Long-term funding for an uninhabitable house for the plot.

SusieJane

Hi,

Me and my partner are looking to buy a plot of land at auction to build a house on in the future. The land does currently have a house on the plot with running water and a kitchen and bathroom (although they are not in a state that anyone would want to use cosmetically) the house has not been lived in for three years and the front door has rotten and therefore will not shut. It also smells very damp. These things make me think the mortgage companies will class the house as uninhabitable and therefore not offer us a mortgage. Does anyone have any experience with houses such as this? We are thinking about making the house habitible to live in before we are ready to build, but have not decided on this yet as we do have the luxury of sitting on it comfortably with somewhere else to live. (The property we live in currently belongs to my Dad however, so we do not have the option of remortgaging a current property to release money).

I understand you can get mortgages to build, but because we have no plans for a house yet nor do we have the capital available we would be sitting on the land for five years. This seems to put us out of the running for a self build mortgage.

The issue is that I do not know how to fund the purchase of the plot in a way that would allow us to sit on it for 5 years comfortably before we can build and then go down the self build route. Does anyone have any experience with this? I have done lots of research but have had no luck. I believe a bridging loan would be very very expensive and is not the answer for five years and I am under the impression you can not get a mortgage for a building plot alone.

Thanks so much guys!

silvercar

It meets basic requirements for a mortgage, so potentially doable on the basis that it must be worth something. I guess it depends how much money you need compared to its value currently.

AnotherJoe

You appear to have decided its unmortagable but nothing you've indicated seems to point to that, kitchen and bathroom are "cosmetic" (and even if worse, could be fixed for very little money with stuff from B&Q, end of sale units that sort of thing), and if replacing a front door seems hard then self-build is perhaps not for you?

Thrugelmir

Is the auction listing priced for a plot of land or a redevelopment opportunity?

What condition is the heating system in. Likewise the electrics.

ACG

I disagree with the other posters, a door than can not be open/closed properly and damp will prevent you getting a normal mortgage.

You could potentially get a self build mortgage and sit on that for a while - but self build mortgages are not really my bag.

amnblog

Yes, can get a self build mortgage on a plot of land.

You will need detailed planning permission for the rebuild which we assume you do not have.

Lending of this nature is not designed for you to sit on it for five years so it is not an option for you.

The property you are describing is suitable for:

A cash buyer
A buyer with a bridging loan who will refurb immediately
A developer

AnotherJoe

ACG wrote: »

I disagree with the other posters, a door than can not be open/closed properly and damp will prevent you getting a normal mortgage.

You could potentially get a self build mortgage and sit on that for a while - but self build mortgages are not really my bag.

Many properties whose surveys mention "damp" are mortgaged, if it's been unoccupied and I maintained for some time it will be damp anyway, and a front door can be fixed. Though you'd have to wonder about a house with an open front door being an invitation to squatters and why the owners haven't fixed that