Downsize for school fees

~Chameleon~

Complete waste of money updating something a new vendor may well just rip out and replace anyway. Unless you''re talking about it being 20-30 years outdated with coloured bathroom suite and formica kitchen tops, of course.

Otherwise, a lick of paint plus a deep clean and serious de-cluttering will go a long way in making a house presentable for the market.

amnblog

whatever happened to Anne Maurice

duchy

I'd get a couple of estate agents in for a current valuation with the house as is.....and then decide if you want to live a year in disruption for the difference. You may be quite surprised at the current value -and decide it isn't worth the cost/mess . Even if it isn't you need to equip yourself with all the options before making such a big decision anyway. If you improve the property before going on the market then it'll be a new valuation anyway.

Kazza_Monkey

amnblog wrote: »

whatever happened to Anne Maurice

Ha Ha love it :rotfl:

silvercar

Idiophreak wrote: »

Working on the assumption that you can't afford to service the repayments on a personal loan...I don't really understand why you'd rather have the lump sum and continue to pay *any* interest on the mortgage, rather than just clear the thing...

Then you have a bunch of money each month to pay the school fees.

Also, if you do that, what does it matter if the lender stick you on a higher rate when you take out some money - you'll be free of the thing in a year anyway.

All of this, however, hinges on the value of your property - there's quite a difference between 300k and 400k - you need to work out exactly what it's worth before you make any kind of decisions...

amnblog wrote: »

So in effect you have been paying £67 a month interest on this mortgage and you have still been struggling to maintain everything?

Not having the mortgage makes no sense if it is only costing you £67 a month.

If you are struggling with school fees and looking to move area, why not move to an area with decent state schools?

TBagpuss

downsizeforschoolfees wrote: »

Front & back door dire, lots of decorating to do & ideally a new kichen/diner knocking down an easy wall! Plus moving fees etc.
Trouble is, we live in a tiny village where only a couple of houses go onto the market per year & only the smartest ones sell!

Don't do the kitchen diner. Not everyone wants open plan living, you may lose as many potential buyers as you'd gain.

New kitchen - you're unlikely to get back what it costs you - if yours is very dated look at painting or replacing the cupboard doors, and painting the walls. But it's highly unlikely that people will pay a premium for a new kitchen, which may not be to their taste.

front and back doors - what is wrong with them? May well be worth replacing if they are rotten or damaged.

Best thing to do is get several different agents in, ask them about what they think the property is worth in its current condition, whether they would recommend making changes / improvements and if so, what, and whether those would add to the value or just make it easier to sell. If they think it would add to the value, then ask them by how much, realistically. Then decide.

Think about what you can do yourselves to improve the look of the house - e.g. redecorating, decluttering, 'dressing' the house.

the issue about 'only the smartest sell' is surely to do with price - if less 'smart' properties are not selling, it is probably because the are overpriced for what they are

ACG

Private education for 6 years costs £100k?

Im in the wrong game! 20 kids being educated for 6 years = £2 million.

darkcamel

I would put the kids in a good state schools next school year. less disruption, and you get to keep that great mortgage rate and avoid buying / selling costs and losing a chunk of your equity.

Thrugelmir

downsizeforschoolfees wrote: »

Current mortgage is 0.5% above base rate & we will need to keep some mortgage when we movw

Can't just be the school fees that are causing financial issues then.

egoode

As other's said it might not actually be worthwhile doing the things you are suggesting and you may not get the money back you spend, but best to get the opinion of a local estate agent as they will know best.

However are you sure moving will actually solve the issue you have with not being able to live with in your means at the moment. With the mortgage you currently have I can't imagine you are actually paying that much on mortgage payments at the moment. It's hard to advise without knowing your income and outgoings but you probably need sit down as a family and decide on your priorities and look at cutting things that you don't care as much about.