Ready-to-move-in vs. 'project' house?! Aaargh - how to decide?!

[flow4]

I'm going round and round in circles, and just wonder whether any of you good people might have any information, ideas or opinions that might help me make some decisions...

I found a house I liked - not perfect, but very nice and practical, for £130k. It has a new, good quality kitchen and bathroom, but will need rewiring and a bit of patching up. Unfortunately (a) the vendor isn't ready to move and doesn't want to be hurried, and (b) it's probably only worth £125, and maybe not even quite that, since the local market is stagnant. I offered and was rejected, raised and was rejected again, and we've stalled... So I started looking again.

I'm thinking again about another house I saw last summer, but rejected at the time because it needs so much work. It will need a new kitchen, bathroom, a wall that has been put up in a silly place knocking down again, rewiring, a new gas CH/hot water system, and total redecoration. It's in a better location with a great, open view. It also has new windows and doors, compared with 10-15yo ones on the other house. It's on the market at £120, but has been for almost a year, so could probably be bought for £110-115k.

Both houses are ex-council 3 bed semis with garages, with good gardens, on similar sized patches, in different but nearby villages.

Other similar houses are to be found for around £130-140k, but I haven't seen any I like yet.

The question is, is £15k enough to do the work that the second house will need? I'm estimating costs as follows, with some work done at 'mates rates'...
Bathroom - £2k
Kitchen - £4k
Walls knocking down, possible RSJ and replastering - £4k
New boiler and system - £4k
Redecoration (labour and paint) - £1k
Do these figures sound reasonable? (I'm in Yorkshire btw).

Also, both houses will need rewiring; does anyone know what I should budget for that?

In my dreams, I'd also like a little garden room extension and an basic loft room... What sort of ball park figures should I pencil in?!

The other question, of course, is whether I can face taking on so much work! I don't know the answer to that one yet, so if anyone has any experiences they'd like to share of their own house projects, please do! (I would be able to stay in my current house while work is being done on a new one, for a month or so anyway).

Sorry for such a long post, and thank you if you've read all the way though... I'm a single parent, and need someone to talk all this through with really; but if you lot are happy to help, I might be able to stop my head exploding!

[flow4]

Yes, I am definitely tempted. I am also tempted to go round and knock on the vendors' door and find out whether it's them messing me about, or the EA messing me or both of us about.

Someone told me today that EAs aren't regulated. I didn't know that. It means there's no-one I can complain to. Which is a shame, because I can prove they've misled me, either intentionally or thru negligence.

[redwellybluewelly]

I'm really sorry you are being messed around. We had massive issues buying two houses after accepting a good offer on my house (DH had already sold his) and eventually had to move into rented.

With the first house EA accepted our offer and we had a structural report on a crack in the wall, cost involved was deducted from our offer but vendors wished to proceed. Two weeks later the EA showed around another couple and they put in a bid and gazumped us. Then the next house we went round and round in circles, huge amount of work required, breach of planning legislation which our solicitors said was costly to sort out and I eventually informed the EA we either exchanged with the lower offer or pulled out. We pulled out.

I've just finished my dinner in my light bright kitchen watching a mummy and daddy blackbird build a nest in the garden while dd sleeps in her bedroom which is perfect. Honest. The right house will come up and you will have a home. Our house needs work and has had work done in the past eight months, but its been our home since the day we got the keys.

[AliceWChild]

Weasels!

[flow4]

Thank you red :) And yes, Alice. At best!

[flow4]

Turns out you can complain about EAs:
link to OFT site

[coffeewineandchocolate]

have you seen any other properties you like that you could use to say you are sick of the messing about and will go with that one

[flow4]

Not really coffee. Which is not to say one won't come up...

I'm planning to speak to the branch manager today and make it clear that I have proof (recorded answer phone messages) that they misled me and have breached the Estate Agents Act 1979.

I am still considering going round to the vendor. One of my good friends is best mates with his sister, and she reckons he's a decent man who'd be horrified by what's going on...

[AliceWChild]

Sounds like a good plan flow

[AliceWChild]

And the extra they defrauded from you can come out of their commission

[flow4]

If they're on 1%, like most round here, it won't even begin to cover it Alice. My final offer was £10k over my first one, and their commission will be £1.1-1.2k.

[AliceWChild]

Weasels! It's a impossible position for both you and the vendor. Not as in sale can't happen, but as in there's nothing that can be done to put it right by you both. They can't unknow what you would pay. Weasel EA!

[flow4]

EA just called to say that the other bidder's finances have been confirmed, they have made a higher offer, and the vendor has accepted it.
I've been bloody gazumped, haven't I?! :(

[Piffpaffpoff]

Sounds like it.

[doglover]

Oh no, F4 . I'm so sorry to hear that.

[flow4]

Thanks. I am really, really, really, really fed up about it. :(
And cross.

[coffeewineandchocolate]

sounds like you marry be better off out of it. you will find an amazing house for your family eventually

[coffeewineandchocolate]

May not marry!

[flow4]

Thought you were proposing for a moment there coffee!

[mamapants]

Oh no!! So sorry to hear that.
It was probably a rubbish house anyway no where near as nice as the one you'll end up with.
We missed out on a house we liked as we didn't put an offer in quick enough as I was 39 weeks pregnant when we found it. And then we found our dream house that was everything we wanted. Am sure same thing will happen for you!

[coffeewineandchocolate]

gosh no! planning weddings is worse than house buying!

[AliceWChild]

Boo. It was a rubbish house anyway. There'll be a better one

[flow4]

We could just elope and get married on a beach somewhere sunny...?
__This is called putting a brave face on. I could cry really.--

[camtt]

of course, accepting an offer doesn't mean the vendors will manage to sell the property. We found a house we really liked, stretched ourselves as far as we felt comfortable with our best and final offer and were disappointed to hear that another offer 10k higher had been made the same day but we let it go rather than stretch to a point we felt uncomfortable with. 6 weeks later the EA called to say the first sale had fallen through. We bought the house at our original best and final offer but if we hadn't, something else would have come up in the end.

[flow4]

Thanks :) That's good to hear camtt :) I've spent all eve looking for other houses. Not found any I'd want to live in...

[PastaBeeandCheese]

Aaah flow. That's rubbish news.

I'm really sorry.