i need an outsider's opinion on this please.

[IAmBooyhoo]

i had written out a lengthy post only to have been logged out by the time i came to post it so here is the shortened version.

i have to be out of my house by the 30th of june (very happy to be leaving)

i have been house searching for 3 months and haven't found aything within budget that was habitable suitable apart from one. here are the pros and cons of the house. i can't think rationally anymore as i am just so desperate to be out of where i am and i am being force fed my parent's opinions (which aren't mine) on everything which is amking me doubt my own decision making abilities. so i would very much appreciate any advice or opinions about this.

pros:
-great location-back garden shares a wall with dcs' primary school so no school run at all.
-across the road from the access to both the local grammar and secondary school so handy when dses are older
-100 children's footsteps (we counted) from the brand spanking new and fabulous play park with attached green where dogs are permitted off lead (have dog)
-small newsagent/bakery/chip van is about 2 minutes walk away
-very close walking distance to a few different family members and a bit further walking distance to close friends
-about 10 minutes (maybe less) walk to ds2's nursery school
-10/15 minutes walk to centre of town/asda/anywhere i would be needing to go really.
-garden is small but manageable
-house is small but again this is a plus for me as it will be easier to keep clean.
-asking price is too high but estate agent has said that as the house has been empty for months with no interest shown he thinks the owner would negotiate a lower price. he suggested making an offer that i thought sounded more accurate for the house.
-house has double glazing and an open fire but also has an electric fire (also has OFCH)
-there is a back porch that would make a great laundry room! (i've always wanted one of those!)

cons:
-on street parking on a road that has very heavy traffic at school drop off and pick up times (meetings are currently being held to discuss making the road one way) there have been quite a few accidents and road blocks in the last couple of years.
-the bedrooms are very small. small double is fine as it has built in wardrobes so i would have to sell all my bedroom furniture
the other two are very small boxrooms, dimensions 7'X6.5' and 7'X10'. they would be fine for teh dcs now (ages 2 and 6) but im thinking long term and dont know if they would hate those rooms as teens and i really do want to settle and not have to move again at least til after my dcs are grown.
-the house needs work. it's perfectly liveable but if i was staying long term i would want to bring it up to date and make it cosy. it's an old house and it's tired and tatty in parts (upstairs is fine it's really the kitchen and bathroom-expensive!) what worries me is that i would do the work and then be kicked out for the owner to sell. (how likely/possible is that?)
-i like the house and can see myself happy there but it doesn't have me jumping for joy- should i be?
-my parent's are very negative people and i can see this but i dont know if they might have valid points that i am just seeing as their negativity. they have turned their noses up at houses i have gone for in the past (lovely houses in good locations but went to other applicants) for reasons i cant fathom. i think they are a bit deluded about what is available within my budget and their expectations are too high. but maybe mine are too low?

i really dont know what to do. i have been searching for 3 months now and i have to leave here in 7 weeks. i feel like i need to have something sorted pretty soon and tbh am a bit panicky about not having somehwere. i dont want to leave it any longer in the hope that something better will come along and end up losing this house (it would be just my luck that someone else gets in before me after me leaving it so long) but again i dont want to panic and take this one if it really is a bad move as my parents think it is. my mum has said she thinks i am jumping into this one. i really dont think i am. i viewed it 4 weeks ago and have been holding off deciding ever since. i viewed it again today to measure the bedrooms and remind myself of the condition of the house and garden and i told the estate agent that i would not be making any decision straight away, and that i would more than likely wait a couple of weeks to think about it (again). i really am giving it so much thought that my head doesn't know what's what.

sorry for the short version turning into another mammoth post. i'm just trying to order my own thoughts and get everything out in the OP. i really would appreciate honest opinions on this as i dont wnat to make a bad decision and have to uproot my dcs again (we only moved here 10 months ago)

thank you for persevering!

If you can get it for a sensible price then go for it.

I wouldn't be replacing kitchens and bathrooms of a house I didn't own, although I might give them a lick of paint.

I would go for it. The pros out weigh the.cons.

Room sizes... You're kids will get used to it. They will have less room to keep tidy!

Exactly what saintly said!

I would take it and tell myself it was an interim measure.

You only have 7 weeks, and it's convenient.

I know you want a long term move, but sometimes you can't find the right thing and it is better to settle for something that fits your needs now, and be in less of a rush to try and find 'perfect'.

Hi Iam, Sounds as though there is much to recommend the house. No school run but would you need to use the car a lot for work and would there be problems finding a space? Agree with saintly about the kitchen and bathroom - maybe paint the cupboards and do some updating rather than replacing.

Are your DC both boys or both girls by any chance? If so could you put a bunk bed in the bigger room and use the other room to store clothes etc? You need a house in the right situation that will be a practical, comfortable, family home, not necessarily somewhere to encourage jumping for joy!

