102 year old house

dizziblonde

arbrighton wrote: »

And we're attempting to purchase a house built in 1844. Non-standard construction, certainly, but still standing (and the surveyor is out there today, he was actually looking forward to going as it's more interesting that your standard boxy estate new build). Very thick walls and very warm.
A bit ironic that the 10 year old conservatory on this house is where the problems lie don't you think?

My mum lives in a 200+ year old house. The only bit of the place that ever causes any bother is the 1960s kitchen extension. Or the similarly aged garage... the actual core of the house, the old bit is no bother at all.

Ours is about 1925 and has some issues - the main one being the roof is nearing the end of its life (but we knew about that when we bought the place) and obviously we can't get things like cavity wall insulation (but funnily that doesn't stop door to door salesmen saying they've been "sent round by the council" to try to sort that out).

phoebe1989seb

Our stone village house is between 300 and 400 years old and still standing......no-one has a definitive date for when it was built and our deeds only go back to the mid 1800s, but I'm looking forward to doing some research when I get the time!

With the exception of the usual damp issues (mainly caused by the application of non-breathable paints....grrrrrr!) we haven't encountered anything scary with the original parts since we bought a year ago. However, the 1980s extension is another matter - apart from not knowing how they got planning permission for something so ugly on the back of a characterful period house - it is shoddily built, full of all manner of 'issues' and certainly won't last 300 or 400 years

I adore old houses and would never ever consider buying a *new* house - anything later than the 1930s - and have always considered older properties to be more solidly built.......although there are always exceptions of course

adouglasmhor

I grew up in an 1860s house, no damp course as such but vents every 6 feet under the floors at both levels and bigger gap between the floor and the ceiling below, very thick walls, single glazed but hinged wooden shutters on the nook of every window so you could shut them as soon as it was dark to keep the heat in, every room had a fire place so even if you were not using the fire dampness could escape up the chimney.

I live in a house from 1911 now and love it.

bluebird

Older houses were built to last, they're solid,so as long as general maintenance has been done ie: electrics up to date i would certainly consider the older house.
Full survey will save you the worry.goodluck.

jc808

That yoghurt in the fridge left behind by the original bricklayer may be a bit iffy...

Mrs_Arcanum

Our old house was built in 1905. Unfortunately not very well (all show & no substance). If the property has been well maintained up to now it will be a good investment. You should get a decent sized garden along with the house which is something new builds (no matter how big) really have.

adouglasmhor

This is the house I grew up in.

princeofpounds

The idea about old houses being well-built is a little bit misconstrued.

There is survivor bias, in that houses that were not well built (and there were many, typically in mass market urban) haven't lasted the course.

Good houses that are being built now are very good. Problems tend to arise either in mass market, where corners are cut, or when new technologies come along and later turn out to have been applied incorrectly (eg concrete houses).

paddyrg

It has made it 102 years, it is probably going to make it another decade or so whilst you're living there. It has seen more than pretty much any living person, and is still standing.

I prefer old places, internal walls are thicker generally, so sound propagation is less of a deal - and at 102 years it probably has some design quirks that make the shape more interesting than a series of boxes. Ceilings are probably higher, which makes a big difference to the feeling of spaciousness too.

BillTrac

My house is well over 100 years old. I did contemplate selling up and buying a new-build a couple of years ago. But, once I looked at a couple of 3-bedroom houses I realised the rooms were half the size of my own!!

I don't spend anymore on maintenance than my freinds who do have recently built houses. Well, maybe on paint as the areas to cover are much larger :rotfl:

I remortgaged a few years ago and the deeds were sent to me. Wow, interesting or what?