Feeling overwhelmed with all the work needing done

DeeEyeNo

Hi all, I would greatly appreciate if I could get some advice/guidance from this board. I am a bit ashamed to type this out but the time has come for action so I need to swallow my pride, so to speak. 

I have been living in the same 2 bedroom flat for 20ish years. In that time I redecorated the living room and bathroom once (approx 10 years ago) and that is it. I know this not much of an excuse but for most of that time I have sufered from depression. As a result I failed to look after myself and more importantly here, I have failed to look after my flat. As a result it needs what I think is some serious work. I have spent this last year in lockdown getting myself into a good place mentally and I'm ready to start getting the place fixed up. Trouble is, I do not know if it is beyond repair as I have no experience in DIY/building etc. I also just don't know where to start ie what to get done it what order. Should I get a single contractor in to manage all the jobs? I just feel so overwhelmed. 

At a minimum I think I need; 

Subfloor fixed/replaced - floors are very squeaky in parts, mainly where has been walked about the most, although a section of it has cracked in my kitchen, under the washing machine. 

All celings need replastered. All but one room has artex. In some of the rooms there seems to be cracks along the middle of the artex (like there is tape run across the room, under the artex?) and between the ceiling and the walls. I have no idea if this is serious or if it is just cosmetic. How do you know?

Barring the living room I think all walls need plastered. One room in particular is pretty bad. An issue with the roof/guttering of the block of flats next door (it is a storey higher but we have a shared wall) caused water to seep into my flat. Water seems to have got into the join where the flats meet horizontally (flats are slightly offset), causing the plaster in my wall to bulge quite bad in a veritcal line from ceiling to floor (much worse at the top). I have just pulled it all off (it's been bulging like that for a few years) and it all seems dry now (tested with a meter) but I presume it will need some serious plaster work to resolve.  As a slight aside, my overactive imagination is worried that this water damage has got into my floor and is causing my squeaky floors although the floor does not appear to be sagging anywhere, just creaking.

There is a small fist shaped hole in the plasterboard in my hall wall. I won't lie, I punched this in anger many, many years ago. Currently covered up by a bookcase. Can this be repaired or would the whole plasterboard section need replacing?

Windows need replaced - no questions here. They are not in that bad a state, just old.

New doors, door frames and skirting boards. Just showing signs of age. Slight cracks betweent he horizontal and vertical secions of the frames.

Roof - what kicked all this drive to renovate. During a particularly bad spell of rain last week, I noticed a damp spot on one of my ceilings, so I called out a roofer. He fixed several tiles, replaced some felt, fixed some flashings and fixed/cleaned gutters. All seems good now in terms of being water-tight but there are some patches of white (what I presume is) mould on the underside of the roof and some of the wood is very, very dark in colour (may be still just wet from leak but too hard for me to get to it feel). The roofer did not seem to bothered about all this and said no further work is required but I am not 100% convinced

On top of all this i need a new kitchen, bathroom and a full redecoration throughout. Not too worried about this right now as, if I can get to the stage where I am ready for this, I will be delighted.

Thankfully, despite my depression, I have managed to hold down a decent job and have about £15-20k in savings to go towards this. I am not sure if this will cover all this work though. I understand it is hard to put an exact figure on this just from my description but just wondering if I am in the right ballpark?

Apologies for the long screed and I appreciate I have made a huge !!!!!! up letting it all get to this state, so feel free to roast me, but any advice/suggestions/words of encouragement would be gratefully recieved. As i say I just feel so overwhelmed and dissapointed that I let it get to this state.

ryan7

You did well to get your roof repaired, well done. 
I'd start by ensuring your neighbours guttering is no longer flowing on to your building. Ask them to clear their gutters. If money is an issue for them then offer 50/50?
A new kitchen and windows will be your biggest expense. 
If your windows are in really poor condition and causing drafts, etc... Then I'd likely start there. 
The rest is all cosmetic. 
You do not have to do everything at once.
Set small goals. Get multiple quotes. 
You could do some of the painting yourself to reduce costs. Plenty of willing help on here and YouTube tutorials for everything. 😊

FreeBear

As this is a flat, I assume it is leasehold. In which case, windows and roof generally fall under the remit of the freeholder unless your deeds say otherwise. Certainly any leaks between your roof and the neighbouring flats should be addressed by the freeholder (possibly defective flashing). The darkened timbers in the loft will just be staining from the water. Nothing to worry about, it is just cosmetic. The patches of white, as long as the timbers are dry, won't be an issue and shouldn't spread. If you are concerned, wipe down with a bleach solution (just be careful not to put your foot through the ceiling whilst up there).

The fist sized hole is easily fixed - It may require a patch being cut out and a new section of plasterboard to be inserted, but this is a bread & butter repair for most plasterers. The straight line crack in the ceiling will be minor movements of adjacent sheets of PB. A few screws, scrim tape, and a thin coat of plaster will fix that, same for the crack in the corner.

The rest of the issues you describe (cracks between woodwork, squeaking flooring) is nothing to worry about. Paint & filler will fix the cracks.

DeeEyeNo

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the replies. You have relieved my mind a great deal.

ryan7...

I am waiting for a quote from the roofer for another issue with the next block. Their roof facia is rotting and letting water in behind the roughcast of our shared wall causing cracks. Roofer reckons it is not yet reaching my flat but will need done ASAP. I will mention the gutters when I approach the neightbours with this.

My windows are not draughty at all, just old and tatty, but I did think about doing them first, then the subfloor, then the ceilings/walls.

As you suggest, I fully intend to do the painting myself. I did it for the living room 10 years ago and found it quite cathartic. I will see what else I can so as I come across it. I was a prudction line maintenance tech for years so would say I am pretty handy but I just seem to be cack-handed when it comes to DIY, haha!

FreeBear...

The deeds to me seem to suggest that we are responsible for the costs of the roof (no mention of windows though)...

"Under burden of payment along with the proprietor of the remaining parts of the tenement <address here>

 of the cost of upholding and keeping in repair the roof over the said tenement, the

foundations thereof, the rhones, rainwater conductors, drains, soil, water, gas and other pipes,

the gables and outside walls thereof and that in the proportion to which the Rateable Value of the

<deed number>"

Tbh i am not worried too about the costs. I feel that, even if I have to pay it all myself, I have brought it on myself so can live with that.

The white spots look like they are dry but I will keep an eye on them.

Once again, thank you both a great deal. Since fixing the roof last week, it was like looking with fresh eyes on the conditions I am living in. I have been looking around at the state of the place and it is causing me so much worry. I've only been getting 3 or 4 hours sleep a night due to it. You have allayed my fears a lot. 

elsien

Just because of the mention of tenement, which part of the UK are you in?  I have an inkling Scotland may be different to England in terms of leasehold responsibilities. Wales or NI, I have no idea!
Are your windows wood or uPVC?

DeeEyeNo

Hi elsien, I am in Scotland. I have to confess I have no idea what my windows are! The frames are metal, (aluminium possibly?), the window sills inside are wood.