Turning Straw into Gold: Creating Long Term Security & A Solid Home

in_need_of_direction

I also live in an old house in a conservation area and needed double doors replaced. A local joinery works did a great job more cheaply than a door supplier

MillQueen

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82070410#Comment_82070410

Thank you, these were quotes from local joiners, though I am going to contact a few more. I think it's because of the size and shape (it's massive and not rectangle) and they will have to custom build it.

Chocolatefund

Gosh. Homes can be such a money pit, aren't they? I shudder to think about the amount of money I've spent doing mine up over the last few years, and I'm still not done. 😖

MillQueen

@Chocolatefund, they are indeed, I absolutely love this house, but sometimes I think fondly of selling up and renting a room in a shared house and piling all of my cash into investments. But I worked all my life to live in a house I like, so I am sticking at it a bit longer and doing one thing at a time, as I guess houses are a lifetime project despite the world around us telling us it should be a glamorous show home RIGHT NOW. What have you had done on yours? Mine's been roof and chimney repairs, radiators, pigeon proofing and garden work so far.

I've just made a massive spag bol with stuff I already have, which should last me until the end of the week, so I can delay my grocery shop until maybe Sunday. I reckon if I try to have a week a month where I don't do one. The stuff I got for the meal plan last week has lasted me over a week, so that will keep the cost down. Someone wants to car share to the workplace with the expensive car park this week, so that's good too.

Chocolatefund

My house was a fixer upper. Solid bones just very dated. Renovated every room including remodeling the kitchen and bathroom. Did all the painting and decorating myself, some carpentry/skirting board and LOTS of wallpaper stripping. I took out a home reno loan plus kitchen finance, which ended up resulting in my previous debt free dairy. 😆

Got some internal doors to re hang and Id like to replace the front and rear door, but they're not urgent. Id like some proper fitted wardrobes one day too.

Totally worth it. You're spot on when you say that it's a lifelong project. My double glazing is OLD and will need replacing some day. I would also love to landscape that jungle that's meant to be called a rear garden, and one day, convert the front garden into a driveway. Dreams, dreams...

MillQueen

@Chocolatefund, that sounds brilliant, always good to get a house with good bones. I'm impressed you did all that yourself and also paid off the renovation and kitchen. Sounds like it's been a labour of love. I think doors and wardrobes can really heighten the luxury of a place, so it's probably worth the expenditure. In my last place I added some wooden ledge and brace doors with cast iron latches and they were apparently what sold it to the new owners. My house now has period style internal doors with leaded glass. They're not the more authentic ones I would want, but they're in good condition so I'm leaving them as they are. Replacing your double glazing would be a good investment for your future I think, as they'd probably outlive you 😂

My dream would be to convert the cellar into something, as it's a good size. It's also very spooky and I try not to go down there. There's a main room that's about 25 feet with a creepy prison window, and a nightmarish historic cold storage room with weird 70s tiles, It gives the impression it must surely have been used by a serial killer to hold their victims. It does have heating and lighting, but it's damp and spidery and I need to get a dehumidifier once I've got the cash. The air down there makes me feel like I'm choking. One of the neighbours has converted theirs into a gym and one has a bar down there, with the cold room made into a bathroom. I am not cliched enough to want a cinema room, so I'd probably go for a utility room or an extra bedroom with en-suite. The other opportunity I'd like to work on would be the garage. It's a detached stone former coach house, a lovely wreck, which would be a great home office, or even annexe accommodation. It has power and water and a solid enough roof that's been recently replaced with new slates and timbers, but the windows, doors and floors are rotting out of it and there's many damp issues. Those would all be tens of thousands of pounds and I am currently someone who eats reduced priced groceries. For now I just enjoy that the main house is mostly renovated already and the house has the potential for much more if I ever want to work on doing those. ❤️ I kind of like a house that still has weird old undeveloped corners that may or may not contain ghosts and magic.

Tomorrow I may need to buy lunch as I am off site again and everyone is going out at lunch time. I don't want to miss out on the chance to hang out with everyone. I could either:

a) not eat anything there and just go to to the restaurant to spend time with the others

b) take snacks in my bag and discreetly eat those instead of buying anything

c) ask for tap water, order something small, and refuse any split the bill scenarios

Rhyddid2026

Your house sounds beautiful. Mine is only 120 year old end of terrace but I've loved getting to know it over the 7 years I've been here. I also have a million things to fix but the roof, boiler, and electrics have been done so surely now I can spend some money on nicer things?

Your cellar sounds epic too! My living room and kitchen are partially underground so although I get damp and slugs I also get cool rooms in this heat! The dogs are grateful.

MillQueen

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82072100#Comment_82072100

It's a good house and took a long time to find, as I like weird houses with unusual layouts that have an air of mystery about them, but I also didn't have a huge budget. I think mine was only affordable as the roof was putting people off (requiring a hugely expensive new one at some point) and being in a strange area that wouldn't be great for a family. It had been reduced before it came into my price range, so I got lucky. I always wanted a stone house - this one is blonde sandstone and has windows like a period novel. It had the specific energy I was looking for - the feeling that you could get lost in passageways and parts that still feel old and unexplored, corridors upstairs, a mysterious fourth floor that's probably haunted, lots of light from tall windows with traditional casement, wrought iron rails and stone walls. It's both comfortable and dilapidated at the same time and has high ceilings that feel grand. I fell in love with it before I even went in! 😍

And so this brings us to my current poverty! Some people have bad taste in love and end up hurt by it when they make a poor choice of partner, but I just lose myself to beautiful houses needing costly maintenance.

I agree on the process of "getting to know a house", as that feels really important on an older house. Whenever I read your diary, @Rhyddid2026, your house is clearly a very special house and seems like it's very "you" in its unique style and all it's filled with, especially the garden. The partially underground floor sounds lovely, I love that sort of thing… unusual floor arrangements and interesting architecture. As long as it's got the main stuff done so you can exist ok in it, the rest can be done at your leisure. It's like a blank canvas really, isn't it, a house. With years to choose and curate the right things to go inside of it. What would be your dream with it?

Rhyddid2026

I think I just dream that I have the money to make her look as loved as she is. Nothing fancy, just fixing things and replacing broken things. If I had a magic wand I'd make her detached 😂

I am absolutely desperate for a kitchen though and I'm hoping that will be my next big spend 🤞

MillQueen

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82072611#Comment_82072611

I like that your house is a she ❤️ I don't know if my house has a gender. The house inspired my user name as it was built for a mill owner (although… using MillOwner didn't have quite the same ring to it 😂).

It's been an expensive day as someone drove into the back of my car after work. I regretted being generous as I wouldn't have been in that place at that time if I hadn't offered someone a lift back to where they had left their van parked because it wouldn't go under the barrier in the car park. It involved driving to a very busy area and I had just let the person out of the car and driven down the next street and someone went into the back of me in some stalling traffic. We pulled over and the woman was apologising profusely and I reassured her it was alright as accidents happen and we checked for damage. I couldn't see anything visibly wrong with my car but she gave me her number just in case. Anyway I was so flustered that I didn't save her details properly, which I only realised when I got home that I don't have them, and the car is making all sorts of creaking and groaning noises from the back and underneath. I'll have to take it to the garage tomorrow but it sounds expensive and structural and I am kicking myself because I could have just minded my own business and went straight home and then I wouldn't have been there in the slow traffic.