THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

[Deleted User]

I have been looking for a 30s semi, the only ones up for sale are on land which has been flooded and now surrounded by new developments and hundreds of lorries going back and forth and much further afield. I too am despairing and this development stuff now, it is only the beginning. Look at the development plan for any area and there they are, proposals for 50+ houses on many small fields

Today has evolved and I thought I would do a bit of prepping for when photos are taken, no idea when though. I put a turbo head on my very powerful sebo, cannot buy these powerful ones any more btw and I cleaned behind and under serveral bits upstairs. I have sisal carpet on stairs and landing so the beating is good for it. Then I decided that the very useful extension leads which I had carefully pinned along skirtings and around doors, they needed to come off and the de-humidifier, only used for laundry, needed to go in a cupboard. Holes were left in wood, lots of them so I have been using white furniture wax crayon and it has done a darn good job. The large heated airer will now have to go into the garage and I will be watching for sunny days but the landing is clear

Same downstairs, took the extension off the wall behind the stove, was only for a lamp. In process I put a low and wide green plant on the coffee table and though wow, there it will stay until the stove goes off or the photographer comes and then it will go on the hearth. That lamp table is now being tested with an aluminium tray filled with green potted plants,it passed with flying colours. I stuck a strip of felted jumper underneath and the glue is drying now

Next, while in mode, small barometer off the hall wall and large photo pictures taken off and switched between rooms, much better

Sorry, yet again I waffled, this prep is part of future prepping. I want to be cool and calm when I sell

GreyQueen

I have sowed the fields and scattered the good seed on the land....

Well, I finished the prepping of an area of allotment representing just under a quarter of the available ground and sowed my onion sets, 2 nets of Stuttgarter and 1 net of Red Baron, from £land as always, reliable little performers.

I hear from some plotholders that they can't grow onions and feel embarrassed to be so successful at it because I do very little other than poke them into the ground and hoe around them occasionally. Actually, that isn't quite true, the fertility of the soil is something I work on very earnestly, once the stuff is in it just grows according to sun and rain, and neither of those are in my control.

Been reading your comments about the difficulties of hunting for your next homes with compassion and gratitude. Gratitude that I'm far too poor to be in a position to buy a property and am thus spared all the worries about making the right choice with so many variables in play, including ones related to future development. Or, in my city's case, runaway subsidence issues including sinkholes. :eek:

Choice is generally lauded as a good thing but it brings with it worries and the perpetual feeling that a better option might be just around the corner or that the slightly-less-than-ideal thing you have under consideration now might be as good as it gets and you'd kick yourself if you passed on it.

An acquaintance of mine shopped for a house using the criteria which mattered most to her; the biggest available south-facing garden in the city in her price bracket. The 1950s ex-council house attatched to said garden was less important, although still perfectly liveable.:rotfl:

mardatha

My youngest son has a nice wee flat that he will rent to us if we ever find this house too hard to cope with. I'll save it for my real old age though as it's in a town of 2500 people and that to me is seriously urban lol. Not sure if I'd ever adapt to being so crowded.

GreyQueen

mardatha wrote: »

My youngest son has a nice wee flat that he will rent to us if we ever find this house too hard to cope with. I'll save it for my real old age though as it's in a town of 2500 people and that to me is seriously urban lol. Not sure if I'd ever adapt to being so crowded.

:rotfl:Damned near spat soup on the monitor!

2,500 people is a village around here! :rotfl:

JamesO

mardatha wrote: »

My youngest son has a nice wee flat that he will rent to us if we ever find this house too hard to cope with. I'll save it for my real old age though as it's in a town of 2500 people and that to me is seriously urban lol. Not sure if I'd ever adapt to being so crowded.

DigForVictory

Watched the snow fall from a warm house with loaded larder, fridge freezer & pantry.

Son went on a walk - then it snowed. He came home cheerful & fine but then got a critique of his kit from his (relieved!) father. I'm more concerned about him overnighting at his gf's - they live on a steep hill & I would not fancy getting a car to them in this weather.
"They know what they're doing" will not impress me at all on his tombstone.


That looks like my valley but for the glasshouse. There are traffic islands for crossing pedestrians - the sheep use them, the teenagers don't.

dND

Just jumping in quickly here :wave:

I've been reading all your house move posts with interest as I do hope to sell soon and buy back in the UK. Prices in France are much lower than in the UK so I know I'm going to be pushed to find an affordable property.

My question is; I believe that a lot of the new housing being built will be assigned to the help-to-buy schemes. Do you think that will help keep the prices down on 'second-hand' properties? That's what I'm hoping as I too want some garden and a garage.

Good luck everyone. xx

maryb

Prices do seem to be softening dND but asking prices aren't coming down much - yet. But properties are sticking for longer and vendors are having to take lower offers than they did a year ago. I think that will accelerate when interest rates start to rise later this year.

I'm an interested observer because DD1 has just completed on a flat where the asking price came down by £20,000 before she saw it. They wouldn't accept a lower offer although I believe she may well have paid a bit over the odds even at the reduced price. But we discussed it and decided it was worth it because the location is absolutely perfect. Nice tree lined road, good local facilities and excellent transport links and she is only 4 minutes from the station and 10 minutes from an alternative line. And she has a five year fix at a really good rate. There comes a point where you just have to make the best decision you can with the resources and information you have

maryb

I should add, I'm talking about suburban London, where there are lots of similar properties. But from what I read, the major lenders are not expecting house price growth this year. That could just as easily translate into house price falls

[Deleted User]

[QUOTE=dND;73868190
My question is; I believe that a lot of the new housing being built will be assigned to the help-to-buy schemes. Do you think that will help keep the prices down on 'second-hand' properties? That's what I'm hoping as I too want some garden and a garage.
[/QUOTE]

no, in fact they are becoming relatively more expensive. Supply and demand. Too many people, too few houses. I am pretty shocked at the prices of older property