Interested to know what you decide.

thank you all this is helping. it really is. nagoo that is good advice to think of it as an interim measure.

i wouldn't be replacing the kitchen or bathroom but would really like to put new unit doors on and new flooring in both and yes paint them both and boc in some ugly pipework. my dad is a tiler and would do the tiling for free (obviously i'd have to pay for the tiles).

since i posted (before reading any replies) i was swaying towards taking it. i really think my doubts are coming from my parents. neither of them have seen it, they only know that it's old and it's on street parking and my dad is really against that for some reason, again maybe he has good reasons?

i have two boys. they are sharing at the minute and tbh tehy are driving me crazy. they carry on so much at night and i think separating them will be best. the way the rooms are a bunk bed would block a good part of the window in either room and i think it would be quite dark. also, i hate with a passion, stripping and remaking bunkbeds and with ds2 still toilet training i am doing that quite often at the minute! there is also a very big hot press and another cupboard under the stairs so storage shouldn't be an issue, plus the built in wardrobes in teh double room are more than i will use. they go right to the ceiling and across the whole wall.

i dont work at the minute so not an issue currently although worth considering for the future. i have been up and down the road at different times of the day and apart from the drop off and pick up times it seems quite quiet and always free parking space outside quite a few houses and this one itself. even if i did find i couldn't get into 'my' space there is space further on up at the park where there are no houses or my aunt lives around the corner and i could park there and move the car back when it was clear again. i would just be sure not to come back with a car load of shopping at 3pm!

If you're renting why not see if you can negotiate a lower rent for a longer term lease? I wouldn't consider changing kitchens and bathrooms in a house i don't own, in addition the landlord may not permit you to. I would ask for clarity from the agents regarding the owners long term plans for the house - do they plan to keep it long term, do they have plans to improve the property? If it's been empty for months in what is currently a very strong rental market you may be able to agree within the terms of the lease a plan to upgrade the kitchen and bathroom, especially if they are in poor condition.

Agree with nagoo, I don't think you should necessarily be considering this your forever house. Circumstances change (yours could, as could the landlords) and so if the house suits your needs right now and you can get it at the right price then go for it. It's not your parent's decision. Do what's right for you and your dc's. Is there anything else making you drag your heels?

I'd take it. Pros outweigh the cons on balance. Get cabin beds for the children.

get these for bedrooms: here can either dump toys or a spare mattress underneath to make a den

If you'r ent planning to move agin, when dcs older could loft conversion be an option? We had ours done for 7 and half k?

I would take it. As much as I am a property junky and want it all, if it boils down to it, all of your pros are the most important thing. Your DC will have their own room, excellent location (I would love to be that close to everything) and presuming you can get it for a fair price it I can't see anything wrong.

I agree with PP's comments about not doing too much work, but equally if you want to set down roots and your LL is ok with, then make improvements and make yourself a lovely home. A house is a shell its the people and the life that is lived in it that matters.

the only thing making me drag my heels is that i made such a bad decision wrt the house i currently live in and i was warned what it was like by my parents. i really dont trust myself to do the clever thing here and i dont think they do either which is why they have been so vocal.

the location is a dream! it really is. i couldn't ask for a better one really.

i would definitely speak with the owner before doing any work. i said to the agent that i would be keen to spruce the place up and did he think there would be any objections from the owner he said he thought they would be glad of it. but he suggested i write in the application form that i would like to discuss the condition wrt negotiating a better rate in return for bringing it up do date a bit. i will do this.

joyce those beds are fab and not too dear either!!

I think you should go for it. You run the risk that ANY property you rent or buy may be a let down/develop problems and you will only ever usually find out when you are there. All you can do is the best you can, and to be honest this sounds wonderful. I'm sure if there was a perfectly sized, perfectly decorated house in the perfect area at an incredibly low asking price you would take that, but since there is not I'm sure you will make a lovely home in this house, and will be able to enjoy the benefits of the location and the merits the house does have .

Go for it. Even very small box rooms provide 'own space' and might you be able to extend in future/loft convert? Being near good schools is priceless IMO.

I think the location more than knocks out the possible on-street parking issues.

"I'm sure if there was a perfectly sized, perfectly decorated house in the perfect area at an incredibly low asking price you would take that, "

there was and i applied for it and missed out by half an hour! estate agent was instructed to take no more applications 30 minutes before i walked in with my application. still quite gutted as it was amazing and so cheap but it obviously wasn't meant for me.

yes mantilla, i think ds1 will really appreciate having his own room as his younger brother "ruins everything" of his and i do feel for him as he likes to keep his things in teh places where he puts them but ds2 just plays indiscriminately with whatever he fancies as 2 year olds tend to do! i will appreciate the absence of "muuum, he's wearing my socks again!" "ds2 take them off they're mine" "MUUUUUUUUM"

i agree fuckbucket

oh yes i just realised another positive. my town is very hilly. basically the shops are all down in a little basin and residential areas are all on hills surrounding the centre. everywhere i have lived before has involved climbing lots of steep ups and downs to get anywhere else in the town but this house (because of closeness to centre) is only a gentle climb up to it and to anywhere else i would be going on a daily basis. cant believe i forgot that one!!

Dooooooo itttt. My eldest is like a veal calf [very unPC emoticon] in his box room and he'd never give it up for the world - two younger siblings, he needs somewhere to 'go', you know, even if it's tiny.

(we have offered loads of times for him to share with one of the younger DCs and to move a littlie into the box room but he won't hear of it)

ok. i think i have decided. i will go tomorrow first thing and get the application form then smile nicely while asking my mum to sign as a guarantor for me (fingers crossed, she did before for the lovely house that i didn't get).

ahh. i'm getting excited now. thank you all so much. always depend on MNers to set you straight!

GO FOR IT! It sounds great, honestly, and small bedrooms are not that big of a deal. Platform beds are every child's dream - even as nearly-grown-up teens.

It's better to have a place you can stamp your own mark on. Mine is a shambolic old tip (I also went for location+price) and the letting agents love all the work I'm doing! They even like my weird in-your-face colour scheme ... or say they do, as they like me doing the work and the fact I'm showing my intention to stay here