How much to renovate and modernise this house?

[Mintyy]

any thoughts?

Also much appreciated would be any ideas as to why its so cheap for the area. Is there something very obvious I've missed?

I'm with roneik with regard to the costings offered here to upgrade the house.

The actual £ of the house itself doesn't surprise me, because it's
London.

Well as someone who has actually done a gut refurb on a house in SE London, I can assure that the estimates for the work people have posted are definitely in the ballpark

Does this house need a gut refurb?

Not necessarily but you cost each element individually when doing a gut refurb and so as someone who has done one, I know how much each individual job costs and the estimates people have provided are correct.

In the pics the house just looks messy. However, an agent wouldn't say it needs modernising unless it had more than just cosmetic upgrades needed. I think that is why people have given him detailed breakdowns of different jobs and how much they cost ahead of his viewing so he can see what it will cost if different things need doing-- typically a house that needs modernising will need plumbing and electrical work done and the consequent replastering and painting that accompanies that as a minimum. Adding in an additional bathroom would be recommended as well for a house this size

A total gut refurb (new roof, new windows, total replaster, restoring features etc) would be much more than most of the suggestions put forward and be closer to 100k for a house this large if done sympathetically (ie real sash windows rather than cheap pvc etc).

Don't know without having a bloody good nose round it , but there will be tons of interest in it for sure.

Looks like there's a primary school right next to it and another across the way. Maybe an infants and separate juniors?

Interesting and yes London prices are mad. Utterly.

Is my mind playing tricks on me or is the garden sloping quite steeply?

I would be checking on what needs to be done. I would expect it needs a new roof, electrical, heating and plumbing plus possibly some work done to cure damp problems. Since you need new kitchen and bathrooms anyway you might as well go the whole hog.

Now, this is where I differ from many... I have done gut renovations but did it to flip houses in the late 90's so I had to do everything in one go. As you plan to live in this house I suggest you do one thing at a time but do it so you are doing work now for later. So, when you rewire, figure out how you want your kitchen and bath to end up and have them wire to that plan. I would do the plumbing at the same time as you redo your bathroom. Windows look old and I wouldn't bother replacing them but I would buy thermal curtains otherwise you will lose your shirt heating the place. With an old home you need lots of drafts otherwise you run the risk of mold if not properly ventilated. New windows that are not installed properly can cause lots of problems down the road.

While you can spend GBP50-100k doing the place up you can save a lot of money in numerous ways. In a couple of higher end homes that I sold in 2001 for GBP400k in the North West I used Wickes for kitchens but had a carpenter come in to customize both the kitchen and bathroom. I saved a fortune by doing as much myself as possible. When I got kitchen cabinets from Ikea I assembled them myself and hired someone to put them up. I would call around for granite countertops all the time. I rarely paid more than GBP1k for a full kitchen including undermount sinks, full backsplash, proper edging and etched drainage. As an aside, I only put in granite just before I sell if I think it needs it. I hate granite myself and prefer the linoluem countertops.

DH and I have just bought a row house in Hoboken, NJ USA and everyone is giving us quotes of $500k+ for renovations. When I have priced it out myself I can't get above $200k for installing central air, new roof, new wiring, two new kitchens, new windows (12 of them) 4 new bathrooms (3 full baths and 1 half) plus an outdoor kitchen. I just don't believe in going ultra high end. Ikea kitchen cabinets are damn good if installed correctly and I have 2nd hand high end appliances which are all less than 5 years old (I have picked up a viking stove, double fridge freezer and miele dishwasher for less than $5k in total whereas to buy new would have cost approx. $17k). Another neat trick is buy a 2nd hand solid wood high end kitchen and replace the cabinet doors. I helped friends with this and saved them over $30k on 'custom' cabinets.

I love this house too! I'd also put another bathroom in, and agree with everything Want2 has written above - including the cheaper kitchen & a carpenter to customise it. I'm out of touch with current prices (but not that out of touch) and think you can do a gorgeous refurb for quite a bit less than £50k. It does depend on how much you're prepared to sweat, though, and if you have time to invest. New bathroom separates, for instance, are absurdly cheap if you buy from wholesalers or manufacturers (most will sell singles) but then you don't get to see it all set up in a showroom. You can re-carpet an entire house with leftovers from a hotel job, if you put the effort into talking with suppliers and keeping faith with them.

It's very much a time + effort = money equation, and everyone's resources are different.

I don't do carpets anymore as we are in the US but Garlic is totally right about hotel and airport carpets. I got leftover carpet for next to nothing from when they were renovating airport lounges at Manchester airport.

