Buying a house that needs work

midnight_child

Zola. wrote: »

The bathroom however is horrible, a mint green bath and toilet with horrible dark tiles, it needs an urgent revamp. Its a small bathroom so hopefully wouldn't be too much money.

You can even buy paint for bathroom/kitchen tiles - available in wilkos.


I bought my place 2 years ago off a lady in her 90s (well her estate technically), and it was in need of a lot of updating. I paid for a full rewire and had some minors repairs on the roof as these were urgent jobs, but the rest is being done at a steady pace. Much of this slow pace is due to a heavy work schedule, but I am happy to plod along and do most of it myself. As I am on my own in a family sized house, I have been able to live out of one bedroom while doing another, which means there is no rush.


If you have some friends or relatives who are handy with DIY it may not take too long if its just cosmetic. You may also actually enjoy it!!


In a few years if you come to move it will probably have held value better as it the other houses you mention are newly decorated now but obviously wont be in 5 years time.


MC

m_13

We bought our current project in July. The heating was finally work on 2nd January and the boiler condensate is still going into a bucket. It's currently being rewired and then we're going to have working sockets in every room which is not the case at the moment. Everything is connected using extension leads going back to one room as the rest of the house has two pin plugs.

Don't forget that if you buy a house that's been empty for more than two years you only pay 5% VAT on work you have done to it. As we're living in it we only have 12 months from the date we bought it but we've paid 5% on central heating, plumbing, building work, new windows, new front door, rewiring and roofing works. You have to pay full VAT on professional fees, scaffolding etc but 5% covers most things including dropping a kerb (access) etc. Our cavity wall tie remediation was 5% because it included cavity wall insulation.

Jhoney_2

Shampoo existing carpets for smells, pets etc.

If beyond tolerance, take it/them up and get large remnant off-cuts from a carpet shop for a cheap as chips price. That came to me as I write this, but I didn't think of it for my own home!. If stained or burned etc, make a rug.

If it is re-useable put it in the downstairs hallway ready to chuck when you finish your big dusty works! I kept mine for ages as the 'flooring' was huge wood chip panels. Replace the toilet seat? put some personal memories around the walls to give more of a sense of it being yours.