2-bed converted to 3-bed - does it warrant price increase?

notanewuser

retepetsir wrote: »

What would you prefer? Difficult to find anything of the same size round here for less. Their previous offer was 245k so I think they'd tell me to go away on 200k!!! Victorian/Edwardian 3-bed are 350k+

My sisters partner is a landscape gardener and has said he can flatten the second tier and put in a new retaining wall, so that's not a problem.

It's the tiers that I don't like! Added to the fact that bedroom 3 really is too small (my 2.5 year old is in a room that's about 8ft by 9ft minus the airing cupboard and its fine, but I wouldn't want smaller).

I don't like the living room being so long and narrow and the size of the kitchen. I'd be taking the kitchen wall down too.

But it doesn't matter what I think. If you like it and are prepared to put up with those things and can agree a price then that's all that matters, isn't it!

robatwork

Adding a bedroom is one of the few ways you can "improve" your house and add resale value. I personally believe that a new kitchen and bathroom do too but others here disagree with me.

Conservatories, double glazing, garden patios & en-suite bathrooms don't necessarily make a property more valuable.

Unfortunately 2m sq. is a bedroom in modern houses - you can fit a cot in there which is what many FTBs are looking for

SternMusik

This house is amost exactly the same size and layout as my own house (80 sqm, not sure why the EA thinks it's almost 90sqm). I live here by myself and love it. My next door neighbours (identical house) however have a four year-old son and are seriously running out of space. Their lounge/dining room is stacked with toys.

Think about your needs going forward. 80sqm really isn't big enough for a family long term. Even living by myself I use my garage for storage (and for the tumble drier) as the house isn't exactly huge.

The slope in the garden would put me off, too, especially with small children.

notanewuser

robatwork wrote: »

Adding a bedroom is one of the few ways you can "improve" your house and add resale value. I personally believe that a new kitchen and bathroom do too but others here disagree with me.

Conservatories, double glazing, garden patios & en-suite bathrooms don't necessarily make a property more valuable.

Unfortunately 2m sq. is a bedroom in modern houses - you can fit a cot in there which is what many FTBs are looking for

Yes, great while baby is in a cot. Then move them into the spare room. Then another baby (maybe) who grows into the spare room too. Then mum and dad have a tiny room they can't use for anything useful, nowhere for guests and start looking to move again. More costs, stamp duty etc and a more expensive house to gain an nectar bedroom. Better in my view to buy a house you won't outgrow in the first place, if you can.

moneyistooshorttomention

retepetsir wrote: »

For reference it's this one:

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatching.html/nomsite/svr/3119?prop=38152423&sale=28047767&country=england

We saw it again yesterday and I still do like it but it needs work. Only one double glazed window and the original back boiler, plus most rooms need redecorating due to cracks/poor paintwork.

Is it worth going in with a slightly lower offer?!

That divided-off bit of bedroom 2 (ie being called bedroom 3 - and with a cot in it) isn't big enough for anything I would say. It's barely taking the cot and, even then, that's had to be put with its head bang up against the radiator. The house, as a whole, isn't bad - but I would instantly knock that partition wall back down again personally and reinstate the original size of bedroom 2. I simply wouldn't be able to work out what I could do with so-called bedroom 3 (as its that small) - it wouldn't work as a bedroom and it wouldn't even work as a study. If I kept it that way all I could possibly do with it (maybe?) is try and make it into a walk-in wardrobe and even doing that would involve just using a wardrobe rail with a bit of shelving for shoes on the other side of the room.

So - personally - I wouldn't touch the house unless I was after a 2 bed house anyway and then I would only pay a 2 bed price for it.

SternMusik

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

I simply wouldn't be able to work out what I could do with so-called bedroom 3 (as its that small) - it wouldn't work as a bedroom and it wouldn't even work as a study. If I kept it that way all I could possibly do with it (maybe?) is try and make it into a walk-in wardrobe and even doing that would involve just using a wardrobe rail with a bit of shelving for shoes on the other side of the room.

I disagree with the above. I have a similarly sized room in my house, and while it is too small for a bedroom it works well as my study (and I work from home a lot): desk, two sets of drawers, office chair, tall shelving unit. My three door wardrobe is also in there, which leaves the second bedroom free for guests.

Still too small a house for a family in the long term though.

retepetsir

We'd get rid of the cupboard in the 3rd bedroom. I believe they've included the square footage from the garage too which is cheeky.

Luckily the garden is South facing which helps.

Regarding size for a young family, it looks like they have 2 kids at the moment.

Where do you all live? We haven't seen anything 3-bedroom places round here (West Sussex) with large 3rd bedrooms for a decent price. I think a lot of it is about managing expectations. Pretty much all of them have been 2 x 2.5m or so!!! Regarding the kitchen, it's bigger than a lot of houses. I also like the idea of a garage on the side and decent drive (bloke)!

We can't afford to go above the 250k stamp duty threshold for now as its a big jump. Currently in a 2-bedroom ground floor flat with 2 good sized bedrooms.

Any help on finding a decent sized 3-bedroom would be appreciated . Certainly not against places which need moderate DIY but ideally major things sorted for when the baby arrives!

Stressful!

notanewuser

retepetsir wrote: »

We'd get rid of the cupboard in the 3rd bedroom. I believe they've included the square footage from the garage too which is cheeky.

Luckily the garden is South facing which helps.

Regarding size for a young family, it looks like they have 2 kids at the moment.

Where do you all live? We haven't seen anything 3-bedroom places round here (West Sussex) with large 3rd bedrooms for a decent price. I think a lot of it is about managing expectations. Pretty much all of them have been 2 x 2.5m or so!!! Regarding the kitchen, it's bigger than a lot of houses. I also like the idea of a garage on the side and decent drive (bloke)!

We can't afford to go above the 250k stamp duty threshold for now as its a big jump. Currently in a 2-bedroom ground floor flat with 2 good sized bedrooms.

Any help on finding a decent sized 3-bedroom would be appreciated . Certainly not against places which need moderate DIY but ideally major things sorted for when the baby arrives!

Stressful!

I told you. Now they have 2 kids the house isn't big enough.

I'm near Cardiff. Some friends bought a house a bit like yours here for £250k a couple of years back. It needed gutting, and in the small room there's no cupboard but there's a corner missing where the stairs come up underneath. Nothing you can do about that (is that not why there's a cupboard in the small room in the one you're looking at?). So their 2 kids will have to share, potentially forever (1 boy, 1 girl). They regret buying it. Everything is a compromise.

retepetsir

The stairs do come up but it's not difficult to build a bed over the top or bunk bed with space underneath. We've seen a few houses, everything from 30's to 2000's and they all have small third bedrooms

SternMusik

retepetsir wrote: »

Where do you all live? We haven't seen anything 3-bedroom places round here (West Sussex) with large 3rd bedrooms for a decent price. I think a lot of it is about managing expectations. Pretty much all of them have been 2 x 2.5m or so!!! Regarding the kitchen, it's bigger than a lot of houses. I also like the idea of a garage on the side and decent drive (bloke)!

Same set-up here, and I love it (I'm a girl ). Parking for two cars is always a bonus. My kitchen is almost an identical size and shape and I can confirm that it is very workable. However lack of floorspace is the issue here. Don't get too hung up on the size of the third bedroom. In many houses the walls are stud and you can reconfigure. But don't buy anywhere with less than 95 to 100sqm of floorspace in the house. You will regret it if you do.

I live in the south west, and I bought at the 250k stamp duty threshold (location was the deciding factor in going for this house). Can't advise regarding your area, I'm sorry. I hope the right house comes along for you soon.