Asset rich, cash poor…

Albermarle

daveyjp said:

Getting to know exactly what work is required is key.  How old is the property?  A 1960s property not touched for 50 years could be a very different proposition to an 1870s property in terms of potential problems over and above what you want doing.  You may also want to consider if the layout is still suitable.

I'd certainly be adding a rewire to your immediate needs list, plus soffits, facia boards, guttering, it may need plastering to some areas, especially after a rewire and decorating throughout to finish.  You then need carpets and other floor coverings, light fittings, alarm etc.   Also don't forget outside.  Garden, driveways, walls, fences etc.  However with a property to sell you should have equity to borrow against, so funding it shouldn't be a problem.

Selling both and finding a ready to live in property may be worth considering if the thought of the above project is overwhelming and the desire to live in the childhood home isn't overwhelming.

To add to the above comments.
You are 58, so I will assume your partner is a similar age and therefore if you do move to this new home, you will probably grow old there ( gracefully of course) .
In that case the location and accessibility should be taken into account.
Although everybody is different, most older people are better off in area where this is easy access to facilities. Shops; GP surgery ; pubs/restaurants/cafes etc or where they are at least no more than a short drive away, or there are good public transport links.

A lot of steps up to the house/steep driveway/ hilly terrain are also undesirable.

On the other side getting a fully updated house will mean you will not have to get involved in much major building work as you get older. Make sure the garden is reasonably low maintenance, if you do go ahead .

LHW99

Could you rent for 6 months, and move in when most of the work is complete?

I would also suggest working on your current expenditure to see where some economies could be made to increase your savings position.

not2plan

Jujujellybabyjumbo said:

I’m 58, and my partner earns a low income.
As I have a very busy, demanding job, really, really wouldn’t want to move in until the majority of the physical work is done.

Is he motivated?
Is he a DIY expert?
What's he going to contribute to renovations work? - money, time, graft, organisation.

Going only from what you say, it doesn't sound like a good idea.

BrilliantButScary

mark_cycling00 said:

Having a big house but little income is not a happy situation for most people.

Bigger houses require more ongoing maintenance, get taxed more, have higher bills and insurance. 
They eat a lot of your disposable income over time. Perhaps 2% of the value each year? 

How sure are you that it just needs cosmetic improvements? Is the wiring and fuse box from the 1970s? Asbestos tiles on the garage?

You'll adapt quickly to the larger house and the "fun" factor will disappear, to be replaced by the annoyance of all the extra housework which Will get harder as you get older in retirement.

I'd use the cash to generate income and be able to enjoy retirement. 

What I would add to this, is that if this was your partner's childhood home, it will not be the same experience living in it now, as it was then. 

In my experience, you should not look back, but move forward.

Jujujellybabyjumbo

Roger175 said:

Here's what we did with our current property which might be appropriate.

We bought a derelict smallholding and obtained planning consent to demolish the existing buildings and build a new house and a large garage with an annex above. We had sufficient funds to buy the plot and do about half the work, but needed to release the capital from our existing house to complete the project. The existing house being mortgage free.

So, we took out an offset mortgage on our existing house and initially left this totally undrawn (so no interest payable). We then spent about 18 months building the new Garage/Annex which we did using our available cash. We then moved into the Annex and rented out the existing house. We then started building the new house and started drawing down the funds from the offset mortgage as a when needed. The rental income more than covered any interest and the surplus went into the new build.

We self-built, so the advantage of doing the offset mortgage meant we didn't have any formal process in doing draw-downs from a bank, which we would otherwise have had, if we had gone for for a self-build mortgage. I was particularly keen to avoid this and having to deal with a Bank Monitoring Surveyor as this is actually what I used to do for a living and I know what a pain in the ar*e, the whole process can be, as well as being considerably more expensive in terms of rates and fees. In simple terms, we just used the existing house as a bank and released the money from it as and when bill became due.

Once the new house was complete, we were in a position to sell the existing house and clear the offset mortgage. We didn't actually do this straight away and instead opted to convert to a BTL mortgage and rent the house for a further 4 years, before deciding we just didn't need the hassle of being landlords and so sold up. 

An offset mortgage on your existing terrace house may be just what you're looking for.

Thanks for taking the time to reply and for the information!

Jujujellybabyjumbo

mark_cycling00 said:

Having a big house but little income is not a happy situation for most people.

Bigger houses require more ongoing maintenance, get taxed more, have higher bills and insurance. 
They eat a lot of your disposable income over time. Perhaps 2% of the value each year? 

How sure are you that it just needs cosmetic improvements? Is the wiring and fuse box from the 1970s? Asbestos tiles on the garage?

You'll adapt quickly to the larger house and the "fun" factor will disappear, to be replaced by the annoyance of all the extra housework which Will get harder as you get older in retirement.

I'd use the cash to generate income and be able to enjoy retirement. 

Really good points Mark. Thanks for taking the time to reply. 

Jujujellybabyjumbo

daveyjp said:

Getting to know exactly what work is required is key.  How old is the property?  A 1960s property not touched for 50 years could be a very different proposition to an 1870s property in terms of potential problems over and above what you want doing.  You may also want to consider if the layout is still suitable.

I'd certainly be adding a rewire to your immediate needs list, plus soffits, facia boards, guttering, it may need plastering to some areas, especially after a rewire and decorating throughout to finish.  You then need carpets and other floor coverings, light fittings, alarm etc.   Also don't forget outside.  Garden, driveways, walls, fences etc.  However with a property to sell you should have equity to borrow against, so funding it shouldn't be a problem.

Selling both and finding a ready to live in property may be worth considering if the thought of the above project is overwhelming and the desire to live in the childhood home isn't overwhelming.

Thanks for your thoughtful comments Dave. 

Jujujellybabyjumbo

leosayer said:

This is a retirement planning forum. 

Do you have retirement goals such as annual income requirements and age?

Have you assessed whether this property can help you achieve those goals?

leosayer said:

This is a retirement planning forum. 

Do you have retirement goals such as annual income requirements and age?

Have you assessed whether this property can help you achieve those goals?

Thanks. I’m new to the Forum and couldn’t find an obvious thread where to pop this. Any suggestions? Definitely want it as our retirement home….

Jujujellybabyjumbo

Woodstok2000 said:

How much is the work likely to cost, roughly? 

Just exploring quotes now. Thanks

Jujujellybabyjumbo

BrilliantButScary said:

mark_cycling00 said:

Having a big house but little income is not a happy situation for most people.

Bigger houses require more ongoing maintenance, get taxed more, have higher bills and insurance. 
They eat a lot of your disposable income over time. Perhaps 2% of the value each year? 

How sure are you that it just needs cosmetic improvements? Is the wiring and fuse box from the 1970s? Asbestos tiles on the garage?

You'll adapt quickly to the larger house and the "fun" factor will disappear, to be replaced by the annoyance of all the extra housework which Will get harder as you get older in retirement.

I'd use the cash to generate income and be able to enjoy retirement. 

What I would add to this, is that if this was your partner's childhood home, it will not be the same experience living in it now, as it was then. 

In my experience, you should not look back, but move forward.

Hello BrillantButScary, we love the house and it is full of happy memories. Everytime we go there to sort through their belongings we feel happy and optimistic about living there. Definitely a move forward.