Self help thread. I am a widow coping getting on with it

[Deleted User]

she said that she has 40 years of old paperwork to get through and I counted 8 beds, 3 in the summer house. She was a lovely person and may have a home sale and whatever she does leave, well I will just get on with clearing it. I have a super reliable handyman here with a transit and he knows everyone as he is local. I am going to ask him to help me, it is only 13 miles and he will travel. I am still waiting for a reply from my niece but don`t want to be rushing with an offer. Vendor has no chain and I have no chain and she was so happy with that


The local area has U3A, lots of clubs, organic butchers, wholefood shop and she says a fantastic privately run supermarket, all walking/cycling distance and the bus, 5 minutes walk is about every 20 minutes to 3 good towns, yay beats one bus travelling 4 miles, 3 times a day. I saw an elderly gentleman walking back with his paper while I was killing time


I cannot stand the heat out, my downstairs is nice and cool with solar shades down. I could put water on the floor which would further cool it. Probably have to do that later in the week. 33.5 outside in the shade and 31 on top of a fencepost up by the field. My groundcover in the front looks crispy and poking a moisture meter down, the soil is bone dry, I gave it 8 gallons of water two days ago. Just now I am only watering a small different area on the allotment every day. Hard to cope but need to look after the berries as they are almost ripe and need to get them off or they frazzle and cook


Oh yes, the back lawn used to be an allotment and the neighbours is an allotment. Just what I wanted

lessonlearned

Ooh a summerhouse. How lovely. I have always wanted One and now i will finally have a garden big enough to accommodate one.

Kittie some charities have furniture outlets and will collect larger items. British Heart Foundation, YMCA, MIND, Lighthouse. Not sure who else.

[Deleted User]

I went to bed with doubts and uncertainties, which is a good thing, head over heart and I woke up thinking `I want it` but any offer has to reflect the cost of the considerable amount of work, otherwise it would be far overvalued for the area. I haven`t heard from niece yet but think she will do her homewok and get back to me.

Original painted doors etc and original cast iron gutters which need attention, quite often, at a cost of about £600 plus now, new regs, scaffolding which could cost £2k+ so I would have to get the modern cast iron replacement in man made material, they say it looks identical. I could not afford to get gutters maintained and scaffolding on a regular basis.

The boiler is old and works but would need replacing in a few years, I would rather get all that work done before the new flooring and painting.

The rads are those thin ones but big, when gas was cheaper, I think I would get the ch system upgraded early too. My dd has a friend who is a wonderful electrician and I would want the electrics checked and new sockets wherever needed and a vent in the shower room

The conservatory is a neat size, about 15 years old and I have the installers name, they are still in business, so I would get the roof replaced with the new roofing stuff that insulates, to make it a year round room. The hole in the wall has a long thick curtain and I would have that filled with dg sliding doors by the conservatory people.

These are all jobs that I would do before I move in, then making good, painting and flooring, no carpets but cannot afford wood, seeing the cost. My friends dd is getting some very new flooring, warm underfoot, that looks very good, is durable and is expensive but not as much as wood

so now, I think I will be making an offer but just how much, I don`t yet know and it will be subject to survey, a full structural survey which I expect will cost about £1300. I am not heart in mouth at the moment, more like a slightly faster heartbeat. Did I say, super nice helpful man next door, widower and three widows close by. I definitely would not be the only widow in the area

[Deleted User]

I just put an offer in, 15% below in view of the work required plus me being a cash buyer. I was so calm, cannot believe myself. I would be willing to go up to 11% below and that will be that or I will stretch myself too far.


offer turned down and she wants near to the asking price. Not a cat in hells chance of that, would make it far too overvalued for the area. I left the offer on the table, she needs to move and I was the first viewer so she is not being realistic. EA was trying to push me but I said no way, that I would keep looking but the offer stands. I doubt she will get other viewers as anyone with that offer could get a brand new 4 bed detached house close by and many do not want a large garden


Almost back to square one but you never know, she will have to sleep on it. Was probably a shock

humptydumptybits

Poppy hope you are OK, I've bought my train ticket and found where to catch a bus which leaves me with a ten minute walk to the hospital. I will be early but hopefully they will have somewhere to have a cup of coffee and calm down. I sorted out all the paperwork last night, daunting to read it all but good to get my head round it before I go to the hospital.



Is your daughter driving you? It is nice to have company but I will take a book, not as if I am going to be getting results.


I'm feeling very nervous, as I said before it is the implications for my children and grandchildren that is my main worry. Maybe that is just displacement. I'm going to go out and enjoy the weather, might have lunch at the beach cafe near us and if I get an outside table and take my book I can enjoy myself.


Good luck for tomorrow.

Elona_2

Humpty

Good luck for today and even more when you get the results. Taking a book is a good idea as it gives you something to focus on. I always have one in my bag if I go on a 30 minute bus journey or go anywhere I might be waiting for a while.

kittie and LL

Well done on finding "the" house for you and I hope everything goes well. My vendor complained to the EA that I was not moving on arranging to buy the house and it had to be gently but firmly explained to him that as he had not accepted an offer then nothing could be done.

He also tried to sell me a load of old sofas etc for hundreds of pounds and again it had to be explained that I was downsizing and had my own furniture.

Hugs to all.

lessonlearned

Good luck, Humpty.

Well another restless night. Awake at 3. Again a case of butterflies, but thankfully not as bad as yesterday, gave in at 4, got up and got cracking. I did a tip run and painted the fence before it got hot.

