I am going through this process right now in an attempted to use a prefab timber frame extension to an existing home (ca. 1800 thatched cottage). We actually tr

I am going through this process right now in an attempted to use a prefab timber frame extension to an existing home (ca. 1800 thatched cottage). We actually tried to get a Dutch thatcher incidentally but she was too busy! A similar house would be completely illegal to build now (internal space is ~600 square feet) but ironically it's illegal to demolish too (protected structure) The homes around here are mostly, to be honest, pretty ugly concrete block pebble-dashed bungalows. I don't mind that because hey, to each their own, but saying that a home which looks like a log cabin doesn't match the local aesthetic so we should keep all houses in this style is frustrating. I do wonder if planners have a kneejerk reaction to anything cheap since a huge amount of public policy is specifically designed to keep housing expensive (or "preserve home values" if you're so inclined) The bias towards slow, inefficient, on-site building is hard to understand.