What is an un-renovated property?

[harbinger]

Or a doer-upper?
Do all the original walls need to be in place, all the fire places and chimneys?
Or does it mean really awful deco and not touched since the 70s?
Is there a demand outside London?

Don't go there. I did, it will bring you nothing but heartache. Unless you are a builder I think it's a bad idea, I got taken for a ride and 15 years later my house is still a shit hole. Buy something dated, but not in need of an overhaul.

Unrenovated means that it needs both cosmetic updating as well as new wiring and probably new plumbing / heating system. The house may possibly new windows and a new roof and could suffer from damp issues. If the issues are more serious than that, the its derelict rather than unrenovated in my view.

Sounds awful, :(
Even dated means miles of gloss paint though...........(don't like the smell).

Ah, now when it come to windows....original sash in situ and not too bad, some have been painted shut. Replace the whole lot for better energy conservation?

No! Shutters added to windows provide similar heat retention and energy savings as double glazing and is much cheaper. If they are in good condition, just get them draft proofed and invest in shutters or some thermal curtains.

Am I right in thinking that some conservation areas are 'iffy' about removing existing sash windows or did I dream that?

you need planning permission to replace some windows, see Fenca. Renovating is very costly and burdensome . Do your homework first and get all the advice you can.

Fensa I meant to say,

Unrenovated - I would expect to replace:

Bathroom
Kitchen
Windows
Flooring
Existing heating with Central Heating
Possible rewire depending on stateof electrics but probably a new electrics board with modern RCD.
Paint walls and ceilings (could be those awful polysterene ceiling tiles)
Maybe a bit of damp to deal with
Maybe garden to tidy up / fence.

I would say our current house was unrenovated when we bought it:

Needed new roof
No heating
1950's kitchen and bathroom
Needed full redecoration (had those not so lovely ceiling tiles!)
Several windows needed replacing
Awful beige fireplaces

It was a lot of work and stress, and I'm not sure I'd do it again, although I did say that after our first renovation property but fell in love with this house.

We could only afford to do it as we managed to buy the house very cheaply. In our area unrenovated properties take a long time to sell.

Unrennovated = money pit??

Yep, Money pit, They make it look so easy on telly. Leave it to the professionals, buy something ok ish, you will I promise get ripped off. Unless you are a builder leave well alone.

I've seen those polystyrene ceiling tiles. Presumably they were put up to hide cracks (not for insulation). They must be a fire hazard.

That would be a ceiling plastering job then...........

It all tots up doesn't it?

Unless you can do most of the work yourself then I would leave it alone. Ive done a few up but only one that needed total renovation. Took a year working each evening after work and weekends. I lived in one room of the house for a while and had to cook on a gas camping stove for months. Its worth it if you don't mind the upheaval however.

Ours is a 'doer-upper' - we knew before we bought that it needed:

New roof
Re-wire
Re-plumb
Central heating upgraded (new rads throughout)
Kitchen
Bathroom
Downstairs shower room removed and replaced with WC
Damp remediation
Insulating
New windows

It also needs:
Ceilings on two of the three floors re-plastered
Back garden kango-ed (is currently a concrete jungle)
Front garden & railings re-done
Painting
Carpeting/flooring throughout
Storage
Shower room renovated

Basically, we split into - what needs doing immediately, and what can wait. Cosmetics can be done whenever suits. I'd agree with DENMAN - if you don't mind the upheaval, then you get something that's entirely 'yours', rather than paying for someone else's effort.