Cold Feet - is this normal?

txljay

We did it with the first house we bought. Last Friday we exchanged contracts on a new house and I lay awake that night with a bell tolling 'Past the point of no return' in my head for half the night!

missprice

I really hope its normal to have a meltdown when a house move comes up.
I been in my own home for 17 years and am in process of buying a sweet but very old fashioned massive ( to me ) house. It will just be 2 of us in new house, and having been 4 adults crammed into a small house for several years I think the space I will have may be overwhelming.

Am terrified but also really happy.

New house also needs a heck of a lot of work, as its stuck in 1954 decor and 1933 electrical wise.
The survey nearly sent me to seek the services of Valium, but I am OK now.:rotfl:
Strangely its only the second house we looked at. Its not the house of our dreams mind but its pretty close.

Giraffe01

We're about to complete on our new house in 3 weeks. I'm very anxious as we've only seen it once and it was a complete state - grease, mould in bathroom due to poor ventilation and crammed to the rafters with the current owners junk. As risky as this sounds, it's a massively fast moving market in our area and we had already seen and lost out on 3 houses on the same street (they are all pretty much identical) so we know it has potential and it will eventually be our dream home. We have therefore deliberately chosen not to go see it again until completion as we felt seeing it empty will be a much more positive experience than the original viewing! We have wandered past a few times recently and are heartened to see they have a skip on the drive which is looking very full. Most importantly for me, the current owners are moving into rented so we have got our solicitor to arrange for access the day before completion (when it will be empty) so that we can get a contract cleaner to go in and give it a deep 'end of tenancy' type clean from top to bottom. It should then at least smell fresh and look as best as it can for moving day!

Dan-Dan

I`ll be blunt , if your buying a non new build , factor in the fact that things are going to be many times worse than you would ever hope to pick up on viewings (and pointless surveys)

Then be happy at the fact it`s yours (and the banks) and you can do it in your time and at your pace

Dukesy

As someone who bought a major renovation project (and not for the first time), even I can say we've all had that moment!

We got through the first viewing, and then the damp survey which the mortgage co insisted on without cold feet, but it was actually on getting the keys and walking through the door with our week old baby that I had the "oh [insert expletive of your choice] this really is bad" moment!

It's taken us two years to get to the almost finished point we are now at, but that's because we've done the renovations ourselves, and it's been incredibly hard work, but it really is the best thing we have ever done. We have the house we want, in a place we love, and we couldn't be happier with it.

Don't panic, and good luck in your new home!

meg72

KatieDee wrote: »

Hello everybody!

So the time has finally come, after all my pointless panicky threads, we have finally been given a completion date. Contracts all signed ready for exchange, ready to send off. Went to view the house one final time on Sunday, had a good look round and suddenly it hit me...a huge wave of complete terror.

I started seeing the work that needed doing, the time it will take us to do them. I worried about the potential need for rewiring, about a new boiler, flooring, painting, new furniture and how all this will take years and years. As you can probably tell, I am not very patient so this is not good for me! I'm worried I'll get there on moving day, look around at the empty house which needs work doing and instantly regret moving.

I adore the house, I never thought I'd live in such a beautiful place but what about the neighbours? We're close to a flat which has long sitting council tenants...but it might not be this way forever! What if one of the neighbours causes trouble? What if they decide to put more short term tenants in who cause problems? What if the area suddenly plunges into anarchy?!

I am a worrier by nature but I have never had to make such a huge commitment and I literally feel sick thinking about it. Is this normal for first time buyers? Am I justified in feeling a little bit nervous? Should I be taking this as a sign to run away and never look back?!

I'm turning to you as you have always given me good advice and many of you have been through a similar process.

Yes is normal and no its not a sign to run away its just that its a huge step, rather like the night before getting married, you say you adore the house, as for what ifs, what if you turn it down and none of your worrys come to pass arnt you going to regret giving up an adorable house in a beautiful place. Good luck

KatieDee

Thank you so much everybody, your kind words have definitely made me feel better! I'm so glad I've found this site as I've received no end of support. I almost shed a tear when reading all of your replies!

I guess I am normal...I suppose I just never stepped back and realised how huge of a step this is. I fully expect to burst into tears once I unlock the front door but at least I know I'm not the only one

tigsly

we as humans - are designed for the chase - so when you finally catch your prey - you will feel a bit disapointed (imagine looking forward to Christmas.. then getting there!)

A house buy is a bit like that.. In a few months - once you've organised and settled you'll feel much better about the move

jules888

I have to pinch myself sometimes that a working class person like me lives in such a nice area in a nice house,my dream house.
Im impatient too.We"ve had loads to do in the year since we moved in which has seemed overwhelming but we are getting there now.
I dont like having workmen in and want jobs done asap.At the moment my father in law is replacing our fence,free labour but cos he"s doing it its taking ages!

MGCP

Felt a bit like that with our recent purchase (Victorian property). Had a very odd feeling when I first got the keys and walked in on my own - as someone above said, suddenly it seemed like the faults were laid bare. Without furniture or pictures to distract the eye all I could see were dirty walls with clean squares where the pictures had hung, all the chipped paintwork, peeling wallpaper, a broken freezer door (never thought to open it when I did a viewing!). We've gradually discovered more faults and so far have spent far far more than I thought we would on repairs and on getting started with the decorating (and there is still loads for us to do).

Owning a place for the first time has been a bit like having our son - it feels like a huge responsibility, it constantly demands our time and our attention, it costs a small fortune but for all that I love it to bits!