Location - would you buy somewhere mainly because you liked the location?

Astara

i have a dilemma - really like the location of a certain property but the property itself doesn't tick many of the boxes!! Yet it did have a good feel to it and I really do prefer the location to other properties that tick a lot more of the boxes and are freehold but in an area I don't like as much. Not much for sale in the location I like so do I take the risk or buy in an area I'm not so sure about?

Thanks for your thoughts in advance!

goRt

Astara wrote: »

i have a dilemma - really like the location of a certain property but the property itself doesn't tick many of the boxes!! Yet it did have a good feel to it and I really do prefer the location to other properties that tick a lot more of the boxes and are freehold but in an area I don't like as much. Not much for sale in the location I like so do I take the risk or buy in an area I'm not so sure about?

Thanks for your thoughts in advance!

IMHO you can never move a house's location, but you can (within limits) change the house.
Is this in a conservation area or otherwise protected or can you (when funds allow) make wholesale changes to the property?

mlz1413

location location location - worst house on best street is better than the best house on worst street.

But that said how much do you know about the other areas - have you just never been there or are they renowed bad areas that people in general steer clear of?

Also how long are you expecting to stay in this property?

Is the property you are unsure about leasehold? have you checked the charges, how much is left on the lease etc?

the fact the place has a nice feel is a good thing, you need to decide if the boxes it doesn't tick are important.

ET1976

Location is the most important thing for me. However, it depends what sort of boxes the house doesn't tick. Is it going to be too small so you'll want to move again in 2 years, for example? Or is things that will do but you don't necessarily love?

Astara

mlz1413 wrote: »

location location location - worst house on best street is better than the best house on worst street.

But that said how much do you know about the other areas - have you just never been there or are they renowed bad areas that people in general steer clear of?

Also how long are you expecting to stay in this property?

Is the property you are unsure about leasehold? have you checked the charges, how much is left on the lease etc?

the fact the place has a nice feel is a good thing, you need to decide if the boxes it doesn't tick are important.

Thanks that's helpful. The property is leasehold and the survey results weren't great but internally there are things I could do to improve it. I have checked the charges ans the length of the lease and they are ok. But I have always thought freehold is better than leasehold. I would probably want to stay there at least 5 years. To be honest I don't think the other area is a bad area but had a different kind of feel to it which appealed less to me.

Norma_Desmond

Location was everything to us when we bought this house; it was merely a shell and we're still working on it 6 years later with not a single regret!
I still pinch myself on the views alone.

Astara

ET1976 wrote: »

Location is the most important thing for me. However, it depends what sort of boxes the house doesn't tick. Is it going to be too small so you'll want to move again in 2 years, for example? Or is things that will do but you don't necessarily love?

It won't be too small but it is a bit quirky and not very practical! The surveyor didn't seem to like it and worried about re-sale etc. It has electric heating and I like being warm and am used to gas central heating. But it is very central which I like with shops and cafes on the doorstep. Having said that the other area also has shops and quite a lot of them but a different feel. And really I do think a freehold property would be better longterm!

Norma_Desmond

Astara wrote: »

It won't be too small but it is a bit quirky and not very practical! The surveyor didn't seem to like it and worried about re-sale etc. It has electric heating and I like being warm and am used to gas central heating. But it is very central which I like with shops and cafes on the doorstep.

The surveyor hated our house too - could have been because the chimney had not long collapsed
It's always down to gut feeling - we now have a beautiful house in a stunning location (well, it looks beautiful from the outside anyway, and there's only a few more jobs to do.....;))

WestonDave

We viewed our house twice - both times coming away saying "no don't like that much" and then bought it! Why? Because we really wanted to stay on the road we lived on (where we had so many friends), but needed a bigger house, which gave us 3 house type options - 2 of which were worse! To be fair part of the reason we didn't like it was that the estate agent had done the usual trick of dressing it up with a load of flannel and overpricing it. Knocking them down £40k off the asking price sweetened the deal a bit!

Even now we have "wouldn't it just be better to knock it down and rebuild it" conversations but we are both adament we won't move again. Over time the niggles will be resolved so that the space is better used within the house, and then we'll have the ideal combination of a great house, in a street with loads of friends, within walking distance of the city centre, but one row of houses away from open countryside.

GDB2222

You have a right to increase the lease term, although you have to pay the freeholder for that. How long is the lease?

Astara

GDB2222 wrote: »

You have a right to increase the lease term, although you have to pay the freeholder for that. How long is the lease?

It's got 117 years left so that's ok but the roof needs re-doing according to the surveyor. And that is out of my hands and up to the freeholder and managing agent to do. They have no plans to do it at the moment which could be a potential problem.