I have the money for repairs but cannot face dealing with trades. AIBU to just live in the house as it is

I feel the same. I had a new kitchen fitted 2 years ago. I was without a kitchen sink and a cooker for a week. It was a nightmare doing the washing up in the bathroom sink as i don't have a toilet downstairs. I got sick of micro meals, salads etc.

And when they dont get the work (as shown on here by the reluctance to employ them and put up with their shit) they turn to the social housing sector because they know the tenants cant refuse.

I have ADHD and know my limitations. I'm generally good with toilets and can fix most issues but my high level cistern doesn't have enough clearance for me to be able to do anything without draining the tank, removing it and fixing it on the floor. It's too heavy and I can't do this on my own (I live alone).

When my flush broke, I rang loads of so-called plumbers. I live rurally and they either didn't cover my area, only did central heating or could get to me in about six months (meanwhile I am flushing the only toilet in my house with buckets of water). In the end I rang one of the expensive 'we come same day' plumbers and told them it was a split membrane which needed replacing. Guy comes out at the cost of £150 plus a fortune per hour to fix, and hadn't been told what was wrong and therefore couldn't fix it! So I paid £150 for someone to come and do nothing!

I feel everyone’s pain. My house repairs and improvements are very difficult to manage due to disability. I wouldn’t be able to paint a wall for example. My partner hates DIY!. I watch YouTube videos which give me an idea of what’s needed, I think they make me sound better informed when talking to trades people. I have the money for a much needed kitchen renovation but it’s so daunting…

I think that the stream of programmes about perfect houses or intrepid renovations, have raised the bar for all of us, and it’s making us unhappy.

If I have a job needing doing, I search registers of trades people, ranking them by nearest first. As a lot of trades use their home address as their office, this has often got me people who say they’ll call in ‘on their way home’

For bigger jobs usually have to wait for good people. The guy who installed my bathroom was booked 2 years in advance and didn’t advertise.

When I feel happy with someone’s work, I pay as soon as they invoice me. Establishing myself as an easy customer!

Most of the things I’ve had done have been ok, the worst was a ( female) decorating company.

It’s all a big stress and chore though!

Not a site, but I can DM you a good female plumber and painter/decorator's details if you're in north/east-ish London.

I understand your reluctance. I have had some bad experiences over the years. DH has dementia and there is a certain type of tradesman who thinks we are a soft touch. I have done well recently using the Checkatrade app/process. I think it will depend on areas a bit but the basic idea is you check some pictures, describe the job and put it on the app. Give yourself a name which could be used by either sex and then you can agree a price online. For me that means no haggling with the tradesperson present and you will not get done because they think you are a woman and know nothing. More to the point, I have had some really good work done.

I don'tmind male strangers. I wouldn't mind green strangers from Mars if they would come when they say they will and do a good job

@Germanymunch honestly it's worse than online dating! If they don't want the work why can't they just say when I ring that they're not taking on at the minute? Or cancel if they're not planning to turn up? I shouldn't have to keep chasing and rearranging, they're supposed to be professionals.

We have money ready, we're not arguing about prices (would rather pay more for quality) and we're flexible at about timings but it's just dire.

I feel for you. I live on a hospital road and have on-road parking. Every day we have taxis taking up spaces and people visiting not wanting to pay hospital parking, so I decided to put in a drive (like everyone else in the road). Like you I have tried for 3 years to get quotes and failed. As you say many don't even bother to turn up to quote! I've also got issues with a leaking roof/guttering and no takers for that even after posting on Check-a-trade.

I haven't had anywhere near the issues people here have had, but I still agree with you!

I'm trying again to get somewhere to sort out a roofing issue - should be fairly simple, and it's single storey so no scaffolding involved.

Tried on and off to get the job done over the last FOUR YEARS. Tried all the local recommendations - either don't show, turn up then ghost, turn up quote then ghost, agree to do the job then never turn up, ot turn up at on a different day/time to agreed complaining that no one answered. No shit, I was at work. I would have thought tradies out of anyone would understand that not all jobs can be done from home.

Annoyingly our patronising neighbours keep pointing out the roof issue, as though they think we're just a bit too young and stupid to realise it needs fixing.

I tried many times to find female builders, carpenters, electricians and plumbers. A lot seemed to be up North (well done up there!) but there were few and far between everywhere else.

