Cost to Remove a Load-Bearing Wall: RSJ and Opening Prices

Load-bearing wall removal cost by opening size

Checkatrade’s load-bearing wall removal cost guide gives an average price per project for each opening, excluding VAT.

Opening or job	Average, excluding VAT
Single doorway opening, about 1m	£1,085
Double doorway opening, about 2m	£1,525
Large open plan opening, around 4m	£2,700
Knocking through a kitchen and dining room	£1,500

Removing a load-bearing wall averages £1,250 to £1,750 in Checkatrade’s guide, and the job can be done in as little as two days. Labour charged by the hour runs at roughly £62.50 to £94 on Checkatrade’s figures, though an overall price for the job is more likely. Replacing a wall with a stud partition wall costs around £100 to £150 per m², Checkatrade says.

RSJ and lintel prices

The same Checkatrade table prices the rolled steel joist (RSJ) as a material per metre and each lintel per lintel, excluding VAT.

Item	Priced per	Range, excluding VAT	Average, excluding VAT
Rolled steel joist (RSJ), material	Metre	£140 to £325	£232.50
Concrete lintel	Lintel	£7.90 to £165	£86.45
Steel lintel	Lintel	£8.50 to £730	£370
Steel cavity lintel	Lintel	£34 to £650	£342

With its structural supports installed, an RSJ costs around £800 to £950 on Checkatrade’s figures. The Planning Portal’s guidance on load-bearing walls says the beam should be designed for the loads the wall was originally taking, and a new beam should normally have at least 150mm of bearing onto the existing wall on each side. A steel beam should normally be protected against fire to give 30 minutes’ fire resistance, the same guidance says, while a timber beam generally needs a calculation to show its inherent fire resistance.

Hidden costs of removing a load-bearing wall

A structural engineer costs approximately £200 per visit on Checkatrade’s figures. Moving the services adds more, and the same guide puts moving a radiator from around £275, moving or installing a light switch at around £150 to £200 and moving a plug socket at around £150.

Waste removal is usually in the quote, and otherwise usually costs around £200, Checkatrade says. Making good is among Checkatrade’s hidden costs too, with screeding a floor at £33 per m² including materials and labour, and a painter and decorator at around £325 a day.

How to tell if a wall is load bearing

Outside walls are usually load bearing, and an internal load-bearing wall supports the floor or roof above, Checkatrade says. Even a partial wall can contain microlam beams that make it load bearing, so a structural engineer or builder should inspect any wall before it comes out, and the inspection also identifies electrical or plumbing issues.

In most cases you need a structural engineer to confirm the wall is structural, size the steel beam and provide the calculations for building regulations approval, according to Checkatrade. The Planning Portal also advises speaking to a structural engineer or surveyor before starting.

Planning permission, building regulations and party walls

Planning permission and listed buildings

You should not need to apply for planning permission to remove an internal wall, the Planning Portal says, but a listed building needs listed building consent for any significant works, internal or external. In Nottingham, the city council says its My Property tool shows whether a property is a listed building.

Building regulations approval

Building regulations approval is usually required because the work affects structural stability, Checkatrade says, and it is the homeowner’s responsibility to make sure the work complies, even when the builder arranges building control. A completion certificate from the building control body costs around £250 to £450 on Checkatrade’s figures.

Party wall agreements and notice

When the wall is next to a party wall, the RSJ sits in the party wall and you need a party wall agreement, Checkatrade says, and it puts one at around £1,525. The same guide puts a party wall award at around £1,000 if a surveyor is needed, and says any damage to your neighbour’s home is fixed at your own expense, so photograph both sides of the party wall before work starts.

GOV.UK’s booklet on the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 says notice of work to an existing party wall goes at least two months before the work starts, and if your neighbour has done nothing 14 days after the notice is served, a dispute is deemed to have arisen. An award is then drawn up by one agreed surveyor or by one surveyor each, and where the work is solely for your benefit you usually pay all its costs, including your neighbour’s surveyor, the booklet says.

How long it takes to remove a load-bearing wall

The job usually takes two to three days, Checkatrade says, with two days for the RSJ, the wall removal and the waste, then plastering and finishing the next day. Electrical or plumbing work adds time, and the same guide says no section of a load-bearing wall should be removed without structural support.

How to cut the cost and compare quotes

Checkatrade’s ways to save include doing the painting and finishing yourself, a reclaimed RSJ with guidance from your builder or engineer, sharing skip hire, combining the job with a larger renovation and keeping the opening smaller. It also recommends at least three quotes, and quotes only compare when each builder prices the same job, including moving the services, the waste and the plastering.

Among the Nottingham builders compared for renovations and extensions, Buon Construction in St Ann’s keeps plasterers, plumbers and electricians in-house alongside its builders, and Edge Building & Construction in Burton Joyce counts structural engineers in the team that takes a project from conception to completion.