To ask if any estate agents can please advise me on selling on a destroyed house

[Toomuchtooyoung01]

I'll keep it brief - started renovating our house (3 bed semi, Surrey) its gone really wrong and OH has downed tools and we and our kids are living in a building site, have been for some time. Cant afford to get professionals in to do it. Even if we were to remortage, there is so much to do and I genuinely don't think OH has it in him to do it any more.
Can any estate agents out there advise how much I could expect to get if we were to try and sell the house as it is, either to a builder or a couple who were willing to take on a project? Am absolutely at my wits end.
Zoopla currently estimates £515k, with £490k being "low" and £525k being top end.
Thankyou.

I'm no expert but I think you would lose more by selling as is than by paying someone to get it liveable.

I'd think people will take what it would cost to fix off the asking price, but then you have to add in the inconvenience factor.

At the very least, get the estate agents valuations on 'as is' and what the valuations would be with the works completed.

If it's not that much, you might think you may as well move now (but put your foot down about another doer upper!!) but if it's a significant amount, you might regret throwing that money away.

I really hope that the valuations you get will be good enough for you to move into a house that's in reasonable nich=k, OP.

Living like that must be a nightmare.

Thankyou everyone for your advice xx

It’s going to cost you to move, estate agent fees, removals, solicitor fees, stamp duty (maybe)

Around £10,000 on your type of property.

Borrow that £15,000 against the equity and get people in to rewrite and plaster board the house and give the kids a bed room.

Your house would be worth more.

And sorry, but stop
Listening to him and take charge of the situation! Both of you own the house and both of you will lose money.

Don’t sell it, get tradesmen in. It will be cheaper than moving. Get it to a “liveable” state then consider getting someone to do the kitchen and replace the windows properly. Otherwise it would likely go to auction and those often have to be completed within a month

It’s going to cost you to move, estate agent fees, removals, solicitor fees, stamp duty (maybe)

Around £10,000 on your type of property.

Borrow that £15,000 against the equity and get people in to rewrite and plaster board the house and give the kids a bed room.

Listen to @BluebellsGreenbells. He's running away from a problem of his own creation. And it's not just him, it's you and your DC along for the ride.

There's a lot to be said for realising that a situation isn't helping your MH and letting go, but not exploring other solutions which could save you literally tens of thousands of pounds in the long run is criminal. That's all family money he's willing to wave goodbye to because he's mentally checked out of your current home.

We're in the middle of a house sale and purchase atm and it's fucking stressful. Skipping out on your house, marketing it in its current state, trying to find a new property, negotiating the sale and purchase, dealing with a chain....it won't be any less stressful, and in the end you'll be £££ out of pocket and still in a (new) house that according to him will need work!

Set a budget of 10-15k which as Bluebell says would otherwise be spent on moving costs, and get someone in to get past this stage where he's stalled. Once there's some meaningful progress and he's not looking at the same to-do list he may well find he's able to see it as a new project and start afresh.

Moving house will be costly. If your DH can't face doing more work, that's ok, but I think it's worth getting some quotes / opinions to see if you are better to (1) sell in current condition, (2) tidy it up a bit and sell, or (3) get professionals to finish the house, and you stay there

If you do move, it would be madness to take on another project. It's not for the faint hearted, and you've learned that it's not for you. No shame in that, but would be daft to make the same mistake twice

I think you've had good advice on this thread. Obviously we don't know your financial situation and how much spare cash you have, but I would look at getting a schedule of works needed done - a plan of the way out of this mess. Get contractors in to do the work as and when you can afford it. A bit every month according to the Plan. I'd start by getting the upstairs habitable. If you can increase your mortgage so much the better, but I think walking away from it will cost you a lot of money. Good luck, I'd be furious if my DH had done this.

As others have said the costs of moving are really significant. As well as estate agents, I’d at least get a couple of contractors to come in a price up a bare minimum job.

I appreciate your DH’s mental health is suffering but he can’t just wash his hands of the situation at a cost of tens of thousands to your family. Take control of the situation OP (and re-consider your relationship).

@TheresNothingIWantMore

Maybe a bit of an odd suggestion but have you thought of trying some shows like DIY-SOS?! you sound like exactly the sort of family they usually help and the worst they can do is say no!

DIY SOS is for disabled people & their families

I think you’ll easy find a buyer, yes at a reduced rate but you admit it’s in a state. My brothers a property developer and this is exactly the type of house he likes, everything back to bear brick walls etc. Lots of developers will be interested if it’s the right price.

@CervixHaver
Not necessarily

@RainingBatsAndFrogs

DIY SOS www.bbc.co.uk/send/u19819112

It all sounds really difficult and upsetting OP.

Is there any way you could raise or borrow money to get a head start that would then leave your DH less overwhelmed by what then remains to be done?

Unfortunately, they've moved on from rescuing women lumbered with idiot husbands that have fucked up houses (and usually promptly fucked off with another woman) or people screwed over by cowboy builders and now do them for terminally ill people, severely disabled, ex soldiers and the like.

