What do you prefer when buying a house?

[CVVFan]

I’m pretty sure I’m in the minority group that prefer either houses that are ready to move in or that are liveable for at least 2-3 years. I never buy based on a vision/project/putting my stamp on it.

We’re selling our house in 4 years, and quite frankly as much as it’s liveable for whoever buys it, it does look outdated.

I think we’re already on negative equity, so we think we’ll at least need to refresh the kitchen somehow (and possibly the bathrooms) the question is how much work is it sensible considering we’re selling it? The whole pint of the remedial work would be to sell it faster and not get cheeky offers because to some it might look more like a project than a liveable house.

4 years is quite a long time, so redo it for you, not for someone else, who may want to rip it out anyway.

Who knows what the market will be like in 4 years time.

But I don’t want to “lose” any more money, and we won’t be able to “enjoy” it because we can’t do everything in one go, so we’d have to do it by stages (and priority) kitchen and bathrooms being the lowest priority.

both are more pet peeves than anything else, but I know many people would potentially put the off buying our house.

We were happy to do decorative work but nothing structural. We did put in a new kitchen and two new bathrooms though. We loved the house so much that we could overlook the things that weren’t to our taste as we knew we could easily remedy it, and it was within budget.

This is in the context of having another renovation project on the go, and having young DC. I think the answer to your question will vary enormously, and it depends how desirable your property is overall (and the location). I would make the kitchen and bathrooms look the best they could in your situation, without starting fully from scratch (unless they’re incredibly dated).

Well, your preferences are only relevant for the type of house you’re buying, not what you’re selling, so I’d discount that.

A lot of people are also put off by newly redone kitchens and bathrooms that aren’t to their taste, as they’re being charged for them, but will need to rip them out and redo them at some point and factor in those costs.

If you’re going to be living in your house for four more years and want to redecorate, do it for you.

What you describe is “liveable”

in any event.., you’ve sucked it up for a few years?

As long as your price reflects condition op, no problem

They’d be 30 years old by the time we sell!

the house is not very desirable as it has a very niche layout (5 fairly small to very small bedrooms) - three are shoeboxes and two barely fit a double bed with two bedside tables.

it worked for us, but we’re a family of 6, so I don’t think it would be attractive for the broader market.

But we’re already in negative equity (or very close to) I reckon it’s likely it would be the same by then.

Your financial situation is utterly irrelevant to what the price should be that will actually result in a sale OP

I’m aware of that, but there are things that can help keep it’s value rather than depreciate any further, I believe there’s likely to be a balance but the way I look at buying houses isn’t the norm AFAIK.

It’s hard to say without seeing it, and opinions will very so much. It may be worth looking into sprucing up bathrooms and kitchens on a budget. Sometimes the simplest things make a big difference (re painting cupboards, new handles, etc). I would focus on making it as clean looking and bright as possible. If you bought a new kitchen, it might not be to a new buyers taste anyway. Getting a new toilet/sink for the bathroom seems a less risky move, expense wise.

Just do a paint face-lift. Look on Frenchic Fan Forum or DIY UK FB groups

Snap some pics and put into chatgpt and ask it for super budget friendly modernisations and ideas to freshen up

If its clean and neutral then should be fine

My current home needed the bathroom and kitchen updated. I sold it having done neither for around 7.5k/10k less than similar properties in the area. For me that was sensible as I would have spent more plus had the disruption

You also can’t predict how long it might take to sell, refurbished or not and you can’t prevent someone who may make what you consider to be a cheeky offer.

If it’s not a very desirable property, it’s not going to be an easy sell.

Adding those things won’t add value, might make it more saleable, but as others have said it’s the price that really matters. I wouldn’t go doing costly works in your shoes

of three carbon copies on the road, one sold quickly (lower asking price than what we paid for ours), one didn’t sell at all (around 10% higher than we paid for) and one is currently on the market.

the latter is the best thermometer to know how much we might be able to get based on renovated vs needs work

If you're planning to move in a few years, it's pointless doing anything major. Your best bet is making it look fresh and clean by redecorating in neutral colours and when you come to sell, make sure that anything broken or visibly worn is fixed or replaced. You don't want the house to look like it hasn't been maintained properly. The kitchen/bathrooms might still look like they're due for replacement but as long as they don't look neglected and the price reflects that updating will be required, it won't be too off putting.

I'd rather buy a house with an older kitchen and bathroom that I can replace with my own preference, rather than a more expensive house with new kitchen and bathroom that I don't like. Clean and smart suggests it's been well maintained throughout (and there won't be any horrors lurking)

I think actually the pendulum has swung towards buyers preferring 'finished' houses. Out of the properties that have sold on my street over the last couple of years, the completed, much more costly houses, have sold instantly. The 'project' much cheaper houses have very little interest shown in them, even when they're bigger properties.

I'm inclined to think that at least half of the people viewing any given house won't much like the kitchen and will plan to change it anyway. So to be honest, there's not a lot of point in replacing the kitchen.

We plan to move in the next year or so, and are already looking at possibilities online. Personally I am discounting anything that looks like too much of a project, but equally I see houses in my area at laughable asking prices because the vendors want to recoup what they paid for their new kitchen and bathroom. No chance, pal. I simply don't care that much.
Frankly, most kitchens and bathrooms are going to be a good bit nicer than mine. Don't get me wrong, they're perfectly clean and functional. But anyone with a sense of their own style will be ripping ours out, and will probably be glad of the bargain. We'll be sticking to the paint job as our pre-sale prep.

Option 1: spend £20-£30k updating the kitchen and bathroom
Option 2: Do nothing and hope the price goes up a little anyway in four years time

If you're in negative equity it seems bonkers to me that you'd spend money on a house that you have no guarantee to get back, and if you do have the money to spend on it then you might as well chuck that on the mortgage anyway.

TBH it’s a blow. We really thought we’d had built some equity but given the current house prices it’s very unlikely it’s gone that way

And no option to stay in for longer? Or is that when your mortgage deal is up?

I said I didn't want you do major works - meaning bathroom/kitchen replacement or bigger.

Bought a house that needed nearly every room stripping out and a new bathroom....

We plan to move in the next year or so, and are already looking at possibilities online. Personally I am discounting anything that looks like too much of a project, but equally I see houses in my area at laughable asking prices because the vendors want to recoup what they paid for their new kitchen and bathroom. No chance, pal. I simply don't care that much.

I was coming to say pretty much this.
I regularly look on line, even though we probably won't be ready for market for another year or so, and I see a lot of houses 'done up to sell' where I really don't like the way the house has been done, but where the vendors are trying to get back the cost of what they have spent. I couldn't / wouldn't buy a house at the top of my price range, where I didn't like the layout or kitchen or bathroom, but I might buy one that hasn't been "done up" with room in the budget for us to do to our tastes and needs.

Would I choose a nicely done house over one I needed to do work on, now, at my time of life ? Yes
But
Would I pay top dollar for something new that I didn't like ? No.
However
Would I pay a lower price for one where I would need (or want) to replace the kitchen in a year or two, if the price reflected that? Yes.