Things you wish you'd checked before buying your property

Davesnave

Wren14 said:

How close the neighbours have placed their kids trampoline to your fence. Not much fun to have little faces gawping at you every other second for the whole summer! 

External speaker + Wagner's Ring Cycle = sorted.

Scotbot

Davesnave said:

Wren14 said:

How close the neighbours have placed their kids trampoline to your fence. Not much fun to have little faces gawping at you every other second for the whole summer! 

External speaker + Wagner's Ring Cycle = sorted.

I prefer Verdi's Requiem. Loud gospel music is also quite efffective

Scotbot

I bought a semi and spent ages checking out the neighbours at different times of day. They moved out 6 months after I moved in.

parkingadvice1212

Wish I had paid closer attention to how old the electrics are, how poor the standard of fitting of things like the kitchen and bathroom is and how much wood chip is still left all over the walls and ceilings 

Davesnave

parkingadvice1212 said:

Wish I had paid closer attention to how old the electrics are, how poor the standard of fitting of things like the kitchen and bathroom is and how much wood chip is still left all over the walls and ceilings 

You can upgrade the electrics with impunity on a house with poor decoration. The important things are always those which cannot be changed, no matter how much money might be expended.

SMcGill

I wish I’d known about the rats running under my house! I spent a lot of money digging up old patios, repairing electrical cables under the floorboards that they seemed to enjoy nibbling on and of course rat catchers but every year I still hear them. If there was a rodent survey I could buy I’d pay a lot of money for it!

parkingadvice1212

Davesnave said:

parkingadvice1212 said:

Wish I had paid closer attention to how old the electrics are, how poor the standard of fitting of things like the kitchen and bathroom is and how much wood chip is still left all over the walls and ceilings 

You can upgrade the electrics with impunity on a house with poor decoration. The important things are always those which cannot be changed, no matter how much money might be expended.

Exactly. I don't regret the purchase, I'm just feeling slightly overwhelmed with the amount of work that needs to be done.

AnotherJoe

Scotbot said:

I bought a semi and spent ages checking out the neighbours at different times of day. They moved out 6 months after I moved in.

Was that on account of the new neighbours having stalked them for ages

Hannimal

I wish I had understood costs of updating a garden. It will cost me more than all other renovations together (and I am getting a new bathroom, kitchen and wood floor installed). I would also next time take a good long look post offer and both before and after the survey, going through each room and inspecting myself. A walk around with a builder at some point would have been smart as well. Neither a full structural survey nor my viewing picked up that there was a massive leak from the bathroom. I naively thought surveys would show such things and sellers would also disclose. At least now I am getting a new bathroom that I LOVE sooner and get to enjoy it for longer. 

csgohan4

the day after exchange, noticed kitchen celiling bulging and water going through the extractor fan. 

Vendor had hidden the upstairs bathroom was leaking and repainting/ replastered

I don't think a plumbing or survey would have picked it up

you live and learn

Caveat emptor