Which house?

[crappyday2018]

So I viewed 2 houses to buy today. I can't decide what to do (if anything).
House 1 - nice size, lovely feel to it, lovely area, had small garden and a garage. Needs updating though and top end of my budget.
House 2 - bit smaller but has been completed gutted with new wiring, boiler and ready to move into. Wouldn't need any money spent on it. Nice garden and garage. Overpriced though, not as nice as area

My issue is that I just don't have the cash to spend on a house once i move in. The first one needs a new kitchen really which I couldn't afford to do for a very long time.

Do I go for the house that's ready to move into but isn't as good a house in terms of location and quality, or the house that doesn't need any money spent on it?

Just to add, House 2 is an ex council house so they're not as good a build quality and might be harder to sell (although I intend living there for a long time).

How bad is the kitchen?

I’d go for area and do a bit at a time - I’ve seen some wrecks turned round in 10 years or so - as long as it’s structurally sound with decent electrics and plumbing roof etc - those are the big money items

Paint paper carpets are fairly cheap

How strongly do you feel about living in the better area? Would you realistically be able to afford sth there (given the fixer upper is at the top end of your budget?)

I'd go for the first one. Location is everything. If it's at least livable you could do it up a bit at a time.

House 1. Coming home to the nicer area will definitely be worth it. As long as kitchen is functional, it'll do.

Thank you everyone. Turns out, after some investigation, the area of House 2 is pretty bad so I have discounted that anyway.

The kitchen in house 1 is tiny, so really it needs the wall knocking through into the dining area so it would be a big job. I might go back for a 2nd viewing though,.

If that wall is not structural then knocking it down is not too expensive. If it needs supporting with a metal beam then costs will be higher. Can you take someone with on your 2nd viewing who might know?

@Mosaic123 well I happen to work with structural engineers so that might be an option. I'm going for a second viewing to decide if I'm keen enough then I might get someone out to have a look.
I think i need to decide if I can live with the tiny kitchen for potentially a couple of years. Mind you I've lived in some bad rentals for years so it should be a problem!

House 1
Make a 12 or 24 month plan to get in a position to do the kitchen

I wouldn’t say that ex local authority houses are poorer build quality.

We've just bought something like house 1. Added a new boiler and rewired. I wasn't sure about the house at first, I never felt I loved it after viewing etc but the area and the plot is first class. Location is everything, work can be done gradually. Best to live in it with its tiny kitchen (like ours!) for a while, then you will work out what you want to change.

@Letthemysterybe ex council houses aren't always poor build but these ones apparently are. I did a bit of research on them. They also have butterfly roofs which aren't great either.

House 1.

Thank you all.
I ended up completely going off house 2 as I was told that the anti-social behaviour around there is bad! I've been to see House 1 again for a second viewing so just deciding whether to make an offer.