new wall to hold back the rear lawn, new paving around the house, a new driveway and gates.
As I wasn't in a hurry we agreed an end date of 30th November. The work was completed to a high standard but it overran by about a week. The back garden wall was rendered and painted and one wall of the house re-rendering during May/June the following year mostly due to bad weather in Oct/Nov. Martin and his team have been great with the snagging returning whenever needed. Overall very good and I recommend but get a clear timetable.