If you had to buy a house again

[labamba007]

Okay cheekily putting this here for traffic, but if you had to buy a house again what would/wouldn't you do this time round?

I've never actually bought a house before and I've just had a mortgage agreed in principle. So I'd love to ask, if you were/are going to buy a house again, what would you do differently or what were you pleased you did right the first time?

Thank you! 🙏

If it's lease hold you want a company managing it. Communal gardens cause arguments over the cost of mowing the lawns.

I'd walk the route to the local park/shops etc too. Maybe there will be dog poo on the pavements or cars parked so you can't get a buggy past etc.

I'd never share a driveway.

Check delivery for the address. Hated living where I couldn't get a take away and only one supermarket delivery available.

If you like gardening pay attention to which way the garden faces and how much sun it will get.

I also love how my recycling bin works. Everything on one nine of the sorting paper from glass etc. That would influencée in future as I won't go back to half the kitchen taken up with different sodding bins

I would have bought a house that didn't have problem rendering and damp.

I would never buy a flat again (leasehold and service charge issues). I would never buy a terraced house again before being sure that it was well sound proofed.
We didn't, and spent the next 5 years regretting it with horrible neighbours, sold and moved again to a detached house and loving it.

You can change cosmetics but cannot change plot size or area. So we went for house on a decent plot in a nice area which needed some work, we can gradually make it lovely.

Work put what you see this house as - we only every saw our first joint as a 'stepping stone', a way to make money by doing it up to get to our forever home.

I would die before i bought another house. I'm living and dying in my semi detached in london. Get the SMALLEST house in the BEST area, not the BIGGEST HOUSE in the SHITTEST area...TRUST ME.!!!!!!!

I would push myself as far as I can. We did the starter home thing to be 'sensible' as advised, and it just proved expensive, didn't build all that much equity and it cost a fortune to move when we inevitably outgrew it very quickly.

We pushed ourselves second time around and I have zero regrets, even with the interest rate increases our careers have kept well ahead of those and we don't have to worry about moving again which brings a huge sense of stability I've not had since a child.

Don't buy a house on a busy road/through road. Its something we never considered, and were lucky to end up buying on a no-through-road- so one way in and one way out. Less cars and less speed on the road.

Walk around the area. What is the fee like? Are 'locals' friendly? How far to walk to shops/public transport/cafes etc if needed.

I agree with checking at different times of the day. My brother bought close to a school, and he WFH! He moved within a year due to the screaming, balls over the fence ad general distractions.

Speak to the neighbours if you can. You'll be living close to them, so getting on is important!

Given the speed we had to buy at, and it was some 35 years ago, I think we did ok. We didn't expect to stay for so long so looking at it now, now I'd be happier if we had gone for a bungalow (knackered knees) and without a shared drive. My neighbours are lovely but the previous lot one side were "difficult" in their teen years and I am aware that this could happen again. My other problem (and its a lovely one to have) is that the house has a lot of good bits...its not overlooked, on a "good" small estate still sought after, lovely private garden, plenty of visitor parking plus each house has its own parking spaces and garages....makes relocating hard!!

Whichever house you buy, no matter how perfect it seems expect teething problems when you move in.
Things like boilers/any appliances left by the previous owners always seem to wait about two or three weeks after you move in then break down. Have a contingency fund to repair or replace things.
We have recently moved after 15 years of our view being other people's houses and now I can see a river and trees from my lounge/bedroom window. I cannot stress enough how much better this makes me feel. Don't just assume you can put up with things because you love the house, the location has a massive impact.

Check the windows work properly and aren’t stuffed with filler! Ensure there’s enough natural light (especially if you visit on a sunny day and notice all the lights are on). Run all the taps to check they’re working properly.

I wouldnt touch something with a management company and service charges. The reason so many new build estates have them is because they're an absolute cash cow; I'd rather not be the cow. There's enough new builds that dont have them associated with them that you don't have to be lured into that trap

Know yourself. Someone else's advice won't be right for you. Really dig deep on what you want, what will make your life better and push for that.

I've gone through a stage where many all my friends moved out for big detached houses, nice gardens etc. I went and looked in these areas and there was always a nagging feeling. Once day it clicked - this life would not be for me! I have a different set of criteria and wanted a different lifestyle to them. I bought a dream property (for me) that would go against much of the advice on this list, but I know is a much better fit for me and my family. Good luck!

This. The worst house on the best street.

Buy a house with a proper hallway, one where you don't have to walk through the lounge to get to the kitchen/dining room.

I wouldn't buy a big house that needs lots of work doing to it
I wouldn't buy a house with a big overgrown garden
I'd look at things like - skirting boards, artex ceilings, weird wires that lead to nothing and weird electrical sockets, electrical trunking and exposed pipes where radiators have been added on- because those are the things that still bug me 8 years later and aren't high priority enough to actually get sorted 🤦‍♀️

I’d buy the house in the park that I wanted and force my children to have tiny bedrooms 😂

I'd never buy a house with a north facing garden again

Know yourself. Someone else's advice won't be right for you. Really dig deep on what you want, what will make your life better and push for that.

100% this. MN is very snobby about location, but honestly it's more complex than that. We opted for a, shall we say, good estate but in a deprived town, lots of MNetters would be horrified by the town. But the estate was perfect, and the town has turned out to be too, very friendly area, not too busy, traffic is manageable, everything we need and excellent schools. Houses just a few miles out are £100,000+ more, we're not seeing huge house prices rises in a more static area, but we are very happy in our beautiful house in an ok area. Covid taught me that you spend most of your time in the house!

1. its one of the most stressful events, expect buyers remorse, or a come down after all the expectation.
2. buy in the best street u can afford.
3. houses near amenities, main roads and good schools will increase in value.
4. don’t buy too close to water, or down in a dip, buy a house on an elevation.

Buy the biggest most expensive house possible (within max budget) in the area of choice with room to extend (either out or up or both) if ever needed. With the biggest garden possible and then never move.

That renovation is not romantic & creative & easy but neverending hard labour esp if doing yourself!

You are misunderstanding the process. You have to complete on the sale of your existing house before you can complete on the purchase of your next house. As the funds from the sale fund the purchase and you have to give vacant possession.

The solicitors do this and not your husband!

Once your funds have been sent onwards to the sellers solicitor you have to wait for those funds to arrive and for them to give vacant possession.

It is extremely common for you to have to go and have a coffee or some lunch between leaving one property and getting the keys to another and why you are blaming your husband it's beyond me.

This! Big ish Square hallway with a separate lounge and then a huge kitchen diner out the back. With a separate utility, downstairs loo and an office.

Ignore this OP this is the normal process I'm not sure what this poster is on about.

Much as I still love my house, I’d have bought somewhere with parking.

We've just bought the worst house in the best street (you may have already guessed) and whilst I'm a bit overwhelmed by the amount of work, I'm so delighted to be here with lovely neighbors and the best of both worlds with countryside and town centre on our doorstep.

So that would be my advice