I go with solid hardwood floors and found a great deal through companies renovating restaurants. You don't get better quality than that but you do pay more than carpeting. The floors in our old house had an inlaid trim which made them stand out. The trim was done by cutting a plank in half and staining it in much darker colour. On the stairs the planks were solid wood so I cut them down sideways so the ridge was made from the wood and I then didn't need carpet going down the stairs. It looked amazing and cost far less. These were coated multiple times with the UPC stuff to make them more resistent. If the buyers continue to coat them every 2-3 years they will be good for the next 30+ years. It cost me less than $500 to make my floors go from ordinary to custom masterpiece. The flooring for the whole house (about 2900 sqft) was $15k and I paid $3k for installation which included the finish. This was with paying union wages which are approx $50/hr. If I had gone the conventional route I would have paid $40k.

BTW - the kitchen area is crying out for cabinets down the other wall and for a patio directly off the kitchen/dining area. I would also redo the roof because it is flat on the extension. It is going to cost you a little extra but with a flat roof you will always have problems. Whenever I saw a flat roof I just started again and pitched it.

Yes, if you can do work yourself and are really resourceful about sourcing supplies it can be a lot less. I think most quotes are for buying things retail and having a builder / professionals do the work.

I had a carpenter build my kitchen and it's much cheaper and better quality than the major retail brands. I recognise though that a lot of people do not have time to do work themselves or drive all over the country sourcing cheap materials as that is almost a full time job!

Obviously you can't tell from pictures whether there are damp problems, the state of the roof, what the walls are like under lining paper etc. etc.

Lovely house

Requires modernisation probably means it needsserious stuff doing like roof, electrics, boiler?

Wouldn't change kitchen or bathroom if they are in working order, but then I live happily in house with previous owner's bathroom and kitchen.

This whole idea that a new house equals 50k spent on kitchen and bathrooms just cause they are not to your taste is madness to me, unless you have 50k lying around you don't need for anything.

Adding it to mortgage is false economy as you end up paying twice the cost, so pay 100k extra over the years for the 50k refurbishments.

You definitely get a lot for your money.

At times I feel I am living in another world when people on mn discuss properties selling at £500k to £1M. It appears to be the norm for many to purchase such houses but is so far out of my reach.

You could easily spend that on a bathroom and kitchen but I don't think anyone has suggested that on this thread. The estimates in that range have been for a more substantive overhaul.

Looks like minimum new kitchen and garden sort out. Then I would definitely want to put another bathroom in somewhere. It's quite neutral just very cluttered.
It just depends on what hidden problems there might be -damp, electrics ,boiler/heating, roof etc. We did up a house and it cost quite a bit more than we originally thought.

Interesting Indeed! Sounds to me like doing up a house is like buying clothes..some people spend a lot more than others, and the end result is fairly indistinguishable.

Anyway.its a lovely house! Very pretty!

Not really-Ive seen developers who try to save money doing up houses too cheaply and it definitely shows. Doing up a house on a shoe-string requires a real eye for detail, creativity and a massive time commitment. I have friends who have done a terrific job at it building things themselves etc but most people absolutely cannot pull it off.

I really think you need to get a surveyor out, and then take into account that surveyors can only survey what they can see and can't take up carpets or remove wall paper. From the pictures it looks as though it is in a reasonable state of repair underneath the clutter (although not sure what's going on with the fire place). However IME, it's not so much the cosmetic stuff that costs money, but the cost of repairing things that haven't been maintained for a while, need replacing or haven't been installed up to current standards/were diy'ed.

I do this for a living and think about 70k minimum I could probably do for about 20% less as have accounts etc and am well practiced but agree that a cheap developer type job rarely looks good or lasts

Yes, I see. Easy to do it ineptly or bodge it, if one is inexperienced or simply short on time.

Noddy do you project manage refurbs for clients, or are you a developer? Forgive my curiosity, feel free to not answer!

I think it is a BARGAIN. Buy it Mintyy could be gorgeous.

Obvs is not bargainous compared to lots of the UK, just for that part of town.

XH and I did the plumbing, gas fitting and most of the rewiring in my last place. I got professionals to install the boiler and consumer unit, and to check my work. It was an absolute bastard to do - endless diagrams, much dirt and frustration - but I saved about £8,000 (ten years ago). Again, it's down to how your personal time/effort/money equation works out. As London says, it also depends on having the ideas - and, in the case of hiring craftspeople to realise them, being able to find the right experts.

Despite the ordeals, I really miss doing it! The sense of achievement's unbeatable, ime. I don't judge those who pay to have it all done, though: if I had any money now, I'd be paying as I no longer have enough energy. As it is, I just do other people's houses up in my head

I develop from scratch although have project managed but never a whole house only extensions. Love that house would love to do it!