Going to have a cuppa and then tackle the cellar. It's nice and cool down there.

Kittie.....hope you don't mind me saying this. I know it's none of my business really, but if you really love and want this house then don't cut off your nose to spite your face.

I'm speaking now with my professional hat in place .....15% off the asking price is rather a lot. That usually only works in a very stagnant market with a house that's been on the books for some time. If I'm not mistaken then I understand this house has only just come on the market.

It might be better to up your offer, get it accepted and then, if necessary, you can renegotiate if it surveys badly and needs a lot of remedial works.

So far, apart from the gutters and the boiler, both of which may or may not need immediate replacement, most of the work you mentioned is actually upgrading and improving to your standards, not technically repairs. It's condition does sound about right for an unmodernised house of its age. ( I'm guessing you may need a rewire if the electrics have not been upgraded for a while).

From what I can understand from your description of the nature of the works required, then I can see that in the eyes of both the vendor and the EA they probably won't see the justification for a 15% reduction. It is also likely that the EA is well aware that the house needs some upgrading and that will no doubt have been taken into consideration when they valued it. The asking price will probably already reflect the condition of the house.

Of course only time will tell. The house is new to the market so it's early days, it will all depend on how much interest there is. If it languishes then you might be ok. If it's hot, then you could miss it.

When I offered on the bungalow, it too had only been on the market for a couple of days. I have mentioned that it's in need of some TLC but I knew it would attract interest and I felt that if I wanted it then I had to go in at the full asking price. Houses like that as rare as hens teeth. The developers were hovering.

After I had my offer accepted one of the girls in the EAs office told me they had been mobbed with requests for viewings and that I had been very wise to get my offer in so quickly and that I had been lucky to get it at that price. If it had gone on to sealed bids then it could have fetched a lot more.

But luckily the lady I am buying from seems to be a woman of good moral fibre and high principles. She told me I was the first to offer, she was happy with the price and that she would honour her word and not go for a bidding war. It was mine.

She told me she didn't want to sell to a developer, she wanted a buyer who would love and cherish the house. She actually shuddered as she told me about one predatory developer. She said she felt that all he could see was £ signs as he thought about his profits and that he had no real feelings for the house.

I have to admit it's at the top of my budget, well the actual truth is it's more than that really because I'm having to raid my savings and get a small mortgage. So yes it will be tight for a while but I want the house. I still have the option that if the survey is dire I can always renegotiate. If it needs serious money to repair any major defects then I may have to think again. If she meets me half way then that will do. If she is really inflexible and won't budge then I may have to walk away. I hope not. I shall be disappointed, but that's why we have a survey.

Kittie......take your time, play the long game. You may need to up your offer but, if the survey is really dreadful, then that's the time to negotiate a discount.

Hope you are not offended by my frankness.

Elona. My dad was convinced his furniture was "valuable". Well it was to him but not to anyone else. It's hard for them to grasp that even though they may have spent a lot of money on their stuff, usually second hand goods tend to be worth very little, unless they are bona fide antiques or collectors items.

lessonlearned

PS. If you do decide to proceed then when you request a survey then also ask for a valuation, it will cost a bit more but not only will it tell you whether you are paying a fair price but it could also help you to renegotiate if it is down valued. .

[Deleted User]

yes LL I do see what you are getting at but the valuation given to the vendor was way over the top valuation for any property in the area and sales are definitely slowing. I will be open to negotiation, to a point but other properties will eventually crop up. The EA gave this lady false hope and when I spoke to the bossman this morning, he sounded quite excited about my offer and said that a valuation is only as good as what someone is prepared to pay. I have told her (vendor) that I am open to negotiation but she has her head in the clouds at the moment and my head is firmly on. I don`t want to be paying more than top dollar for a property that is not in a top dollar location, my E agency owner niece lives only 3 miles away from the area and I am sure her antenna is firing on all cylinders for me. I am in contact with her for guidance

Just now I am walking slowly in the house, trying to keep cool, washing was dry in an hour and water in a solar feature bowl as the birds are using it. I have again, started to move and remove a few items, purely getting ready for photos to sell, even though I would have at least 10 weeks

Our last house, EA said to ask a much higher figure than we thought, we said no and went in at a lower and attractive price, it sold in three days.

lessonlearned

Right.....hmmm it does sound that the Original EAs valuation was a bit over optimistic. Problem is vendor now has an unrealistic expectation, and it's never easy to shift that once it's been planted.
Valuations are at best a stab in the dark, they are only a guess, but so many vendors don't understand this.

I think it's best just to play it cool for now. You have said you are open to negotiation, the ball is in the Vendors court. Maybe your niece might have a strategy she can recommend, especially if she knows the area well, otherwise it's just a waiting game isn't it.

You've made your offer, you've left it on the table, there's not much else you can do. Tell the bossman at the EAs office that yes you do like the house very much, that you are prepared to be fair and reasonable, that your offer is still open but that you will resume your search for another property. If he genuinely thinks your Offer is the best they are likely to get then, if he has anything about him, he will go back to the vendor and push your case.

If he tells her you have resumed your search, it might just be the wake up call she needs.

You are in a strong position, cash buyer, no dependent sale, it will all now depend on the market. If it is slowing then the EA is likely to try very hard to sell you to the vendor as her best prospect.

We are now about to enter the summer doldrums for the property market and things wont really pick up again till September for the "autumn bounce". You just might have luck on your side, if she will listen to reason.

Let's hope it all comes together for you.