Having doubts after offer accepted

fozziebeartoo

People seeking bungalows are mostly trying to avoid stairs!

I absolutely LOVE that one....

But I am disabled and couldn't get up to the front door!

So that is one reason it might not have been snapped up.

danlightbulb

fozziebeartoo wrote: »

People seeking bungalows are mostly trying to avoid stairs!

I absolutely LOVE that one....

But I am disabled and couldn't get up to the front door!

So that is one reason it might not have been snapped up.

Agreed. This house is possibly in some sort of weird limbo. No drive and single storey living might put off families. Elevated position might put off traditional bungalow seekers. So who is this house targeted at? Will it affect its value after its modernised? How would I approach the modernisation to ensure it does become desirable to a reasonably large group of buyers? Is this even possible and am I therefore making a poor decision in overlooking these unchangeable issues, regardless of the price?

oldernonethewiser

danlightbulb wrote: »

Does this demonstrate exactly the worry I have about stigma?

All the articles I have read online suggest that bungalows are normally more in demand and more expensive than the equivalent sized 2 storey house. Given this, why is this house so keenly priced, why wasn't there more competition for it?





See above. I want to be sure I am buying something that I can sell on again in future and I am uncertain why there wasn't more competition for this house. If I can feel comfortable on that point I would probably proceed.

You are definitely talking yourself out of it.

JGB1955

It's a solid looking building with decent sized rooms. Needs a lot of updating, but nothing that can't be done in stages. The ONLY thing that would put me off is that the rear garden appears to be north-facing, despite what the listing says. I would only ever buy a house with a south or west facing garden... but that's me, not you!

laptop80

fozziebeartoo wrote: »

People seeking bungalows are mostly trying to avoid stairs!

I absolutely LOVE that one....

But I am disabled and couldn't get up to the front door!

So that is one reason it might not have been snapped up.

This was my thought - if you're in the market for a bungalow due to mobility issues then you don't want a load of steps up to it. Amazing how many bungalows are like this - defeats the object of them IMO. Other than that (and you could probably put a ramp up to the door if you wanted) it looks a great property with a lot of potential.

danlightbulb

JGB1955 wrote: »

It's a solid looking building with decent sized rooms. Needs a lot of updating, but nothing that can't be done in stages. The ONLY thing that would put me off is that the rear garden appears to be north-facing, despite what the listing says. I would only ever buy a house with a south or west facing garden... but that's me, not you!

Yes the listing is wrong. Normally I would agree but as a bungalow, and surrounded by bungalows, I considered that there would be less building and roof in the way to block the sun from the garden so it might be ok? Perhaps I am underestimating this also?

danlightbulb

laptop80 wrote: »

This was my thought - if you're in the market for a bungalow due to mobility issues then you don't want a load of steps up to it. Amazing how many bungalows are like this - defeats the object of them IMO. Other than that (and you could probably put a ramp up to the door if you wanted) it looks a great property with a lot of potential.

See this is the problem right here. You've reinforced the stereotype of a bungalow again. 'defeats the object of a bungalow' i.e its for people who can't do stairs.


What potential does it have? To whom?

orangecrush

Please don't take this the wrong way, but, is now the right time for you to buy a house?


You seem so unsure of every choice you make, and the impact on your stress levels may be high until you're able to find the inner resources to be comfortable with whatever decision you make. None of us can tell you you're doing the right thing or wrong thing.



Maybe it would be better to rent, and live in more places, so you can find out what works for you?



The way I look at it is: every house has a price. And the price everyone is willing to pay for a house is going to be different. If YOU are willing to pay X price for Y house, statistically there is likely to be (an)other person(s) who would pay X price for Y house, maybe they aren't looking right now, or haven't seen the one you saw, or whatever...



You can't simultaneously please yourself and please all future permutations of the market. It just doesn't work like that, and it sounds like that worries you a lot... so maybe buying isn't the best action at the moment?

laptop80

danlightbulb wrote: »

Agreed. This house is possibly in some sort of weird limbo. No drive and single storey living might put off families. Elevated position might put off traditional bungalow seekers. So who is this house targeted at? Will it affect its value after its modernised? How would I approach the modernisation to ensure it does become desirable to a reasonably large group of buyers? Is this even possible and am I therefore making a poor decision in overlooking these unchangeable issues, regardless of the price?

I wouldn't worry about it personally - it will probably be a great home for you to live in. I'm able-bodied and I much prefer being in a bungalow than the houses we've lived in before because they're so much more convenient. With the proportions of it you're not really getting any of the usual downsides of a bungalow either.


If it was more accessible you'd probably have more competition and paid a higher price, but I doubt you'd have a problem selling it again, especially once you've modernised it.

laptop80

danlightbulb wrote: »

See this is the problem right here. You've reinforced the stereotype of a bungalow again. 'defeats the object of a bungalow' i.e its for people who can't do stairs.


What potential does it have? To whom?

There are tons of bungalows like this, and all of them have been bought by someone. Yes, I think it's a bit of a strange choice by the developers to put a bungalow up a steep driveway or a flight of steps, but not everyone buying a bungalow is disabled - some people just prefer them. It has the potential to be a really nice home for you - if you're going to be living there for a while I wouldn't fret about resale value. The issues it has are also solvable - you could convert the front garden into a driveway and ramp up to the front door. You could even put a wheelchair lift in up to it. You probably wouldn't want to do that, but it's certainly possible and would put the property in the accessible bracket on top of being large and detached.