Buying the show house - Acceptable deal???

[Deleted User]

To be honest, I'd be more worried about redecorating rather than cost.

The 30k upgrades the builder is quoting would actually be far less if you paid someone else to do the upgrades, so this will be inflated. However, what you would really be paying for is the convenience. This is not necessarily a financial incentive (you won't get anything back for that convenience) but it could still be worth it to you.

Only you can judge if this convenience is worth getting £13k less for your house. However, there is no guarantee you would sell for the suggested asking price. Depending on the popularity of the area, a lot of buyers offer less than the asking price. I assume you also won't be paying estate agent fees so I don't think you'd be 'losing' as much as you are suggesting.

Does the builder have a good reputation? Are you prepared for the redecorating problems mentioned in previous posts and the possibility extras are done so they look good rather than to to true building standards?

getmore4less

DRP wrote: »

*off topic*
Funnily enough I heard someone else mention about this in passing yesterday, except their experience was of new-builds with plaster boards being painted directly (just the joints taped and skimmed). This meant any damage or filler couldn't really be sanded back as it would damage the paper lining on the boards... crazy.

A decorator we had in for a job explained a method that worked for me, it took a bit of time but I got the last set of walls really quite good.

We were 1/2 papered with border the fashion 20 years ago, so had the paint over boards issue as well

Remove the paper with loads of water but try to avoid getting the board paper cover too wet it will just come off.

takes time but worth it less to make good

Clean/rinse.

use a decent scraper with quality filler to fill any damage and holes from pictures don't over fill, open any tiny holes and cracks a bit with the edge of the scraper if the filler is not adhering well.

light sand to get back to smooth surface use a large flat pad.
as soon as you are going through any paint or into board surface stop. repeat for underfill patches you can see.

Paint first coat

Do another make good pass, you can see the minor flaws a lot easier now.

if the layers are not adhering take the first paint coat back with light sand and refill sand

You have to play around with drying time to get the process to work.

The walls were pale but patchy to start with and I got them looking even and very flat with Craig and Rose 1829 chalk emulsion.
Cheap from B&Q when they change packaging to Authentic Period Colours.

The paint went on really nice and even, cuts in well with a decent brush 2 coats did it.

Once done the next time you want to paint much easier.

POPPYOSCAR

I actually think you have a good deal there.


£13,000 less than your house is valued at is not a lot for a guaranteed sale.


Just think, no people traipsing around your house, no having to keep it tidy all the time, no estate agents fees, no being let down possibly at the last minute by buyers pulling out etc. No chains to contend with.


Sounds good to me.

cardiff101

Yes it is true we might not get the asking price etc. Plus the whole process could easily drag on months.

In regards to the decorating it appears to be of a high standard. Coving included, feature walls, curtains, rails, built in warbrobes , integrated kitchen etc. Even the mirrors and wall decorations (just not the furniture and removables).

I think it's just the physical loss in value/capital I am struggling with. But in reality I could go the other way and the overall saving may well be not that significant and could give me a lot more hassle in the long run.

Thanks for the replies

getmore4less

Sounds quite nice(if you can live with with whats there)

Think if you bought a shell would you bring it up to this standard or take a few shortcuts to save a bit of money.

New build shells need time to dry/breath so you can be decorating for 6-12months.

Is there anything about the plot that makes it more attractive than the others.
have a good look at sold/asking for the equivalents(both properties) and go from there on what you think are realistic prices and look at cost of change.

If you think someone with a hold on a new plot would possible bring their move forward to grab this one then the builder may not be interested in moving on price.
Have they moved to new show houses or still using this one?

marksoton

You're getting a nicer house for the same price as someone who's paid for a shell ( Whether it's 30K of extra "value" is another matter.)

You'll never get the supposed market value when part exchanging so you'll just have to take that hit, you can't have it all.

I'd say if you want a newbuild you're getting a pretty bloody good deal compared to most.

copperjar

Sounds like a very good deal to me!

Slinky

getmore4less wrote: »

Most inconvenient was wallpaper straight on the wall boards, a pain to get off and make good.

We had a house that had been a show house about 3 owners before us. It had never been redecorated so we had that task. The 1980s blown vinyl wallpaper only seemed to adhere at the top and bottom, onto where excess paint from the coving and skirtings had gone on the walls. As a consequence it took about 15 minutes to strip entire rooms. The easiest job we've ever had! So it could just be luck of the draw.

Part of the kitchen had obviously been used to pin things to the wall, perhaps sales details, as when we stripped the paper back, the wall behind looked like a dartboard.

We never bothered to redecorate the garage which had been the sales office, we left the vinyl wallpaper and coving there for our buyers. It was only the vendor before us who had apparently replaced the patio doors at the front with a garage door.