Probate bungalow viewing, first time buyer.

Flugelhorn

I sold a bungalow under probate - all viewings were done by the agents - TBH it needed new kitchen / bathrooms and decor

. properties may be packed with furniture or empty or somewhere in between. Try to see past this and also see past the probable dated decor. probably the place will be clean

newsgroupmonkey_

Brie said:

Bungalows are favoured by the elderly and those with mobility issues. 

Can I just add, they're also favoured by couples who no longer have any children but don't want to live in a flat.
This is the 2nd one we've owned. The first, we lived in with the children too.

Keep_pedalling

newsgroupmonkey_ said:

Brie said:

Bungalows are favoured by the elderly and those with mobility issues. 

Can I just add, they're also favoured by couples who no longer have any children but don't want to live in a flat.
This is the 2nd one we've owned. The first, we lived in with the children too.

We moved to our bungalow this year, no mobility issues but we intend this to be our last move so the possibility of mobility issues in the future was considered in the type of house we purchased. We also wanted something cheap to maintain and heat and managed to find a modern bungalow with an EPC A rating, but most of the older ones for sale seem to be D or E.

youth_leader

I saw some very sad 'probate' bungalows when I started looking, I did feel sorry for the people who were left to live like it.  The worst was the one with a hospital bed, the bedding was thrown back as if the person had just got up.  I did complain to the EA viewing with me and said someone needed to make the bed and declutter, so many personal possessions - hairy hairbrush on the dressing table - apparently the son was 'abroad'. 

The updating could be costly.  The owner here was reluctant to pay for the EPC, it wasn't available until after I'd offered - C.  I had to pay to have every spotlight transformer replaced to take the LED's, 17 of them.  My bungalow is 100 sq m and I've just spent £800 on the loft insulation, only had 150 mm when I moved in.  I also had two 'ventilation' tiles put in as condensation in the loft was bad, wet beams.  I also had a positive ventilation unit  to improve ventilation throughout.  I have contacted someone about boarding the loft but the ventilation installer said it would be very expensive.  I'll never go up there, I can only just go to the very top of the ladder with my vertigo.

Good luck, I do hope you find somewhere suitable.

Albermarle

Sometimes the overall floor space is quite limited, if it is just the original building.
You could look to see the possibility of extending it. Has it got a big enough garden to extend into for example.

FreeBear

It wouldn't hurt to ask to see the Grant of Probate (via the estate agent perhaps ?) - If they say "no", that would indicate that probate has only been applied for and could take months to be granted. Should they say "yes", you'll know things should progress without a hitch.

BungalowBel

We bought a probate bungalow.  Probate, having been granted, was no problem at all but because an old lady had lived in it and not maintained it, it needed new floors (not just  floor covering) in virtually every room, some damp remediation, rewiring and new windows.  There was some dodgy DIY in it too,.

Nevertheless, because of these issues it was cheap for a bungalow in the area and as we didn't have to sell our existing house to buy it, were able to have most of the work done before we moved in.

So, I would say, if it is an old bungalow, then look for issues to do with lack of maintenance.

horsewithnoname

Having sold what was my childhood home, then an offer to let the family leave any furniture etc that they don’t want is appreciated. Easy enough to get rid of stuff when you’ve no emotional ties to it. I took less than I possibly might have got just because I didn’t have to dispose of my parents furniture and nick nacks. It’s not necessarily an easy thing to do. 

RAS

The term "they've got probate" is a bit like cash buyer and no chain.

It's only when you chase up after lengthy delays that you find out that they hope to apply next week, thought they had a buyer and don't need a mortgage, or think that because their purchase is an unoccupied house, erroneously their buyer doesn't have an onward chain. 

You need to do due diligence before you take these seriously. Ask when probate was granted? If they can't tell you, ask them to confirm the date they applied for probate was applied for?

One of the issues with probate is time scales. A lot depends how quickly people can get together the information and complete the forms? Then some people who owe no IHT and make an electronic application are granted probate in a little over 3 weeks, others 3 months.

Getting a code from HMRC for IHT adds 4 weeks, but applicants are wise to check that this had actually been sent and received. Double those time for paper applications. And if there are any family complications, or issues with the will, it could be two years or more.

If you can be flexible as to exchange and completion, it could be a good deal, particularly if you can move quickly after probate is granted. But if you need certainty, I'd suggest quizzing the EA and if your offer is accepted perhaps asking you solicitor to confirm the details before spending any more money.

martindow

Some people are vague about probate and you can find that they merely applied rather than received the grant.  You can confirm that probate has been granted for £1.50

https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate

It updates a week or two after the grant.