Once you’ve decided to get building work done, the waiting starts — and it’s rarely clear how long each stage should actually take. Here’s a realistic breakdown, so you know what to expect and can spot when a process is moving slower than it should.
Stage 1: Initial Enquiry to Site Visit — Typically 3–7 Days
A reputable builder should be able to arrange a site visit within a week of first contact, sooner if you’re flexible on timing. If you’re waiting weeks just to get someone to look at the job, that’s often a sign of how responsive they’ll be once you’re actually a customer, not before.
Stage 2: Site Visit to Written Quote — Typically 1–2 Weeks
This is where the biggest variation happens, and it should. A proper fixed-price quote needs a genuine site assessment — checking access, structural considerations, existing services, and scope in detail — not a five-minute estimate scribbled on the spot. Be wary of quotes handed over on the day of the visit for anything beyond very minor work; an accurate fixed price for a structural project needs time to calculate properly.
Stage 3: Quote to Signed Agreement — Variable, Down to You
This stage is entirely in your hands — comparing quotes, asking follow-up questions, deciding on specification details. Take the time you need here. It’s the one part of the process where rushing tends to cost you, not save you time.
Stage 4: Signed Agreement to Planning Submission (If Needed) — 1–3 Weeks
If your project needs planning permission or falls under permitted development with a Lawful Development Certificate, drawings and applications need preparing and submitting. A good builder manages this as part of the project rather than leaving you to coordinate an architect separately.
Stage 5: Planning Decision — 8 Weeks (Standard Applications)
This is set by the council, not the builder, and it’s the stage most likely to add delay if anything about the application needs amending. Permitted development work that doesn’t need full planning permission skips this stage entirely, which is one reason it moves faster.
Stage 6: Planning Approval to Start on Site — 2–4 Weeks
Final material orders, scheduling, and Building Control notification typically take a couple of weeks once planning is settled, assuming the builder has capacity in their schedule. This is worth asking about early — good builders are often booked several weeks or months ahead, so a quote agreed today doesn’t necessarily mean work starting next week.
Realistic Total Timeline
For work that needs full planning permission: 10–16 weeks from first enquiry to breaking ground is a realistic range, most of it outside anyone’s direct control (the 8-week planning decision alone accounts for half of it).
For permitted development work with no planning application needed: 4–7 weeks is realistic, since the planning stage is skipped entirely.
Why Faster Isn’t Always Better
A builder who can start next week might have a gap in their schedule for a reason worth asking about, or might be quoting without the proper assessment a fixed price actually needs. A realistic timeline, explained clearly and with reasons for each stage, is usually a better sign than an unrealistically fast one.
What to Ask Upfront
Ask any builder quoting your job for a specific, staged timeline — not just “a few months.” A builder who’s done the process before should be able to walk you through each stage and roughly how long it takes, the same way we’ve laid it out here.
As a builder in Bath, we manage the full process — planning, Building Control, scheduling — as standard, and we’ll give you a realistic timeline at the site visit stage, not an optimistic guess to win the job. Arrange a free site visit to find out where your project actually sits on this timeline.
