Do you have to love a house to buy it?

Redbedhead

Do you need to love a house to buy it (to live in rather than a BTL)?

We loved the house we were buying but the owner pulled it off the market. Since we have been looking again we haven't found anything we love, but have found things that we like and that tick all the boxes. Is it silly/unrealistic to wait and find something we both love?

Alan_M_2

It depends on your perception really, a house for me is just somewhere I eat and sleep, I'm not the slightest bit concerned about the property as long as it's clean and presentable. I am however far more concerned about the area I live in and parking arrangements.

I'm just not attached to inanimate objects in the way many people seem to be, which I suppose is why I find the obsession in buying property a little puzzling.

lynzpower

Have to agree with you there Alan.

You have to like the location I think. As long as the location broadly works for you, and the place has enough space in, then that does me TBH.I LOVE the setting here, close to gorgous woodland and ponds etcbut we can easily consider moving somewhere less picturesque for convenience.

I think a lot of this "love" is pure gloss. I was staggered how many people came into my flat when I was selling it and "loved" it. It was only a poxy new build flat, its just that it happened to be newly decorated, stylishly decked out and spotless. Needless to say, once wed moved out our trinkets and furniture, the flat looked exactly like a poxy new build.

Redbedhead

I think it would be easier to buy a house I didn't love if we hadn't already found something we did love. Logically I can see what both of you are saying about needing the location etc and the rest is just extras really. It just seems such a lot of money to spend if you don't really love it.

Malky

I don't particularly love the house I'm in but the wife does. It's not all bad as it's quite spacious and it has a large back garden but perhaps with more time and money we'll stamp our mark on it properly.

wecanhelpu

This is a very silly thread

ono_no_komachi

Redbedhead wrote: »

I think it would be easier to buy a house I didn't love if we hadn't already found something we did love. Logically I can see what both of you are saying about needing the location etc and the rest is just extras really. It just seems such a lot of money to spend if you don't really love it.

I know what you mean, though - I've been househunting with two other people, a partner and a parent; and I 'fell in love' with one of the first properties we saw (a very old cottage with a huge oak-beamed inglenook fireplace) but it was SSTC before we'd sold our place. We've now had an offer accepted on another property, which the other two 'loved' and I was less enamoured - but it will actually work better for our situation than the other would have, and I have grown more and more enthusiastic about it as things have progressed.

There'll always be a bit of a compromise - there'll be a lot of properties that fall somewhere between 'well it's OK' and 'ohmygod I love it'. Try not to measure everything against your 'dream' property though, and see the future ones on their own merits. There's a danger that as time goes on, the 'beloved' property gets built up in your mind as even more perfect than it actually was.

I hope you find something that gets you as close as possible to your ideal. Best of luck.

ono_no_komachi

wecanhelpu wrote: »

This is a very silly thread

I don't really think that it is; I know that this is a moneysaving forum but buying a home, for a lot of people, is about more than a business transaction (which is one of the things which makes it complicated). Especially if you're looking for a home to spend the next 10-20 years in.

Running_Horse

wecanhelpu wrote: »

This is a very silly thread

I disagree. We fell in love with our house and the sale nearly fell through. We probably would have settled for an OK house in the same village with enough bedrooms, but it would never have been the same.

krishna

I think you are just mourning the loss of what seemed to you to be the perfect home. In reality it is quite probable that it wasn't but it can be difficult to move on when you are still in love.

May be just stop looking for a while. Time is a great healer.

Redbedhead

krishna wrote: »

I think you are just mourning the loss of what seemed to you to be the perfect home. In reality it is quite probable that it wasn't but it can be difficult to move on when you are still in love.

May be just stop looking for a while. Time is a great healer.

I would like to stop looking but am just very aware of losing our buyer. We have considered going in to rented but the main thing keeping us looking is we have already paid £2500 in fees that we can roll over to a new property, however some of the fees (the mortgage ones) do have a time limit on them.