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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To want to sell up and buy this house by the sea?

351 replies

caramara · 01/05/2020 13:40

Lockdown boredom has set in and started looking for somewhere to buy with what I could roughly have in equity if I sold my house.

I know Jaywick is a bit rough (I'm the opposite side of Essex currently so know the area a little) but still, can it really be that bad? The idea of being mortgage free is quite appealing, and the house looks like it requires no work at all, plus I love the kitchen.

And I could walk to the beach!

the house

Please tell me I'm BU/ point out all the faults with my plan!

OP posts:
ShirleyPhallus · 01/05/2020 14:24

How have I never heard of this place before?!

OP you should post your budget and requirements, MN is excellent at suggesting stuff like this

Wiaa · 01/05/2020 14:26

Jaywick is awful, rundown and neglected and really ugly

user246854 · 01/05/2020 14:28

Gosh I went on a caravan break there two years ago the place is a absolute dump unfortunately, I'm always disappointed by seaside town as they always seem so run down and such s lack of employment etc... it's sad

Personally I think that's a two bedroom house with 2 bedrooms pipped in downstairs but agree with some work it could be a lovely louse it's just a shame about the area. In fairness lavender walk certainly looks like one of the more tidy streets looking st google earth but I still wouldn't want to live there

SonjaMorgan · 01/05/2020 14:29

If you don't have DC that would need schooling then I would go for it. Areas can and do improve. I lived on a rough council estate and kept to myself. I never had any issues and always felt safe walking after dark.

vanillandhoney · 01/05/2020 14:32

I think you'll struggle to find anywhere you like within your budget down south.

Could you move up North? Or do you need to be down south for work?

Plenty of places oop North for less than 140k.

Rockster7 · 01/05/2020 14:33

Definitely do NOT move to Jaywick. Honestly, its awful.

Original poster
caramara · 01/05/2020 14:33

If I'm going to live the mortgage free dream, my budget is 150k at best for 3 beds, ideally detached or at least a semi. In theory I could live anywhere but I'd prefer not to be more than about 2 hours from London if possible.

OP posts:
Sackofspuds · 01/05/2020 14:34

YABU that house is grim as

littlejalapeno · 01/05/2020 14:35

Realistically it’s a 2 bed with two additional long and narrow reception rooms that are called bedrooms, probably because, at 7 and 9 ft wide a piece they are the length of a bed?

I feel like the investment needed to rejig the downstairs into to a useable space isn’t worth what you’d have to spend, and the house has a tiny footprint, so no option to extend in the future.

Also not much of a garden at all, where will you unwind with a drink or bbq after a long day on the beach?

Wait until after lockdown has ended and reassess

AmelieTaylor · 01/05/2020 14:35

I think not!

I'm always complaining at the prices around here & these threads tempt me to up & leave to somewhere more affordable.

But FMD there's a reason a house on the beach is THAT affordable.

I hope that couple in the video got some help.

TrickyKid · 01/05/2020 14:36

It's a fairly uninspiring house and in a crap area so why?

DontStandSoCloseToMe · 01/05/2020 14:37

Jaywick isn't just a little bit rough!

nettie434 · 01/05/2020 14:37

Mersea or brightlingsea is better surely

They are both lovely, but wouldn’t they be more expensive? What about Clacton itself? I think it has an undeserved negative image? Or Walton on the Naze?

The house itself looks as if it could be really nice. Mortgage free sounds brilliant in the current circumstances.

vanillandhoney · 01/05/2020 14:38

This for Rightmove search for properties upto 40 miles from London, with three beds and a budget of 140k.

There are FAR nicer properties available in much nicer areas.

BarbaraofSeville · 01/05/2020 14:39

These are much nicer for a similar budget and a much nicer area, and within reach of Scarborugh, York and even Leeds for more choice of amenities.

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-73083232.html

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-70087164.html

Only 2 bedrooms mind, but if the student is only there some of the time, and the second property has a garage, you could accommodate them and most types of home working I would have thought.

DontStandSoCloseToMe · 01/05/2020 14:39

You might be able to walk to the beach but you'd have to clear it of needles before sunbathing. I used to have to do home visits there in a previous job. Honestly I can't think of anywhere I'd like to live less

Roselilly36 · 01/05/2020 14:40

It’s awful OP, tiny and located in a very depressed area, when we are out of quarantine take a trip to Jaywick, it will probably still be on the market, but I don’t think you will be interested in it.

DontStandSoCloseToMe · 01/05/2020 14:40

Clacton has quite bad issues with drugs, county lines, gangs and stabbings. I wouldn't want to live there either, although I'd take it over jaywick

petrocellihouse · 01/05/2020 14:41

Estate agents are well known for trying to get the best angle shots for photographs, but even these illustrate just how small the rooms would be in reality. I bet if you went to look at it (post lockdown) then you would be shocked as just how little space there is.

4cats2kids · 01/05/2020 14:41

Do you like dogs?

Rottweilers?

Pleasant enough house, but I’d probably want a guard dog it’s as rough as people say. Especially if you’re a woman living alone.

DontStandSoCloseToMe · 01/05/2020 14:42

Mersea or brightlingsea definitely better, or burnham, southminster or Maldon

LemonTT · 01/05/2020 14:44

I have no idea about the area but there are real problems with the layout. I agree it’s fundamentally a 2 bed in need of remodelling. The kitchen layout is bad, I don’t think you can have a wardrobe in either upstairs bedroom and the living room is corridor.

It screams rental, lots of bedrooms at the expense of functional living. The uk has a big coastline. There are areas with better communities and cheaper houses.

Tartyflette · 01/05/2020 14:44

Jaywick is very deprived and has a lot of problems. Unemployment is high and mostly seasonal.
I've heard really terrible things about a local school, which would be a concern if you have school age DC.
That saying, that is really, really cheap for a 3-bed detached house. I think I'd go and see it, and the immediate area, when circumstances allow..

BarbaraofSeville · 01/05/2020 14:47

A lot of those in your link vanilla are shared ownership or auctions that are likely to go for a higher price. The OP would need to trawl through quite a bit to find a property that can be bought for £150k.

I do like this one though:

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-90622763.html

From the ones I suggested before, you can get to London from York by train in 2 hours, but you'd probably need to add at least an hour on to get from the coast to York.