First-time house renovation

andrew-b

shed update...it's being installed Friday night from 5:30pm onwards. Realised after that if it takes longer than 2 hours they'll miss England v Algeria game so don't want them rushing it just to finish in time!

ukmaggie45

andrew-b wrote: »

shed update...it's being installed Friday night from 5:30pm onwards. Realised after that if it takes longer than 2 hours they'll miss England v Algeria game so don't want them rushing it just to finish in time!

Suggest you let them watch it with you and finish it after if it comes to it... It stays light really late at the mo. But not everyone is football mad - I avoid it if at all possible.

Was sitting in living room this evening at new house and saw black and white cat come in and sit down by one of the bird poles. Suddenly a fox appeared, walked up to cat and I thought we were going to see a fight! :eek: But fox returned the way it came, so I opened window and clapped hands to send cat away... Don't want the slug eating hedgehogs scared away by a cat being around!

jamtart6

hey guys, just a quick Q. Got a brand new sink and pedestal for a cloakroom to sell. Don't ask!! I have put it on eBay, started at 99p to get some interest but just wondering if there is anywhere better to sell it? Same for old building materials? We have more bricks than we could ever need to spare!

stolt

jamtart6 wrote: »

hey guys, just a quick Q. Got a brand new sink and pedestal for a cloakroom to sell. Don't ask!! I have put it on eBay, started at 99p to get some interest but just wondering if there is anywhere better to sell it? Same for old building materials? We have more bricks than we could ever need to spare!

i sold gave the remainder of our block pavers away, put them on ebay and gumtree, due the weight and size i thought that it would be more than likely someone local will have them. The guy even took all the old pallets we had sitting on the driveway from various trades ( i know i could have got rid of them for about £1 each) but i just wanted them off the driveway.

if you just want to get rid of, could try freecycle and freeads aswell, used them before.

ginvzt

So, we got the answers to the questions we left with EA on Saturday.

• It is not known exactly when the electrics were last checked but owner thinks it was approximately 3-4 years ago, all paperwork and guarantees cannot be located
• The owner does not know of any damp proof course that has been carried out on the property (I don't think you can have on on the stone build solid wall houses, unless chemical)
  
• The roof was fixed and the owner thinks a 20 year guarantee was issued but this cannot be located
• There is no known history of subsidence
• The owner believes the kitchen extension has always been there since the family member owned the property (60 years)
• The garage was built approximately five years ago

Of course, I didn't expect any paperwork to be found. By owner I mean whoever is selling the house (left in the will). I think we are safe with the garage not containing asbestos, if it was built only 5 years ago.

I still want to see EPC, and need to ask about probate has been reached (not sure what it means exactly, only vague idea, but andrew-b suggested to ask, and I think it is a very good idea - we don't mind waiting a bit if needed).

We are in two minds at the moment. If we go for repossession house, we would need to move the area (ok, only a few miles), we love it here (although could this be the inertia), we would have smaller mortgage and more disposable income every month, and we would have more rooms than we need today (ok, we are hoping for family increase as soon as possible). But the renovation house, gives us the chance to make all as we want, stay in the area we like, huge garden we can get lost in, and less cleaning as less rooms!

andrew-b

ginvzt, have a read of this article i just dug up on google : http://www.williamsturges.co.uk/articles/propertyprobate.pdf that explains probate far better than i can. So the house can only be sold to you once probate has been granted. Until then the executor's of the will do not have title to the property so can't complete the sale to you. If the house is up for sale and no probate granted you may be waiting quite a while to complete the purchase. Exchange of contracts could take place before probate is granted but you don't want to get tied in for months waiting for probate with no escape if your circumstances change. Presumably they should be able to prove if probate has been granted.

Is EPC ..energy performance certificate? If so then don't expect it to be great for a property of that age. I would take it with a pinch of salt anyway..but obviously your heating bills will likely be higher than similarly sized fully insulated new properties.

No need to worry about asbestos in garage then. Electrics..would definitely get checked out if you proceed beyond offer and survey. Guarantees...often worthless even if they are located.

You definitely come over as wanting the refurb more than the repo...is OH coming round to it more?

John_Pierpoint

Having bought a house from an executor; I would recommend checking out that the grant of probate actually exists (and have a look at the will to see who gets what).
Sometimes the executor is desperate to finish with his responsibilities (he might live 100 miles away and he only gets a 6 month Council Tax holiday after grant of probate).

http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/infoabout/civil/probate/index.htm

ginvzt

andrew-b wrote: »

Is EPC ..energy performance certificate? If so then don't expect it to be great for a property of that age. I would take it with a pinch of salt anyway..but obviously your heating bills will likely be higher than similarly sized fully insulated new properties.

No need to worry about asbestos in garage then. Electrics..would definitely get checked out if you proceed beyond offer and survey. Guarantees...often worthless even if they are located.

You definitely come over as wanting the refurb more than the repo...is OH coming round to it more?

Thanks, I'll read up on probate. Yes, we would check electrics and everything else in the house. Just this morning before OH left for work we were discussing what would be the one thing/job around which others have to be arranged. We didn't get to one, as I think it is more of linear progression: gas to property, builder for floor, plumber for heating, windows (ok, if money are tight, we might live with the current ones if they open easily and not falling out - will check at next viewing if there will be one), electrics, etc. We are thinking were do we find a reliable builder that could come with us for a viewing and tell us all as it is (can we fix the floor? Can we knock down some walls to create kitchen/diner instead of kitchen with fridge cupboard (full height) and huge utility room (not joking, it is 8ft x 8ft)?

I agree about EPC, but I like looking at the numbers, even if they are rubbish. I guess these will be 0s, as there is not heating in the house! (Well, coal fires in two rooms, and I guess back boiler from those, as there was a radiator way up the wall in at least one of the rooms!)

The only thing is, we would not pay the asking price, not even close to it. OH wants the house for less than £200k, which I think we won't get. I think he would love that house if he could just walk in and live there, and there was not so much work to do. But hey - you can't have just the rewards without putting the work in!

andrew-b

Think you need to decide if your going to put an offer in or not and then think about the details later. It is a big decision to make but you can't afford to hang about else it will be snatched from under you as house buying is a ruthless game to play! Once an offer is accepted (and property is taken off market) you can catch breath and take time to discuss the details and maybe go back with a builder. You can always back out again if probate hasnt been granted or you change mind. You might get if for the 200..u might not..but at least if you offer it you'll get a better idea what they are really prepared to accept.

ginvzt

andrew-b wrote: »

Think you need to decide if your going to put an offer in or not and then think about the details later. It is a big decision to make but you can't afford to hang about else it will be snatched from under you as house buying is a ruthless game to play! Once an offer is accepted (and property is taken off market) you can catch breath and take time to discuss the details and maybe go back with a builder. You can always back out again if probate hasnt been granted or you change mind. You might get if for the 200..u might not..but at least if you offer it you'll get a better idea what they are really prepared to accept.

I know, but try explaining this to my husband! We are going to view two 'newer' houses this Saturday, will see what he thinks of those.