I think he's just going to have to get a builder in and pay for the remedial work room by room. It'll still be cheaper than the amount they'd lose from developers/estate agents seeing a desperate vendor and the possibility of sticking a block of flats up in its place.

For people saying fix it, the op has said they can’t afford to. And that even if they could afford to increase their mortgage rhey don’t have it in them to get it done so they need to leave.

I can’t understand why he’s done it to be honest. But it seems he’s basically bought the house, ripped it apart and is now trying to scarper leaving it in ruins. It’s been four years, it’s astonishing it’s still in this mess..

The estate agents will be able to tell better, but if it’s basically uninhabitable with no ceilings in two of the bedrooms, bare brick work and windows needing replacing, and the kitchen and lounge dated and worn, it may be an auction property. He needs to factor in moving and legal costs. Also do you wish to increase your mortgage? It’s maybe likely it sells for say 300 to 350 but that buys you a lot less in Surrey now than it did nine years ago.

Please look into paying to get some of the work done to make more of the rooms habitable.

Could you borrow off parents and then remortgage to repay them once it's done?

@Toomuchtooyoung01
I really feel for you, it sounds like you’ve put up with a lot over the years.

I realise your husband is also having a tough time with his MH. I know he says that the house would be unliveable to get builders in. But tbh it doesn’t sound like it can get much worse!

My upstairs was in a similar state a couple of years ago (all bedrooms stripped back to brick and new windows). We had a functioning bathroom. It was messy having builders in but the mess was at the it back, putting plaster back up is not really disruptive at all.

So if it’s an option financially, it’s absolutely do-able. Honestly, from your post it sounded like he’s knocked load bearing walls down! Perhaps he’s lost sight of it and feels overwhelmed. Very tough on you but if you can take it out of his hands it is manageable.

Has he a building background or just a shit ton of massively misplaced self belief?

I don’t know how you’ve coped, OP.

How old are your children? You say you’re a SAHM, what was your job before? Could you go back to it? If I were you, I’d get back to work to and try to earn some money.

Does your H work a proper job aside from ripping houses apart and leaving them?

This would be pretty much divorce for me, I have to be honest. The one things for sure op you cannot agree to buy another doer upper with him and continue to live sith him ruining houses like this. If he sells this one you need to go into a house that’s done.

Yes unless you increase your mortgage this will mean a significant drop in the type of house you can afford and where, as as your house has escalated in nine years so have others, but yours is not worth the increased value, in fact substantially less.

So for example if you bought for 295 and value hadn’t changed it is likely worth 150 to 200 based on what he has done to it. So you’re looking at properties that would have been on sale for that value nine years ago.

He’s better off in a new build where it’s guaranteed for a number of years.

I guess I must be a glass half full person but all I can see is that you have a “project” house that people will fight over in a red hot property market. You suspect you have at least a couple of hundred thousand in equity - and more depending on your deposit. Not bad even for living uncomfortably for a few years.

On the “push side” you hate your kids having to live in a building site and your husband is depressed and making no progress on the house - even if the house hasn’t caused his depression it won’t be helping. As for being “fuming” with your husband. I find that quite upsetting actually. Assuming you both bought the place as consenting adults and then “shit happened”.

Get it sold and buy a lovely house in a good liveable condition (in a more affordable area). Possibly one with potential to extend when your life circumstances allow. Whether that would be mortgage free in a cheap area or with a mortgage I guess depends on whether your husband is working and coping with his job. You could be all settled in to your new home by the end of summer and living your lives instead of stressing over building works. As for buying a renovation - no **ing way!

For people saying fix it, the op has said they can’t afford to

Rubbish!

They paid £220 and it’s worth £450 in a reasonable state. They can’t afford not to do it.

15K In a mortgage is nothing.

OP states she knows nothing of how it works, approach the bank to have a home improvement load added to the mortgage.

It will save you £££ and give you choices

OP said her husband has given up, then she needs to take charge.

I know you have small children, but could they stay with grand parents and you organise a remortgage and tradesmen?

I would get some quotes in and take control. Even if you only get some of the work done so the house is to a basic standard, it will help motivate you both.

How much experience do you and your DH have of DIY? The one thing I would stress is that having the only full time job and sole income plus if he is doing and responsible for all the DIY then it may be too much for him and he needs you to share the burden.

DH have had the total refurb - taking back the walls to bricks, getting it rewired, we did most of the plumbing ourselves and then thermal boarded it, paid for a plasterer and then skirting boarded it and decorated it etc and I don’t think it would have been fair to place all the burden and work on him alone.

I agree you could take on more mortgage and pay someone. Adding more to your mortgage for this probably won’t cost more than moving fees, legal fees, estate agent fees, stamp duty on new place...and will certainly be less than the loss in value which could be recouped by having it done up.

Professionals will be quicker than your dh if you did need to move out. But do you need to move out? You say you have a usable bathroom and kitchen and are living downstairs anyway...so get upstairs sorted first, plus the windows. Then move upstairs and get downstairs sorted.