Two identical houses - two different sized gardens - price difference?

cymruchris · 10 April 2024 at 1:14PM

markin said:

Looking at the sales history were they first 'sold' for the same?

If one owner paid for an upgraded kitchen or other extras then the may have been a small difference but not much.

I've checked the sales price for both at time of build, and they were sold for identical amounts. I hadn't considered that as something to look at, so thanks for giving me another perspective.

cymruchris · 17 June 2024 at 11:44AM

Quite a journey, in more ways than one, but the second house is now mine. I think of the two, it's definitely the better property in terms of location in the street, even if the garden is a bit smaller, and I know many wouldn't buy it, but it fits my budget and preferred location, so I'm happy with it. It also ended up a bit cheaper than the original first house I offered on - but does need a bit more decoration internally.

It almost went completely wrong though, with exchange and completion happening the same day, all seemed good the night before, moving van arrived on the morning at 7am and set off at 9am on the 4 hour journey to the new location. I cleaned the old house and left at 10am after handing the key to the local solicitor. At 11am I received a call from the solicitor to say that there was a problem, the seller's solicitor had 'missed' a charge on the property, and that the details were scant in terms of who needed paying and how much. (It transpired it was a defaulted credit card from over a decade ago).

I arrived at 2pm - the same time as the removals van (it had had a puncture on the way) - and was stood outside with still no news on what was going on. From the get go I was in touch directly with the seller - so we were able to chat without having to go back and fore to estate agents - and she offered to hand over the key so that I could get unloaded while the solicitors sorted out the issue. (Not the done thing usually - and with its own risks)

Lots of calls through the afternoon and it soon became apparent that exchange wouldn't happen until the day after. So a bit of an awkward situation of me being in the seller's house while it still belonged to her. An uneasy night of wondering whether I'd be packing everything back into a van the day after and going back to square 1 - but everything fell into place the next morning, and by midday exchange was done, and completion by 2pm.

And as every house buyer who finally gets the keys now spots all the broken/worn out things that were less obvious at the time of viewing, and not covered by the survey. A busy couple of weeks ahead giving it a bit of TLC - but a new chapter - and the end of a 'saga' with what was my parent's house, probate and a pain in the neck sister who blocked everything wherever possible for as long as possible. Onwards and upwards they say?