AIBU to ask why so many £1m houses....

[Locationvshousevsgarden]

..have very old bathrooms and /or kitchens and need updating ? We are house hunting and I am genuinely perplexed by the amount of houses in this bracket that still need money spent on it ! I would have thought that a lot of houses in this bracket would be immaculate and only require new flooring or one bathroom or painting throughout but no.... out of the over 15 we looked at over 10 of them require significant work and updating. It just baffled me and I suppose I thought at this level and price most places will be in excellent condition or move ready.

Location location location

No need to fix for a sale if it’s a dez Rez

your expectations are completely wrong. The value of a house is a mixture of many things. kitchen and bathrooms just a small part of it

Maybe making do rather than keeping up with the latest trends allows you to own a 1M property?

Location and size impact price more I would have thought. It isn't a great deal of money in some locations.

There are ex-council terraces in need of renovation going for £1 million around here. Why are you surprised OP? There are houses worth £20 million with crap bathrooms. Depends what you're looking at and where you live 😐

Obviously the state of the decor is not the only thing that affects price. You’re omitting any other relevant details.

the value of a house is mostly where it is. Lots of people really don’t give a shit about kitchens and bathrooms and/or expect to do it to their taste.

Property rich, cash poor perhaps.

When I was selling, the estate agent told me not to bother updating the kitchen/bathroom, as so many buyers will rip out newly done kitchens and bathrooms.

Perhaps the former owners had lived there for a long time. They probably refurbished it when they moved in, 40 years ago, and never saw the need to do it again.

People quite often buy houses like that and then live in them for 30/ 40/ 50 years. They might put in a new ensuite, or redo the kitchen after 25 years. But then they move out to downsize or to go into care (or, in the case of my lovely neighbour, they die).

The house goes on the market with a 5 year old downstairs loo, a 15 year old ensuite, and a kitchen that was last updated in 1995.

Not because the owner didn't have the money to upgrade, but because they were happy with it as it was and didn't want the upheaval.

ETA, I say like that' meaning large houses with large gardens, because that's what you get for £1mill where I live - 5 beds, 3 baths, outbuildings and several acres.

OK so would you consider location is still the most important thing to go for rather rhan nicest House on an OK road? So many things to consider and harder than I thought lol

I have a decent house. I can't afford to update the bathroom or kitchen, they're ancient and look like crap. But I love the house and the location.

A bigger issue is my salary has not kept pace (or anywhere near it!) for building costs/price of materials. So I'm a bit stuck now.

Because people have lived in those houses for many many years. Im sure those things were new when they moved in. House rich not actual rich.

Most expensive houses are not owned by rich people. They are owned by relatively ordinary people who are old, and bought houses in areas that subsequently became expensive. They probably have not been refurbished for decades. When they were last refurbished it was probably with a relatively normal budget.

Most buyers of £1m houses are rich, or at least have high incomes. They have high expectations for interior decoration, and high budgets for refurbishment.

It’s a difference of budget and expectations.

Nicest house on an OK road is probably at it’s price ceiling.

many people will get ok house on a nice road because you can upgrade house over time but upgrading a road of neighbourhood is harder

Around here, £1 million will get you a 4 bed semi detached house in need of modernisation. Well, a 3 bed with a loft conversion to make it 4 bed. £1 million really won't get you much.

Who are the sellars? Is it that they are older people who bought the properties many years ago at a cheaper price?

Where I live £1m is not a big budget or house unfortunately. And if it was immaculate and ‘finished ‘ it would be well over £1m. Depends where you are

Are they older people who have lived there a long time and are downsizing?

OK so to be clearer if all other things check out like location, size, proximity to amenities etc. All things being equal and good - I am just amazed that at this level people don't spend the money on the big things in a home. I wondered if maybe its something to do with people having owned a house for a long tike, raised their family, didn't see the meed to update afterwards and now downsizing is this bracket where I live

A house is worth what someone is willing to pay, I personally would always want to remodel the kitchen so that wouldn’t bother me me

Blimey this must be so close to London! My expectations are certainly more than a 3 bed semi for that but tbh I've now seen whatever your budget an extra 100k plus always gets you what you can't afford lol

Buying a £1m house tends to mean a big mortgage. That often precludes a new bathroom.

Ifpeople have been there years they may not have £15/20k for a new kitchen etc.

My elderly relatives live in houses like that. Kitchen falling apart, they don't care as they never cook. Can't be bothered to change bathrooms for aesthetics, so long as they work. Repairs are made as and when they are needed, anything else is considered too much hassle. Who wants building works in their house when they are in their 80s?

I am just amazed that at this level people don't spend the money on the big things in a home.

Who's to say that they haven't?! We bought our house in 1988. Since then its valued has increased more than ten times. So the kind of house it sounds like you're viewing.

Over the time we've been here, we've spent a lot of money - loft extension, kitchen extension, new kitchen. As well as the usual decoration, re-fitting of bathroooms, etc.

We're retired now, and so don't have the ready cash to splash out on re-doing any of the things we've already done!

You sound very naive, tbh.