Which of these houses would you buy?

[AWombWithoutARoof]

Have had an offer accepted on House A, survey results show penetrating damp, asbestos in outbuildings and woodworm. It's in need of complete redecoration, but I viewed it with a builder who didn't think there was anything major (patches of damp are small).

It's walkable to DD's primary school where she starts in September, it's a roomy 1930s semi with a long back garden. Also walkable to 2 good mates with kids the same age as DD.

House B is 10 years old, on an estate of very nicely designed houses (not your typical new build box). It has the same amount of space, but a smaller garden. It's not decorated to my taste at all, but nothing needs doing, from what I can see. Not made offer or done survey, this is a last minute consideration.

It's 1.7 miles from the school, so would need to drive DD to school. Same distance to friends, although the estate is very child-friendly, lots of bikes left outside front doors etc. so I'm sure we'd meet more people, as would DD.

DP is worried that with House A it will take us years to get it finished, as we'll be paying a higher mortgage than we are now and money will be tight. I'm by nature more optimistic, and love doing up houses, so that doesn't bother me as much. We'd also of course be adding more value to House A, but can see that House B would be much more of a known quantity and therefore less stressful.

Which would you pick?

Is a bigger and cheaper?

Absolutely house A, no question.

A.

Location matters more especially for school runs. When it is chucking down with rain and there's heavy traffic you don't want to be stuck in the car.

Also great to have friends nearby and a new garden.

I suspect A has bigger rooms?

I do prefer older houses but I think you are underestimating what would be involved in house A. The years of mess and worrying about paying for it all before you can get on with your lives are hard to take. My choices have always been the nicest house with most potential but oh boy, it has been hard. What is your gut telling you to do?

I'd go for house a, but I'm much more heart than head when it comes to houses, and I'm still not necessarily sure that that's the best way to be.

Although I am happier in my house now that has issues and needs work than I was in my last 'safe' house.

This might sound a bit silly bit which street/area/house feels more 'you'? I've made a lot more friends in my new place I think because people are similar to me and drawn to the area for the same reasons.

House A. 1930s character is lovely, and the proximity to school and friends is worth its weight in gold.

Also, value in the longer term is linked to scarcity. They are not building any more 1930s houses. They are building plenty more 'nice' modern houses on estates.

House B. Asbestos and damp? No chance. Not unless you relish big renovations.

Definitely house A. The fixing up part won't last that long, and when it's done, you'll have it all - location, friends nearby, nice house. The best thing to do is when you get started on the redecoration, have a plan of attack as to what you want/need to get done first and organise it as much as possible. Plus doing it yourself can not only be fun but is less expensive and kind of satisfying.

1.7 miles is not far tho is it ?

How long do you plan to be in this house, is it your forever home ?

I'm not sure what I would do. Renovations can be so time and money consuming and new houses can be so easy (and warm) in comparison

House A. It will be more solid than House B.

Thanks so much for the replies. Will try to provide more info.

My dream house would be a Huf House, a Baufritz or a Frank Lloyd Wright, so neither of these are quite that!

We are moving because we need more space, we currently live in a teeny 1930s terrace that we've done up, and will be renting out. Our current house is 300 yards from the school, and 5 mins walk from the local amenities (cafe, restaurant, chemist, shop). House A would be 10 mins walk from these same things. House B is a 5/10 min walk from a village shop/post office, and a 2 min drive from the amenities above.

They are the same price, both the same distance from the beach, the estate has a path onto the beach, whereas House A is a 5 mins walk through residential streets.

Both areas are desirable, I think. There are quite a few houses for sale on the estate, the biggest ones, maybe people over committed in the property boom, I don't know. House B is the smallest house on the estate!

We lived on the estate for 6 weeks while our current house was being done up, and it has a nice feel. Our current location (same as house A) is also lovely.

House A without a shadow of a doubt (we actually had the same wobble when our scary survey came back on the 1930s house we're buying but decided to stick with it).

Being able to walk to school/friends is fab.

I don't see penetrating damp as a problem, just fix whatever is causing it (cracked render or pointing that needs re-doing?). Asbestos in outbuildings also wouldn't concern me, just leave it be. The house we're buying has woodworm, so we're just getting it treated.

In terms of value the poster above is absolutely right, nice modern houses on nice estates are common already, and with the increase in house building that's needed they will become ten a penny, whereas 1930s houses will always be desirable and will only ever get proportionally rarely compared to the rest of housing stock.

I mean rarer, sorry, typing too fast!

We also noticed that lots of houses on the nice estate that was our alternative have come up for sale since we started looking, whereas the 1930s house we're buying was the only one that's come up in the area we like, they get snapped up straight away.

If I had to pick one then A, but allow for it costing 3 times as much to fix than you expect and taking much, much longer. If that doesn't put you off then go for it.

Don't like the sound of B.

Does it have to be one of those two?

House A will be the only one in our immediate area that is that size and within our price range, due to the work needed and it being a repossession. There's another on sale at the moment that's about the same size, but 20 grand more.

Mrs, why don't you like the sound of House B? Not keen on new houses in general? I normally hate them, unless they're what I described above!

Sorry, didn't answer whether it needs to be one of these. I think House A is a good deal, unlikely to be frequently found in this area, and, as house prices are climbing here, I'm worried about it being our 'last chance'. As we already have had the offer accepted, if we're going to let it go, I feel we need a viable alternative.

Because it will be a stretch financially (not ridiculous, just needing to be careful all the time, reducing meals out etc) I'm keen not to make a mistake whichever direction we go in. As I said, DP is more worried about the finances than me, and I don't want to take something on that's going to cause him to be stressed and grumpy ALL THE TIME.

Why are you not selling the terraced house and then funding all the work on house A immediately? It would then not take years if you did this. You will end up maintaining two properties which can be expensive and bills when you do not have tenants. Renting out is not all win win.

Definetly A

We need to rent out the small house because we are borderline negative equity, and that's not taking into consideration the 25 grand we spent doing it up.

We wouldn't be moving into a house with no contingency at all, but it's likely to only be 3 or 4 grand after we've covered fees, movers etc. Also, with House A we need to be mindful that the amenities have been cut off and the boiler is old.

I suppose with House A we can clean the mould off, stick the paper back down and buy loads of emulsion, but anything more than that is likely to need to wait til we've saved up. DP is worried about the length of time the saving will take as we'll have less spare cash per month.

Sorry, all my posts are really long!

A for me, for sure, you can add value, sell it and then get your dream. I hate paying for immaculate houses that aren't in a style I like.

Just in case the word 'estate' is putting people off, it's more like a 'development'

It's not gated but it only has one way in, plus countryside views.

It's only the decor of the new house I don't like. Whilst it's not my dream, architecturally it's rather nice.

Without a doubt house A and live frugally while you do it up.
If you come to sell it'll be more desirable than B and probably appreciate in value more.

Selling a house on an estate can be a nightmare if there's a lot of competition, which there often is.

If the boiler in House A is old, I would consider one of those plans with your energy company that repairs/replaces boilers in the event of a fail, as soon as you move in. Just make sure you shop around for the best plan.