Property Quandary WWYD?

[StrangewaysHereICome]

We need more room, we want to go from a 3 bed semi to a 4 bed detached with extra reception space and an extra loo, decent garden and a garage is a must.

So we were seduced by a new TW development up the road, and as things are not selling in our road ATM we went for part exchange which is proving problematic (see my other thread for details!) the house is lovely and pretty much what we want. The second reception is quite small and we were hoping to put a conservatory on the back, as a dining room, which may be tricky with the position of the garden access and downpipes etc. It's also near the top of our budget at 285,000. No price negotiation as it's p-ex.

Now here's the quandary....

We have been approached by a couple whose children have left home who live just round the corner from us. They have seen our for sale board and have asked about a house swap. They have a 4 bed detached, 20 years old, pretty much the same living space. The kitchen is smaller, the dining room bigger. It has a garage, en-suite, garden just like the new build. We would want to add double glazing and possibly extend the kitchen and there is space to do this, and maybe the conservatory, but this wouldn't be so urgent as the dining room is big enough for a table and a desk and sofa. It's in our preferred location ie where we are now, village location, convenient for school. We are off to look this morning. We haven't talked price, but another house in the road didn't sell for 240,000 but that had a tiny garden. If they would accept just under the stamp duty threshold it would be extremely tempting.

I am quite nervous about negotiating with people we know. Also if we back out of the new build we will lose a few thousand, but then we might lose that anyway. Our solicitor has so many queries with TW, and their attitude has taken the shine off it all tbh.

Neither house is my "dream" home, that would be a farmhouse set in rolling acres, with roses round the door, and ponies in a paddock

I am so confused I want to hide!!!

So WWYD??

Go and have a look. If you think the house swap could work get your Solicitor to do the negotiation for you.

If you are upfront with them and tell them yes you are keen to take matters forward but explain you will be using your solicitor I think it might give them some reassurance that you are keen but also not bogging yourself down with the legalities.

What greg said, go and look at the house. It sounds like a good thing to me, but I know nothing about buying and selling houses.

Go and look. It may be that when you get in there you realise the house is not for you, and then the worry about negotiating is for nothing. Alternatively you may have a really good feeling that gives you the courage to negotiate. As Gregs says your solicitor could handle the negotiation, but equally I am sure these vendors will be prepared for some discussion. Why not have a look at mouseprice and the sold prices/valuations for the road and use this as back-up for any offer?

I saw your thread yesterday and agree you are in a quandry wrt to TW. I think you would be foolhardy to go against the advice of your solicitor if they do not insert the appropriate clause.

Firstly can you can a farmhouse in rolling acres, with roses around the door and ponies in the paddock in your dream location for £285k? No, I thought not!

I would definitely go and have a proper look at your neighbour's house and see whether it could really work for you. Take a builder around if need be and get him to cost any work you think you would need to make it right for you. If all of that is successful, get your solicitor on the case and you can start negotiating from there. Not sure who TW are, but sounds like they have been messing you around, so you may not lose all you think you will (with the help of a good solicitor). Good luck.

If the TW house is not negotiable then walk away. If it is not ideal and at the top of your budget then what is the point. Buying something substantially under your top budget and having the money to make changes is a better idea surely. New builds are generally not a good investment imho

Thanks, I'm still confused!! Well it is a nice house, probably similar in size to the new one. Their decor is quite dark so could easily be brightened up with lighter paint etc. They have a lot of built in storage which the new one doesn't have. The kitchen is small, but there is room to extend. There is a lot of cosmetic stuff to deal with. The ceilings are artexed, which I am not a fan of. The en-suite doesn't have an external window and is quite dark. But a lighter suite could help that.

I think we could spend the same as we would on the new one getting to our taste. It would be a bit of a project, but could be a family home for many years to come.

They've had it valued at about 270,000 as a starting price. The most recent sale in the road was 259,000 a couple of years ago and they are open to negotiation. DH liked it a lot, which surprised me as he is not a DIY person!

I think we will see whether TW wish to negotiate, if not our minds might be made up for us. If they will negotiate then we will have some serious considering to do. It might just boil down to location in the end!

