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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

…to ask what to offer for this house?

192 replies

HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 11/10/2022 21:23

It’s so difficult to know what to do in the current market, so I’m grateful for any advice/tips I can get!

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/127313855#/?channel=RES_BUY

Have fallen in love with this house (obviously haven’t told the sellers this). I want to offer but simply don’t know where to pitch it. It seems to have been reduced by £50k since originally going on the market (not sure why) though the owners say that they’ve rejected at least one offer they’ve had because it wasn’t at a number they could accept…so I’m guessing maybe they aren’t totally desperate (?).

Help! Minefield!

OP posts:
Calandor · 12/10/2022 11:56

If I loved it and really wanted it £590.

Bunnyfuller · 12/10/2022 11:58

Your survey will find the damp. Most old houses have at least a bit.

Original poster
HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 12/10/2022 12:16

Bunnyfuller · 12/10/2022 11:58

Your survey will find the damp. Most old houses have at least a bit.

Exactly - the vendors said that when they bought their survey confirmed that it had some small level but nothing that needed remediation and that the work they’ve done during their time has been sensitive to the need to keep the house ventilated and breathable etc. Apparently the de-hum in the en suite shower/wet room is there to minimise condensation and whatnot, which frankly makes sense and stacks up I think?

OP posts:
Pipsquiggle · 12/10/2022 13:24

Lovely house. Sounds like you have done your homework and asked some good questions.

Another thing that needs consideration is the condition of the windows - particularly the older ones, they look single glazed. Replacing sash windows is a fortune.

Whatever you decide to bid with first, I hope it goes well.

Original poster
HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 12/10/2022 13:44

Aww, thank you. Tbf the input I’ve had via this thread has been amazingly useful and has informed soooo many of my questions - so I’m really glad I posted. The MN community has honestly been fantastic. Also, my conversation with the sellers this AM was also really positive: they have been very forthcoming on lots of stuff and it turns out we have mutual friends/connections (which of itself is also a comfort). I have a few bits out with them to come back on and then I guess we take it from there….

Meanwhile, I need to look at the mortgage situation again today as it seems that the world’s ever-changing on that front and the sellers have (I think fairly) asked me for some assurances around that. Hopefully all still ok.

OP posts:
AdobeWanKenobi · 12/10/2022 14:20

If that house is genuinely yours @Myhouseonhere you wont have any issues uploading a photo with a piece of paper saying 'its mine' in front of the red fruit bowl on the table will you?

Though I suspect you wont be able to do that.

londonrach · 12/10/2022 14:28

Seems expensive for derby but you know the area. Maybe that why it's reduced...over priced to start with. It's a pretty house

WhatsAVideo · 12/10/2022 14:39

londonrach · 12/10/2022 14:28

Seems expensive for derby but you know the area. Maybe that why it's reduced...over priced to start with. It's a pretty house

Not for South Derbyshire, which is a rural, “naice” area.

Crikeyalmighty · 12/10/2022 14:45

I would go for £585 - lovely house and nice area too

photosq · 12/10/2022 14:50

AdobeWanKenobi · 12/10/2022 14:20

If that house is genuinely yours @Myhouseonhere you wont have any issues uploading a photo with a piece of paper saying 'its mine' in front of the red fruit bowl on the table will you?

Though I suspect you wont be able to do that.

Ha ha

grlwhowrites · 12/10/2022 16:01

That house is STUNNING.
I'd probably offer £30K-£50K less and see what they say, there's no harm in trying to get it a little lower - especially with all the horror stories about mortgages and interest rates, and the cost of living crisis which is ongoing. Oh, what a time to be alive, eh? 🙈

ISeeTheLight · 12/10/2022 17:08

Oh god definitely don't get it damp proofed. Doesn't work in old houses.
Glad you got the further info OP, sounds good!

Also - if the windows are original they won't be that bad in terms of efficiency, even if single glazed. You can also get them draught proofed if needed and/or install cheap (but barely visible) secondary glazing.