Going to look at the Stopcocks site now. Anyone else have a site with female trades of any type that is current?

There's a divide on this thread and in society in general.

Not everyone wants to do DIY.
Team A - you can do it all yourself, just watch YouTube, I've knocked walls down replastered, painting is easy.
Team B- I can't do it due to time or health / I don't want to do it, I want to pay someone else to do it.

I can afford to pay someone to do the stuff I can't or don't want to. It shouldn't be that hard.
I used to decorate the whole house. Cost isn't the issue, we had a decorator for 30 years but he's retired so I now have to find someone. I now have health issues that mean I have pain and fatigue so it's very difficult to DIY.

Oh God, I hear you! My DP and I don't really have the time, and I have a chronic pain and weakness condition so am very limited in what I could do anyway.
We had a horrendous experience with some 'recommended' roofers years ago. Not going into it here, but it was highly stressful and expensive.
I do now have a great plumber and a great decorator (both British, as it happens), and they've sorted out my bathroom and so far painted a few rooms (we don't have that much money so have to do things in bits), but we could do with some carpentry, windows replaced and some new carpets, and I just can't face finding someone and then dealing with them.
I want a project manager, basically. But how do you know if you've even got a good one of those?

Well this thread probably tells us the only people who have benefitted from Brexit. Trades now have all the work they want and more and they don't need to care whether they do a decent job or not.

I (eventually, six weeks after it stopped working) got a man in at GREAT expense to fix the flush on my high-level cistern toilet. He completely replaced all the elements and the toilet worked beautifully. For about three months. Now we're a year on and the flush isn't working properly again. I simply can't face (or afford) someone to come out and spend hours doing something if it's only going to work for a few weeks.

So I just jiggle the little arm until it works. I may have to continue until either the toilet goes - or I do.

We had a total reno done by builders we found online with good references, on a flat we bought 100 miles away, so most communication was by email and fortnightly visits. They were great. Used them three or four years later when we now lived near to another property being renovated and they were a nightmare! Got us running around for them, asked really stupid questions and tbh don’t think their work was brilliant. What a change in a few years!

Yeah, I don’t have much time either and would much rather spend free time chilling out. I do know what you mean. Single parent working full time albeit with older kids.

Ive ended up using annual leave to get stuff done myself. It’s still preferable (to me) than getting uselesses in for small or medium jobs.

I need lots of things done and have been putting all of them off as I hate the general intrusion. However, I do my own painting and I'd be happy to get someone to do skirting boards as that isn't very intrusive. If you just start to paint it you will feel better about it as it will look clean and fresh, it's very easy as long as you have enough time in a day to get into it. It's also a fraction of the cost of getting someone else to do it!

That's really kind of you, welcome to mnet! x

I wouldn't let anyone do any work in my home unless someone I know well and whose opinion I value can recommend them. The risk otherwise is too great. Reviews online count for nothing.

I think you should bite the bullet and get the work done BUT I also think you must get tradespeople who others have used recently to carry out similar work, and can recommend. Quite often you will have to wait for them as they will be busy. Wait.

I am the same but I also just hate having tradesmen in the house full stop, even those that are nice and do a good job.

My bathroom badly needs replacing to a shower room, it's the last room in the house to be done but I only have the one loo and the thought of not having a functioning bathroom for a week or even two, is just a step too far.

I can put it off for a few more years I think, but I'm getting older and clambering into the bath to have a shower might become a bit more challenging if my mobility should ever become compromised.

I'm annoyed at myself for feeling like this but short of moving, I will probably just have to woman up at some point in the future and get it done even if it means checking into a hotel for the duration. 😩

I've been looking into tiny homes. I love city centre living and find tiny homes and mobile homes are all located in places that require a car of buses to get to the supermarket. Not everyone wants peace and quiet. I want the buzz and wish someone would come up with a tiny home project in London.

Yes, I'm also in the same boat! One horrendous experience resulting in police involvement too, plus others doing shoddy work, or not turning up to either quote, start or finish the work etc etc.

And now I'm living vicariously through the noise and disruption of renovation work from neighbours, with next door's 6 month extension just finished and now next door-but-one starting a 2 storey renovation!

Moving to a new build sounds very appealing, even though it will need maintaining, hopefully major work won't be needed for a few years down the line!