location location location?

[madbutnormal]

Hi need advice. After losing one property need to find one fast.its a small rural area and need to stay close for schools ect. Planning to leave abusive situation
Have seen two houses
A is modern ex council. Everything I need with huge garden and always wanted to live in this Lane
B is better area but needs £20000 spending on it as lived in by an OAP. This means I would have £10000 equity appx
House b is not liveable at moment
Dsil says no to ex council as " you will be going from middle class comfort to a dump and think of kids"
Need to decide by 12 noon Monday and desperate to leave here
Help

Could you link to the houses?

How sure are you of the renovations costs on house B? These things can add up to a lot more than expected. Did you have anyone experienced have a look around it with you?

Also have you quizzed the estate agents of both houses, on the vendors readiness to sell? Are they both chain free?

Hi thanks for reply. Both empty and chain free. Not sure how to link but would if I could, the £10000 is the amount it would have, to be as have no more to spend.

What % of the ex council stock is now owner occupied? Is it clear that there is a demand for properties in this location?

Over 80% are private but all were once council. It has a sort of council house look about it iyswim

"always wanted to live in this lane" - well, its a no brainer then really.

Normally I would say location, location every time but it sounds as if there is not so much to choose between the 2. Ignore your SIL by the way.
Often ( but not always) council houses were built to higher quality and space standards than private developers Again ( usually ) council properties were well maintained and upgraded.

You know both areas What is your gut feeling?

With regards to the doer uper. Nothing is unliveable unless the property is not wind and watertight or the electrics are unsafe. You could do it up bit by bit and as funds allow.

It really depends on the ex-council- some are in streets that were all bought up, and are lovely areas now, with ordinary working people just going about their lives, taking care of their neighbourhood,etc. If it's still slapbang in an estate known for its ASBOs, then perhaps not the right one!

Most ex-council properties have more generously-proportioned rooms in them than older properties.

House b has dangerous electrics and just a v old sink in kitchen. Have lived with worse but had a builder dh/now deceased and no kids. BTW house b is opp some council properties. Just don't want to bite off more than I can chew or afford but plan to escape from abuse as kids break up for summer

If A is in an area you're happy with, is it perhaps a sensible option given the reasons for your move? It could be one less thing to think about, not having renovations to worry about.

There is ex-council and there is ex-council.
We are in a ex-counci house and the neighbours either side are still council tenants. However most of the rest of the street is owner occupied and the rest of the estate is private.
I do know what you mean about houses that 'look council' though. Our house looks like a regular bay fronted semi and we didn't know it was ex-council until is came up in the searches.

I would go for A as the area seems ok. It seems much easier especially if you are planning on doing it up by yourself while needing to live in it.

Post the webiste links on your post so we can see how unliveable they are.

What area is it if you don't mind me asking?

We lived in a 50s ex council I loved it! Absolutely loved it. Huge rooms huge sunny garden just loved it. One of my favourite houses that we lived in.

How long has house B been empty? If more than 2 years you can get reduced VAT (5%) on re-wiring and plumbing works etc

Going to have a go at linking.its lashing it down here now. Deadline extended to Tuesday noon. Grew up in. Council house and loved roaming free. Mnrs I am stuck have copied pics to my sons hurls clipboard but not sure how to go from there?

Council houses can be ace. Ours is. We often joke that the walls are made of depleted uranium or something, because we can't drill into them and no sound travels through. Council tenants (proper council, not H.A) tend to be very stable populations because council tenancies are gold-plated and you'd be mad to give one up once you've got one.

I think if you're escaping DV then you could probably do with putting your feet up after you've moved. Renovations take up a lot of time and energy and always, always cost more than you think. Wiring and kitchen, with attendant replastering etc., will cost a lot. It's never nice not to have any savings for emergencies.

Good luck whatever you decide. Well done for making plans to get out.