PS Rindercella, sadly you are right

Am I right in thinking that you don't pay stamp duty on house swaps... so that'll save you £

I'd go for the older one. Or at least not buy the new one as it doesn't sound like you like ti very much.

I would pursue the house-swap option. Don't worry about negotiating. What was your house originally valued at as a starting asking price? & how does that compare with the £270k figure?
If you went straight for the TW p-ex option and didn't get the usual three valuations from local reputable agents, then do that - don't tell them what your plan is, obviously.

If you want to do the house-swap, then it ultimately comes down to how much you need to put into the pot on top of your place, so explore that in your own finances and factor in any work that needs to be done. Any additional enlargement/improvement can be done as & when future finances allow.

List the positives & negatives of both the TW option and the swap option. Measure the rooms in the swap house and work out square footage of both that and the TW new-build to get an idea of £ per square foot/value for money.

I don't think new-builds are ever without issues? Snags? So not necessarily the easier option. If the other house is 20 years old and has been well-maintained, although dated? then could be the better option.

Not taking into account the awful situation regarding high risk with the contracts on the table from TW.........................

I hope the house-swap works out the better option and you can tell them where to stuff it. I know you will suffer a loss, but is that bearable when considering best option for your long-term family home? Ask your solicitor about any advanced layout on fixtures & fittings you may have made - in my opinion, TW should not take any advanced payments in advance of exchange of contracts. What position regarding refund or alternatively getting yur hands on the materials that you have paid for? You may be able to sell or use in your alternative new home, if it comes to it.

Wishing you best of luck.
(I'm buying at the moment too. Feel sick mostly - not sure whether excitement or terror! )

Thank you lovely property people.

After a sleepless night I am definitely leaning towards the swap house. It works out as bigger room sizes in general although the hall and landing are smaller, but then how much time do you spend on the landing?! My list of pros and cons is weighed towards the swap house, particularly as the main pro for the new one is that it's new and won't (shouldn't ) need any work, it's nice and that's it!! The swap house is in a better location, hopefully we can negotiate a decent deal, it feels much more homely, the garden is in a better position (facing west rather than north), it's not overlooked in any direction, and it's lovely

Having done more research on Zoopla it seems the most recent sale in the road was actually for 245,000 in 2009 and that house had a conservatory.

As for our house we had it valued at 185,000 as a starting price with a view to getting between 175 and 180,000. TW (Taylor Wimpey) have offered us 180 and are marketing it at 175 at the moment. So there is definitely room for manoeuvre with the swap house. Also as my mum pointed out there is much more chance to increase value on the swap rather than the new build.

DH and I are waiting to see how TW respond to our solicitor and we'll decide from there. I just want to get on with it now!! I'm getting excited for the swap now, and it doesn't help that I can see it from our bedroom window!

Thanks again for the advice, I was getting the point where I couldn't think straight and focussing too much on the money we might lose to TW. Writing it all down has helped me get my head straight.

Good luck with your move mylovelymonster, terrifying isn't it!

I would suggest that if you and the other people are serious, then you would be sensible to both pay for an independent valuation (not an estate agent's 'market appraisal'), which will be done by a surveyor, and will be more of a cautiously guided price than an estate who is trying to get your business. You can then agree your swap deal accordingly. You would perhaps also want to get a surveyor to give you a building survey so you are aware of any issues with the property.

Bear in mind that the other family will be saving money by not selling using an estate agent, so 1-2%, you can take this into account in your negotiations too.

This one sounds much better than the new build!

Room sizes will def be larger in the older house!!!

The size of rooms in new builds makes me

Your mum is right, you can make the older house yours with new decor, maybe even an extension eventually....

Good luck x

Still no news from TW . A bit shoddy I feel! Strangely I've not heard from the sales office and they've usually been calling at least once a week. DH insists we can't make any decision until we have a final response from TW. So the waiting goes on..... We are now nearly two weeks past the exchange deadline and the fixed completion is 24th Feb. I'm going nuts not knowing what the hell is going on!!

Sorry, needed to share that