House maintenance costs

[metalkprettyoneday]

We bought our house a few years ago and knew it would need a few things fixing but at the moment I'm feeling upset that we are spending more each year on fixing things and maintenance than we have spent reducing the mortgage .

Feeling very frustrated that each time we get someone to fix something it's never simple. We always have to get them back again to redo then they find something else that needs doing. It's all non glamorous stuff- sewage pipes, roofing, plumbing, electrics. Not like we're putting in fancy kitchens.

Has anyone else been in this situation and decided to give up and move to a newer home?
Or have you stuck with older houses and found that after a certain number of years they stop costing so much ? I'm hoping ... I love this house .

I think you need to accept that houses old or new will need constant maintenance and that by doing this you are adding to the value of the house. If you let your house fall in to disrepair it won't matter that the mortgage will be paid off as you will have many issues. Once the big ones like plumbing, roofing etc are done you should have many years of relative peace before things need redoing again.

Maintenance is the biggest appeal of renting as although landlords can be slow and useless at least when the boiler was rubbish it wasn't your bill.

So I think you just have to change your attitude a bit, sorry! It will all be worth it. Especially if you love your house and location. I agree that fixing things is never simple and you end up firefighting other issues but it will get easier. New builds are often smaller, more expensive and things can still go wrong. X

Tbh, things like plumbing, electrics, pipe work I would expect to know about before buying the property. Unless it’s a new built or a refurb + all relevant centrificates, replacing and fixing stuff is what happens.

We’re in a 20’s house that was last done up 15-20 years before we bought it so we assumed that everything would need doing. However, now that it’s done, I don’t expect to touch anything for 10+ years (except for maintenance of boiler, clearing the gutters out etc but not big repair jobs).

I think it's important to recognise that the "cost" of a property is more than just the mortgage! It took me a few years of being a homeowner to conceptualise that clearly.

You sound like you've taken a really sensible approach to sorting things out thoroughly, but this does take time and it can be disheartening because you're spending loads of money on invisible things! However, now you've done the big, boring jobs they shouldn't need doing again - for a reaaaallly long time! And you will be able to move on to the more glamorous and interseting jobs that DO make a difference to your feelings about your home.

My house was a wreck when we moved in ten years ago. It was an ex-rental and had been maintained very poorly for years and years. We have only just reached the point where we almost have everything done. It's been a bit of an embarrassing mess in the interim!

Thanks for your replies I do feel reassured. It's good to hear from other people who have old houses - you're right , that's just what they're like. I know a few people who have built their own nice modern houses and was feeling envious that they would know exactly the state of the unseen bits of the house.
Someone mentioned about renovations adding value and I'm not sure whether the fact that we've rewired the place or added new sewage pipes would make a buyer pay more. I think a lot of buyers are impressed by smart kitchens and bathrooms. Anyway, we are doing the basics to give us peace of mind as it's our family home .
Thanks for your replies. I don't like to mention it in real life as I'm in a city where it's getting so hard to become a homeowner and are so fortunate really.

I feel the same as you. We have always lived in newer properties, one owned and the rest rented, so not really appreciated the problems an older, unmaintained property can present. The current one we own has turned into a bit of a wreck, and with lack of good builders and young children about so can't do work ourselves, it's a bit dismal. It's not our forever house so we don't want to go overboard, but it feels as though patching may not always be the right answer. I think many people feel the same about works though as if you touch one thing, more issues come up. I think renters really do underestimate just how much a property does cost to upkeep and many things are not quick to fix. So I guess this is why houses are so expensive in the first place. I still really resent the previous owners for not doing some of the simpler jobs to maintain their house. It really has been a chore timewise and emotionally to set things straight.

Metal, some buyers are naive but others aren't. Whenever we looked,we would have only paid a discounted price for places that need work like re-wiring. But yes, some buyers fall for a pretty presentation or a smart kitchen and pay a premium for a house that needs a lot of work.

I hope think that the hidden stuff does make a difference; walking into a house with chased in pipes, new boiler, new consumer unit, all the rooms have been rewired etc is very different to walking into a house with ancient electrics and visible pipework where you know you'll have to rip everything apart before you can even touch a paintbrush.

If the buyers don't see the work that needs doing when viewing, they will when they get the report (and will then ask for money off!).

I think this is where alot of estate agents are crap, "well maintained house", "move in ready" etc etc. Unless a property is absolutely hanging and has 1970s decor they consider it doesnt need any work and price them all the same (all things being equal obviously).

Agents and general public (esp at first time buyers end) need educating about ongoing maintenance costs and then costs and timescales for updating the unseen things such as electrics, plumbing, roofing, boilers.

Its another plus point for renting, but unfortunately society has been too conditioned into buying to accept this