Should we replace DG units before we market house?

SallySunshine

We are thinking of moving house, it was built 13yrs ago and has wooden d.g. windows.
About 2 yrs ago , one of the windows started misting up, now there are about 6 misting.

We had a firm out to give us a quote, both for replacing the glass units only and also for full renewal to plastic units, outer doors etc. Came to £7k, not bad for 17 windows and 2 doors plus french windows.

It really didn't seem feasible to just replace the glass as in theory they may all go eventually.
there are only 4 houses in the development, all with dark stained wooden units.
The outside of the house is white roughcast render so the window colour would look no different from the other houses if we went with a rosewood colour, however that colour looks nearly black on the inside of the house.
The other alternative is to have a white interior and a rosewood exterior, but since all the interior woodwork,doors etc are stained mahogany, Im not sure about the contrast.

That is why we held off choosing to renew the D.G., now we are in a dilemma about what to tell prospective buyers, do we point out the misting which can been seen on certain days and offer to decrease the asking price, or state a lower price to start with , mentioning that the windows will need replacing eventually.

I'm really cross as the wood itself is in great condition,

ProDave

just replace the glass units. We had two done (because the glass was cracked) for £250

glasgowdan

Spend as little as possible. You won't add value by replacing them but might get an easier sale if everything about the house is excellent.

The buyer's surveys will highlight this.

casper_g

If you don't replace the failed units a lot of viewers will assume they'll have to spend £5000-10000 replacing all the windows, so fixing them should help the house to sell more easily.

You wouldn't recoup the cost of replacing everything though.

I don't understand why you say "It really didn't seem feasible to just replace the glass as in theory they may all go eventually." If all the units go, then replace them all! You'll have a lot less cost and disruption than if you replace the frames too. Why would you do that when, as you say, they're in great condition?

silvercar

I understand, if there is a dilemma on whether to change the frames and what to, it is often easier to wait and see if they will need replacing.

Personally, I wouldn't bother doing anything. Let the new buyer decide what they want to do. If you are not buying a new build, you con't expect to buy a perfect property. If that is all a buyer has to worry about they are doing well.

kerri_gt

I wouldn't bother, we viewed a house when we were looking with the DG unts clearly blown and in need of replacing. The vendor was aware of this, I think it was in the house notes too. It didn't put us off and wasn't the reason we didn't put an offer in on the house. Also, what you choose to do might not necessarily be what a propepective buyer would want. Price accordingly, be upfront about the Windows needing replacing and leave it as a blank canvas for the new owners.

Cakeguts

Replacing just the glass is the cheapest option and it will mean that any buyers can't use the blown windows as a reason to lower their offer.

Hoploz

Yes agree - replace the glass and then the house looks cared for. If you don't people think you're the sort who doesn't bother with maintenance so they'll wonder what else you haven't bothered with!

If the timber is good all fine, job done.

Btw I have rosewood outside as it suits our cottage, with white inside, which really brightens the light from the windows. There are a couple of old windows which are mahogany both in and out, and it really sucks the light out dramatically!

A buyer might even paint the insides but that's up to them

jansus

We put our house on the market with blown windows, only a couple didn't need changing and the EA advised us to leave them.
When our buyer came to view although i didn't refer to them specifically i said i realised the house needed "some work", he offered £2,000 less than the asking price which we happily accepted, it would have cost us considerably more to have them done ourselves.

eddddy

An EA I spoke to recently put replacing misted double glazing units as one of the top things to do before marketing a property.

He said that viewers always want to gaze out of windows, and misted units are a real turn-off.


FWIW, if you google 'double glazing unit repairs' there are firms that claim to fix misted units. I know somebody who was very pleased with the results.

But I don't know relative costs of repair vs replacement or how long a repair lasts for - and I suspect there are good repairers and bad repairers.

AnotherJoe

SallySunshine wrote: »

That is why we held off choosing to renew the D.G., now we are in a dilemma about what to tell prospective buyers, do we point out the misting which can been seen on certain days and offer to decrease the asking price, or state a lower price to start with , mentioning that the windows will need replacing eventually.

I'm really cross as the wood itself is in great condition,

Neither of these. You'll just replace the failed units now, for a few hundred quid..