Daydream thread... without the rose-tinted specs

phoebe1989seb

lostinrates wrote: »

We need one. We have so much to get through and if its easy its so etching I could do through the week. I just cannot organise myself and don't know what to buy.

I actually feel ATM like I need someone to come and help me see wood for trees with organising and prioritising stuff like purchasing and jobs etc, I feel.....overwhelmed not ATM with the physical (I feel really good today in fact) just I cannot see wood for trees and what card can be moved without bringing the house of cards down, (Not quite right analogy but cannot think of right one)


We have the oak to split and I think that will be heavy going.

I sympathise completely LIR - most of the time lately things seem to be totally on top of me with regards to this place and the worry over my parents etc. I honestly think if we hadn't had to deal with three parents with Dementia over the past three years I'd have a different mindset about staying here, but as it is I just feel torn.

There's so much here to do still to get the place ready for sale that I wonder if it's logistically doable and when you feel that depressed all enthusiasm for the project is easily lost. It's not like the kind of project where you can slap a couple of coats of paint on and present it for sale and DH is convinced we'd struggle to get our money back for work already done (around £90k now) if we were to sell *as is* Having lost heavily on the last project we can't afford to do so again.....

I'm just trying to take each day as it comes and look at the positives - plumber finishing first fix today, DH hopefully going to be levelling the floor in the Summer sitting room tomoz (assuming the weather stays dry and we can move the ton of furniture in there outside for the duration of the job) ready for floor laying next week and me ploughing on with the painting. Trouble is I'm an avid fan of list making and when I look at my projected timescales I want to weep.......we're well over two months behind atm

Gosh, that turned into a bit of a rant.....sorry

COOLTRIKERCHICK

WOW !!!! What a lovely day weatherwise today is turning out to be..


Got to take eldest to an appointment ( his car is broken) so going to do a big shop, and will call into b&q for some fresh compost...


I feel so up beat today with this weather....

lostinrates

phoebe1989seb wrote: »

I sympathise completely LIR - most of the time lately things seem to be totally on top of me with regards to this place and the worry over my parents etc. I honestly think if we hadn't had to deal with three parents with Dementia over the past three years I'd have a different mindset about staying here, but as it is I just feel torn.

There's so much here to do still to get the place ready for sale that I wonder if it's logistically doable and when you feel that depressed all enthusiasm for the project is easily lost. It's not like the kind of project where you can slap a couple of coats of paint on and present it for sale and DH is convinced we'd struggle to get our money back for work already done (around £90k now) if we were to sell *as is* Having lost heavily on the last project we can't afford to do so again.....

I'm just trying to take each day as it comes and look at the positives - plumber finishing first fix today, DH hopefully going to be levelling the floor in the Summer sitting room tomoz (assuming the weather stays dry and we can move the ton of furniture in there outside for the duration of the job) ready for floor laying next week and me ploughing on with the painting. Trouble is I'm an avid fan of list making and when I look at my projected timescales I want to weep.......we're well over two months behind atm

Gosh, that turned into a bit of a rant.....sorry

I know you are in a different situation as mortgage free, but when we were revalued for mortgage our value had not gone up in accordance with work done. (Which is what we expected) . When I was last looking about (end of last year) and things roughly approximate to ours in the rough area, so as far west as the villages around 'F' as far north as 'b' and south as S it really had stagnated for our type of property w/land .

I think the smart village houses very locally are doing well, here they are selling anyway, so might be worth seeing?

We've put A LOT. of money that cannot be seen in here, and done things we know are medium term devaluing, which is a terrifying thing to do, but necessary for us to enjoy the house if we stay here, or make it the kind of house that would get the kind of mark we'd need to even hope breaking even!

When we got planning the architect said .....decide now whether staying or going, because this is when to sell to get max percentage return on the investment, either now or right at the end.

Because we are doing it for us, we haven't always made very good choices for sale. While a normal door knob on the back door would have been fine, and beautiful the one DH asked me if my kidney was worth IS the one I enjoy opening more.


Similarly we have a decision to make ATM about a wall we've opened. Do we to whole hog and make it the full width off the room and take the cost of footings which otherwise aren't needed, (no actual added value but certainly my preference to finish of the room) or just go 'as wide as we can' and accept the not full opening.

The former is a luxury really, and would not be a good 'value' decision.

phoebe1989seb

Thanks for your thoughts LIR, they are much appreciated It does make me feel better knowing we are not alone in this situation.....

We've done the same with regards to backwards steps with some work as well as going rather OTT with certain aspects as we fully intended to be our last move for a long time. Therefore we chose finishes such as the antique limestone flooring throughout the large kitchen & utility areas (60 sq m +) and gorgeous but ridiculously expensive bathroom fittings (think £3k for a shower valve :eek:). If we'd not planned on being here long term we could gave done stuff for far less - although that said, we've never been ones to cut corners and our last two homes were testament to that

For a while we've been considering getting some EAs in to value the house, but tbh I'd not want them to see it in its current state - whilst DH is convinced they could get an idea of the finished product from the kitchen and bathrooms alone, I'm less optimistic. My plan is to get the downstairs finished internally, do a bit more outside (windows etc) and complete the master suite then get them in.......