We're in the process of buying a Victorian house that has the original windows, roof etc and we won't be replacing them with UPVC.

pattihews · 12/10/2022 17:13

Who said anything about UPVC? Custom-made timber.

ISeeTheLight · 12/10/2022 17:22

I still wouldn't rip out the original windows. We're planning on having them refurbished and draught proofed. One at a time as the windows are huge, there are loads of them and it's not cheap.

IncompleteSenten · 12/10/2022 17:37

Myhouseonhere · 12/10/2022 05:00

@HouseBuyingNovice2022 A friend just sent me a link to this, FYI this is my house. Thanks for the insight but please don't post it on MN. 😡

As opposed to the super secret place that is Rightmove.

IncompleteSenten · 12/10/2022 17:40

Oh. Never mind. Just saw ops post that it's not the seller.

AnApparitionQuipped · 12/10/2022 17:44

The design looks like two semis squooshed together, and though well-decorated and spacious, it's structurally characterless. I'm not keen.

WhyCantNameLastMoreThanDay · 12/10/2022 21:47

HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 12/10/2022 10:42

Hello all!

A few little developments this end which I won’t post the detail of yet - will try to update properly later…

In the meantime, thanks very much for the further comments and I can address a few of them as (courtesy of six degrees of separation theory perhaps!!!!!) I’ve been in touch with the vendors this morning (and, @Myhouseonhere, not quite sure what your motives were in posting, but I do now know with absolute certainty that you are not in fact the owner):

  1. I understand that the reno works have been done in a manner and using materials (e.g. lime plaster, breathable paint, various other measures etc) that are appropriate for the property - I asked this specifically
  2. damp is not an issue
  3. there has been installed a new and efficient Worcester Bosch oil-fired boiler (and other than one small reconditioned one the ornamental cast iron rads are new and bespoke (not reconditioned) so as efficient as cast iron rads get
  4. insulation has been installed all over the place - inc under the floors
  5. the kitchen is not off-the-shelf - it’s a bespoke one
  6. I’ve asked for copy heating bills anyway though the numbers the vendors have given on this don't support the doomsday scenario some PPs have suggested so I’m quite comfortable with that aspect
  7. the bathrooms/loos have all been gutted and re-fitted

Loads of the above I will have checked by my surveyor anyway, too, just for completeness 😃

The kitchen doesnt fit? It certainly doesn't look bespoke.

Original poster
HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 12/10/2022 22:35

@WhyCantNameLastMoreThanDay It is - it’s clear when you view I thought because it fits a whole bunch of books and crannies and I rather like it. But obvs to each their own!

OP posts:
Original poster
HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 12/10/2022 22:36

*nooks (not books!)

OP posts:
anotheronenow · 13/10/2022 02:23

560 -- It's a new world since that budget.

Original poster
HouseBuyingNovice2022 · 13/10/2022 05:02

anotheronenow · 13/10/2022 02:23

560 -- It's a new world since that budget.

‘mini’

OP posts:
Funkyblues101 · 13/10/2022 05:08

"Having X" starting off each room description would put me off entirely!

VeganCow · 13/10/2022 08:15

Lovely property.
Re the dehumidifier that someone said they'd spotted..We have no mould or damp, BUT to avoid it, we have a dehumidifier upstairs that goes on a short timer after we have used the shower or bath, in winter. It prevents condensation on the upstairs windows (that are open in summer but mostly shut in winter apart from small ones for ventilation) and works very well.

GasPanic · 13/10/2022 08:52

Think that is a really bad house to start off with as a "novice house buyer".

It's very hard to value but I see other properties in the area (obviously not identical) that I feel are reasonably similar that went for much less 18 months ago.

Assuming a survey didn't find any major issues then I wouldn't want to be paying more than £500K for it.

First rule of house hunting. Don't fall in love with houses.