where can I find a period property to renovate - has anyone done this?

[loveroflife]

is there any auction websites that list wrecks that you can do up?

the local estate agents are useless and besides have their contacts that any rundown properties get passed to...

has anyone managed to find a dream period property and renovated it? if so, how do you find it?

thank you

homes.trovit.co.uk/period-requiring-renovation

www.theperiodpropertymarketplace.co.uk

www.unusualhomes.co.uk/index.php?action=page_display&PageID..

I typed in 'period properties to buy, for renovation ' into my search engine and these are just three of what turned up.

HTH

These guys should have a few properties worth looking at.SPAB

FWIW, we have renovated 2 properties since we've been married - one Grade 11 listed in a conservation area, and the second one just Grade 11 listed. Both swallowed money and required huge amounts of paperwork and jumping through hoops to get the work done. Be warned!

However, you're either the kind of person who wants to do it (like me) - I think of it as a 'calling' or you'd rather spend your money and time on other things.

thank you shimmering - that's not so much what I'm looking for as with those sites as some of those have already been renovated...

I wonder if there's an auction site anywhere? I think I'll have to go and visit the agents again, I was thinking of contacting the council to also see if there is any neglected properties and even thought about posting a letter through a couple of wrecks I like (even though I'm sure someone lives in one of them!)

any other ideas from anyone who has found a neglected farmhouse/barn down a country lane, renovated the whole thing and lived happily every after?!

Ahh, right!

If you come across a 'wreck' as you call it , that you really want, and it seems to be unoccupied, try making contact at the houses/pubs/shops whatever that are close by.

Locals often know a lot more than estate agents do, and may know where to get hold of owners or relatives!

thanks ishould - exactly what I want - I have to be a member of SPAB though to see the property list?

is that where you found your houses? those projects sound great - how did you find them, what did you do and how long did they take? I'd love to know....you can PM me if you'd prefer not to share here..

don't worry - the bigger the project the better, where there's a will there's a way!

Have you looked at this website
Or this
There are a few others out there, the one I was thinking of's name escapes me but if I remember I'll post it.

DH and I think that someone should rescue this poor cottage

thank you wonky - so helpful, they look great - anymore would be greatly received...

I found a property by walking the area and identifying derelicts. Traced owners through the Land Registry and made them a direct cash offer. I did this a number of times couldn't track the person, they refused my offer etc until I got a house.

oh well done anatanacoat - did you have to widen your search or were there quite a few derelicts where you lived? how long did it take you to find your property? that sounds amazing

We just found one on rightmove. Beautiful - it's Georgian. Very cheap, but hola at the windows and ceilings....

it needs serious cosmetic work.

oh stop making me jealous rooners! where are you based? there seems to be hardly any where we are! lucky you - enjoy that project....

We've done a reasonable amount of renovation on a Georgian/Victoria property twice now. What we've found is that there's isn't usually a discount (in fact sometimes the opposite) for taking on a house in a state.

oh right that's interesting to know bramshott - how did you find your renovations if you don't mind me asking?

We just trawled the usual house websites for a year or so, with saved searches involving the words "period", "cottage" and "renovation"

Hello OP

Have done several houses but none needing complete renovation.
We found them from estate agents but was a while ago.
If you don't require a mortgage and can go to auctions you can pick up a good buy. However, you need to include you time looking at the houses and travelling back and two, time off work etc. It can get expensive before you actually buy.
Each time we did it the EA found the properties at the back of the old dusty books they used to keep. Those they had given up on.
We did a country cottage. An award winning ex council property c 1960's retro. The present 1920's 4 bed semi we live in, very Art deco style. We got lots of original features repaired from salvage and period specialists. Not quite done yet. just bought an 1800s 2 up/down terrace typical corrie style with cobbled street.

Oh I didn't mean to! Was just saying - they can be found quite easily on rightmove from my searching so far. I just look at anything that looks appealing to me within the area. I have an eye for run down, skanky looking houses

The first time I did it it took me about six months, and it was in a city so just walking the area regularly did it as it was so dense. Got the house for less than one tenth of its value and also inspired a local housing association to buy the ones either side and bring those back into use for two lovely families, so all in all a really positive move.

In rural areas the thing to do is to make yourself known to local busybodies and shopkeepers, pizza delivery etc. If you want to bring a property into use and actually live in it, not holiday in it, people are generally quite pleased to help out.

I'm actually done with this now as I am preparing to move into our "forever home" (sorry for the yuck), a complete wreck which we did actually buy through an EA. Locals who knew what we were looking for tipped us off as soon as it went on the market so we got the jump. It's nearly nearly finished, hurrah!

Oh meant to say, this last one took us five years to find. We had several disappointments and almosts and gazumpings etc along the way but it was so so worth it.

We restored and converted a disused church a couple of years ago. The Church of Scotland were selling it off and we found it here (entirely accidentally, as it happens): www.churchofscotland.org.uk/about_us/property_and_church_buildings/properties_for_sale
Not just churches, if you don't particularly want to restore a church - also manses/vicarages, schoolhouses, church halls, outbuildings and street properties owned by the church. Expect the Church of England has a similar resource, if you want to be in England. I previously also restored an old crofter's cottage which I found the way Anatanacoat describes, by getting known locally and eventually being approached by the owner of a local country estate who (like many estate owners) was property rich but far too cash poor to restore and maintain his buildings.

Do you want to restore something into a forever home to live in yourself, or do it up and sell it on at a profit? Certainly the church was (and is - we still tinker about with interior decor, lighting, grounds, services etc) a labour of love and there were some awful periods through which we had to remind ourselves how much we loved the building, how much we wanted to preserve a piece of local history and how spectacular it would be when done, just to keep going. Evacuating the foundations by hand was particularly gruelling. Watching heavy machinery work precariously near the priceless pictorial stained glass windows was heart-in-mouth stuff. I couldn't have worked as we did knowing it would be sold on afterwards - but I suppose that's just a personal and individual thing.

Have you ever done any renovations?
Why don't you start with smaller projects, get to know your builders, and make the basic mistakes where it will be fairly cheaper, then move to wrecks and proper period houses?

we've knocked a few walls down and helped fit a kitchen - that's about it! we're not scared though, dying for a project.

we don't really have the funds to do lots of smaller projects tbh, our next home is hopefully our forever home - something we can renovate and do ourselves, it's just finding it...

I've dropped a note into two houses yesterday, so that's a start and re: the closed churches cometesse I had a look at the CofE list yesterday, it was listed on one of the websites that someone helpfully linked to upthread.

there's none in our area, but here it is if anyone is interested: www.churchofengland.org/clergy-office-holders/pastoralandclosedchurches/closedchurches/closed-churches-available.aspx

so great to hear everyone else's stories - sounds like there's some real successes out there - gives me lots of hope...

Speaking from experience, I suspect it wouldn't be a huge amount of fun if your funds are very limited.

There will be horrid moments when things are in much worse state than you anticipated, but have to be fixed right now, and having a generous financial buffer there makes it somewhat less stressful. As it is, we mainly haven't addressed any of the decorative elements at all, just because money has gone on invisible structural things.

Just remember that it will cost at least twice what you estimate and take more than three times as long!