Tell me i am utterly barking for wanting this house

[EdgarAllanPond]

oh you beautiful thing

it is 1) at the top of our current budget for purchase, and to afford the renovations we'd have to sell my parents house and live on site with my parents until sufficiently good to mortgage

2) a listed building so not cheap or easy to do (even given potential funding)

3) no second property, even if you got permission to convert the barn (haha, listed building permission and planning permission) then my folks would be living in the yard....not the 'two clearly separate houses' we were hoping for (have been living in parents house 8 months now...gngngn)

4) i think the walls are allowing damp to blow through, and the brickwork is part of the listing....house opposite was rendered prior to listing for probs this reason - roof will also need felting at least, presuming the timbers are ok..

5) DH would have to quit his job to renovate it, living by himself on site (until we sold parents house) then get another job in order to re-finance with a mortgage once reasonably complete....

6) chance of getting planning for running small van site/ glamping site (to fund me being a SAHM) near to virtually nil even given the pleasant 5 acres attached

basically i need Mumsnet to tell me all the woes of listed buildings, planning, and that actually it isn't that nice.....and we'd probably enjoy ourselves more in a leaky shack burning money to keep warm....

or one of you should buy it so it stops tempting me :)

(off out to shop, back in an hour or five)

[ouryve]

You've already listed the things you know about in your OP, but what about the things you discover in the process? What if you, your DH or your parents become ill?

Even doing the obvious is going to be pushing you to your limit. You would start with no wriggle room and it's a known fact, that even with the best planning, wriggle room tends to be used up pretty early in the renovation process.

[noobieteacher]

Do your maths first. Anything is possible as long as you can afford it.

You are doing several things.

Glamping = costs include
Initial building of facilities - could easily be £50k
Running costs - insurance + your time on site + fuel and costs related to facilities - cost of your time
Income - £200 per night average? Work this out comparing to other sites nearby.

House if you simply restore and renovate (thereby avoiding planning issues and will be cheaper) - £100k? Allowance for price hike at auction - £100k?

Rental of accommodation while building work takes place - you can't expect GPs to live in a caravan, even if you are happy to.

I think it's a lovely house and a feasible renovation because it seems to have well proportioned rooms that won't need knocking through. It also is made of slightly more modern materials and won't be as hard to maintain. The outbuildings may be more complicated though.

[ExitPursuedByABear]

It is fabulous. And all that land.

But yes, unless you have loads of money, absolutely barking.

[yellowballoons]

Having lived in a house much like that, no way.

Main word. Cold.

It even looks cold outside too [can you tell I have been influenced by my childhood?]

[cardamomginger]

We're doing up a house that was a bomb within a bomb when we bought it. We bought it 4 YEARS AGO AND IT'S STILL NOT FINISHED. It has put at times almost intolerable strain on our family. Yes, the finished house will be great and there's no way we could have afforded this size of house otherwise. But many times I've thought, I just want a home to live in, not the 'perfect' house. Many times I have cursed the day I went onto the estate agents' website and spotted the sodding thing.

Think carefully. Do not underestimate the time, stress and money it will cost you.

[Lovecat]

Like Mme Lindor, my first thoughts were that it looks creepy. Like people got murdered there. I really, really wouldn't.

[dawntigga]

1. If you can't afford to buy it and at least make it water tight or stop it from decaying further straight away there's no point.
   
   
2. Listed buildings are a PITA to do up, they take more time and cost more than you think it will
   
   
3. Speak to the planning officer and find out if you planning is even possible given the listing and surrounding area. If you're in an area that needs houses this might be doable but expect loads of road blocks and planning control.
   
   
4. Get somebody who knows about this kind of work to quote before putting in an offer, if you can live with the heart condition the quote gives you then think about it again.
   
   
5. Why can't you project manage it? If you are the main earner in the house and it makes financial sense for dh to renovate it will he be doing the work himself? If so this will take CONSIDERABLY longer than getting in builders, will your relationship survive that?
   
   
6. See point 3
   
   
7. It's a money pit, but it's a bloody lovely money pit. If you're heart is set on it and it's your forever home then go for it. As long as you bear in mind the strain your relationship and finances will be under while you are doing it.
   
   NotExactlyWhatYouWereLookingForButIHopeItHelpsTiggaxx

[glastocat]

God no, total money pit. It would be nice if it was in half decent nick, but in your circs I'd say you would be completely mad.

[yellowballoons]

I am running away from things like that.
I have lived and do live in areas that develepors are snapping up.
Well, thank you very much, but some of us are taking the money, and running in the other direction.

Would give a warning actually.
People come in, do something up, live there for a couple of years, and then sell.
They either get a divorce, or realise late in the day, that they have used their money, but have no income to keep everything running, including, normally, horses.


