Move or improve ?

[mamatomany]

The house we are in was the absolute smallest we could get away with but afford as we had hardly any deposit and it was more or less the peak of the market in 2007.
So the plan has always been to do this one up to a decent standard, save a really good deposit and move to the forever house asap, ideally by this March.

Of course I now don't believe this one will sell and give us back our deposit and what we've spent on it never mind cover our costs with the way the market has changed.

So two options, either make it into the dream home, I can add a dormer loft extension and conservatory neither of which seem very attractive to me, but who know what other people like. That would make the house a 5 bedroomed semi, seems a bit heavy to me, especially as it's a bungalow too. We'd still have a huge garden though so the plot is good and it is a nice family home if you have a normal amount of kids, not 4 like me
That I've been quoted £40k for. It would also take us close to the ceiling price paid for a detached in our street in 2006.

Plan B would be get 25% equity into this house and then try and move, selling or renting out current property which ever is the best bet at the time which I think will take 2 years.
Another spanner in the works is DH going self employed, he actually earns more than he did before but I believe that will make things difficult for us.
I do like the area and we'd only move 3 miles down the road.

So save or spend ??

I don't really see what is wrong with your present house - it could be made bigger, you have a good garden and you like the area. To me it's a no-brainer, stay where you are (no to a conservatory though, extend properly if you want to make the house less top-heavy).

Agree with lalalonglegs, extend rather than conservatory, and stay put.

Moving is awful, did it feb '10 with a 2 house chain, selling mine and moving into bigger one.

Had my previous house been on a bigger plot we would have extended but it was too small.

You have to look long term, do what suits your family now and for the next 5 years.

Also I think people forget the cost of moving, the legal fees, stamp duty, estate agents, removal men and buying stuff for the new house (we had to buy new fridge/freezer and dishwasher as ours were integrated at previous house) plus the stress of viewings or no viewings.

I think your DH will find it difficult to get a mortgage at a decent rate as you need 3 years track record being self employed. I would improve your current house, the market is dreadful don't move if you don't have to.

Have looked into it in more depth, we can't extend the back of the house and my concern now is that the layout will look awful, with 4 bedrooms and a bathroom downstairs, a kitchen/diner, one living room and a study with stairs in it leading to a huge master bedroom and en suite.
There's not enough living space v's bedrooms is there ?

Is there no way of having 2 smaller bedrooms and shower room upstairs and then using a room downstairs to make a big family living space?bungalows can be amazing family homes if done properly.Do you have a floor plan?

Don't do a conservatory - they are a total pain in the butt - we have one (installed by the previous owners) and we are pulling it down. I think you might need planning permission for a well built conservatory one with a proper roof (to reduce glare and keep in warmth) and central heating.

Why can't you extend? Don't you have permitted development rights?

I don't think the 2 bedrooms upstairs would work either.
As you walk through the front door you are faced with the bathroom down the hall way. Off the hallway is each of the 4 bedrooms, two large ones at the front, then two smaller ones.
The kitchen is then off the hall to the right and the study to the left, both lead to the main living room, which is about 15' x 18' so not small, but if you add 4 children and 2 adults plus toys it's very full.

Why can't you extend? Don't you have permitted development rights?

The previous owners have doubled the size already, when the architect came around he suggested we could take the kitchen out three meters but that would just line it up with the living room so we'd gain nothing at all. And i've just had the kitchen done.

House sounds big enough - how about some serious decluttering and leaving things as they are. If your dh has just become self employed do you really the added financial pressure of paying for improvements or move.

If it were me I would make do, till you are more sure of the future...the extra money will make a useful cushion for a rainy day.

I am de cluttering too, just on the off chance we're here for a while, but as things stand I can't see that £20k for an extension would be a problem, £150k for the next step up the ladder more so but then whilst prices are dropping is the time to be trading up isn't it.

It sounds like you could re configure the downstairs and lose one or both smaller bedroom and put them upstairs and make a huge living space.You need an architect or interior designer with knowledge of structure to guide you,it is big enough but not utilised well