There are definitely signs of properties selling locally - including some that have been stagnating on the market for some time - but these tend to be either the £1m+ places or else the tiny cottages favoured to local families. Ours sits somewhere in between and DH feels it will appeal to London types looking for a weekend retreat that has been finished to a very high standard......we have at least one of those already a few doors away......hopefully our friend that owns it will know of someone in the market for a weekend getaway when the time comes

Otoh, DH thinks I might change my mind when the downstairs becomes habitable - hopefully by the end of next month

COOLTRIKERCHICK

had an afternoon of two halves...lol


wasted 2 hours waiting in the car, as eldest had an appointment at 1pm, but they adamant it was 2pm.. ( even though eldest showed them the text), then went to Wyevale to look for rhueburb... but there was NO WAY I was going to pay the prices they were charging... so went to poundland, spent £28 on flip knows what...lol... but did buy 2 gooseberry and 2 summer raspberry canes...


anyone know where I can get a cheap rhuebarb crown???


Its been a lovely afternoon... spring sun... so uplifting... I soooo love this weather at this time of the year...


FK... how did the auction go today???


Been keeping a very close eye on our 4 ...just incase.. but no signs of anything unusual.... etc...


Its worming time this weekend... so need to buy some nice cream cakes for the 4 pigs, so we can 'hide' the wormer in them lol.. the cats are due too....so fun and games there lol...


right cuppa time......

Davesnave

COOLTRIKERCHICK wrote: »

WOW !!!! What a lovely day weatherwise today is turning out to be.

When you wrote that, I was just driving down the quay at Bideford and thinking what a difference a day makes! There were many people sitting outside and all the cafe tables seemed to be occupied. :)

All right, it clouded over later, but I didn't mind, as I was on a supermarket dash.

Mind you, I bought 10 packets of seeds, secateurs, a trowel and three pairs of boot socks in Lidl's and still had change from a tenner! :j

lostinrates

phoebe1989seb wrote: »

Thanks for your thoughts LIR, they are much appreciated It does make me feel better knowing we are not alone in this situation.....

We've done the same with regards to backwards steps with some work as well as going rather OTT with certain aspects as we fully intended to be our last move for a long time. Therefore we chose finishes such as the antique limestone flooring throughout the large kitchen & utility areas (60 sq m +) and gorgeous but ridiculously expensive bathroom fittings (think £3k for a shower valve :eek:). If we'd not planned on being here long term we could gave done stuff for far less - although that said, we've never been ones to cut corners and our last two homes were testament to that

For a while we've been considering getting some EAs in to value the house, but tbh I'd not want them to see it in its current state - whilst DH is convinced they could get an idea of the finished product from the kitchen and bathrooms alone, I'm less optimistic. My plan is to get the downstairs finished internally, do a bit more outside (windows etc) and complete the master suite then get them in.......

There are definitely signs of properties selling locally - including some that have been stagnating on the market for some time - but these tend to be either the £1m+ places or else the tiny cottages favoured to local families. Ours sits somewhere in between and DH feels it will appeal to London types looking for a weekend retreat that has been finished to a very high standard......we have at least one of those already a few doors away......hopefully our friend that owns it will know of someone in the market for a weekend getaway when the time comes

Otoh, DH thinks I might change my mind when the downstairs becomes habitable - hopefully by the end of next month

Yep, re pricing I think the price mark roughly ours sits in , are the stickers up to about 1.2. (Really big band!). Also places that would have gone on at 1.2 ish (it seems a bit of a benchmark that one) going on much lower.


If you want to sell and soon, I'd be asking if any friends know search agents rather than estate agents. That way they can present to clients as a bit of a coup getting something before it comes to market and hits the agents.......


Interestingly was looking in a window in salisbury yesterday with another MSEer from east of here, and she was flabbergasted....by how cheap residential property is. That one county makes a BIG difference, even, or perhaps especially in the salubrious bits?

Davesnave

COOLTRIKERCHICK wrote: »

I still browse the property auction sites etc.... don't know if its me, but it does seem the prices are rising on the 'do-er uppers' with land...

Houses still need to be priced keenly around here, but perhaps less so when it comes to properties with more than just a big garden, simply because there aren't many about.

Here's a wee do-er upper that caught my eye, though not even a hint of a price. It's in a lovely area of rolling scenery and the two nearest villages are very desirable. Easy commute too.....

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-43333081.html

RAS

Interesting Dave. I suspect that the agents have no idea how high someone might jump given how few opportunities there are for building a new property in rural areas?

Even in northern cities things are "hotting up". Three houses on the street on the market last autumn took 3-6 weeks to sell instead or 3-6 months.

And one that has been very difficult finally found a buyer; think that has been on and off the market at intervals for the last decade because it was larger than normal and had no outside space. new folk moved in recently.

I am on leave next week so hope to get on the plot, sort out bees and sort out stuff in the house. Was thinking about seeing rellies but they are oldies and do not need the chesty cough I am still harbouring.

Hoping for some sunshine:D:D:D

Have a good weekend folks and I hope those further north are OK.

COOLTRIKERCHICK

up the ranch now.... our dongle thing seems to be working well tonight lol...


going to 'potter' around the garden tomorrow, and start clearing/tidying etc...


I can feel another bonfire coming on....lol...