Some people do it for the dream, and maybe dont regret it, but dreams dont pay the everyday bills eventually.

There is an add on actually.
The place then changes hands two or three times, before someone really wealthy takes over, and settles down.

It has been happening like this for years now in our area, as house prices where I live were one of the first areas in the country to start sky rocketting.

[FlatCapAndAWhippet]

I love it....but you're not in a position to do it. You don't have the available cash, the risk that everything goes according to plan is too high.

[yellowballoons]

Suppose I should add though, that yes, the surrounding areas are generally geogeous. And quiet. And no crime. And safe. And have a community.
oops, I am in danger of staying!

[CheckpointCharlie]

I think you would regret it. It's all a bit reliant on things going well, ie your DH getting a job just when he needs to once the work is done, people wanting to camp there, your parents house selling.

It is lovely and has masses of potential but seems very dear given its state.

[valiumredhead]

I wouldn't because it's listed, that alone would out me off.

[valiumredhead]

I don't think 200k would go anywhere near doing it up , double that probably !

[GrendelsMum]

No, don't be daft. You just don't have the money for it. It's at the top of your budget, and therefore you don't have the money to renovate and tackle unexpected problems.

What's more, I can't see how you get a good sized bathroom upstairs, and that leaves you with your bathroom downstairs after restoration, which isn't great for a fairly expensive house.

Take it from me, renovating a listed building is sometimes quite tough, even if you have all the money you need, a house you can move into straight away, and are fairly laid back people.

We're onto year five, and DH and I are still sleeping on a mattress in a room with no curtains. But we do have four walls and a ceiling in every room, so we're feeling quite positive atm.

[BackforGood]

I love the fact the estate agent's blurb starts with...

"needs a degree of renovation", like it needs a new bathroom suite or something


Having watched lots of 'Grand Designs' type programmes, I wouldn't do it. They ALWAYS take far longer than needed and ALWAYS run over budget and ALWAYS interview the couple who say - "If we knew how hard it was going to be we'd never have started" and their opening projections in terms or money and time and not living on site with parents and not having to work with the fact it's a listed building, are usually more optimistic than yours.

That said, lovely property, site, and view

[yellowballoons]

Do you regret your decision GrendelsMum, if you dont mind me asking?

[BackforGood]

Is it just me who is hopeless at UK Geography or does anyone else wish estate agents would give you a little map as to where in the country all the properties linked to on MN are ?

[EdgarAllanPond]

Hello again,

yes, i think the listing status is very sobering - having seen what matey last night on renovation home went through with a non-listed cruck frame (lovely end result, 3 years to get planning, still fighting planning for extension, getting completely screwed by planning committee, all with Myr Renovation going 'ah, you'd never get listed building consent to do that')

our renovation experience so far:

1 bedroom timber-frame bungalow (Dh & dad completely re-built interior)
mothers 5-bed edwardian house (mostly plasterwork, refreshing paintwork & two new bathrooms, though front facade was completely re-built ten years ago..always a liveable house though)
our 2-bed 1930's bungalow (slow refurb of already functional house)

so DH is a 'very competent DIY-er' which isn't enough for most listed building work as far as i can see....

My mum actually had a house listed back in the 80's in order to get the funding for a new gable wall, but that was then, and this is now...

[yellowballoons]

Well you do at least have some experience.

[HerrenaHarridan]

It's quite nice, but so are lots if places.

It's also complete unsuitable for your long term needs.

[LeoandBoosmum]

I can see the draw but don't touch that with a barge pole unless you have a LOT of money and time to dedicate to it!

[nancerama]

I love it, but a very wise lady once advised my family "never buy a Georgian home - your hand will never be out of your pocket"

[EdgarAllanPond]

MIL bought a listed thatched building and 60k into the work, i have been saying for the last 8 years how it was a very silly thing to buy.

it was in reasonable condition when she bought it too.

This house is close to bath, just a mile or two from the M5 - completely new area to us.

And yes the position does look cold - slightly exposed, it's up on a roman road stretch - no shelter. i really don't like cold.

what we want in a house is

1. land (at least an acre)
   
2. two distinct houses or potential for that
   
3. not thatched or (haha) listed
   
4. in south central area
   
   so this place actually does not fulfill probably two of those....

[GrendelsMum]

Do we regret it?

Mmmmm - to be honest, at times we both do, and I think that honestly, it wasn't a very sensible choice. I do get pissed off with the constraints it puts on us, the costs, and the need to go and choose stuff. Worst thing is when you think you've sorted a room and then something later down the line screws it up again.

However, it is beautiful, and I now can't imagine living somewhere different.