Exchanged Today, Underwhelmed, Reassure Me Please!

[spinderella78]

We exchanged on the house we are buying today. It coincided with a visit to the house where I felt totally underwhelmed.

I've come home to the house we are leaving and I feel at home.

New house was always a bit of a project (well quite a big one actually) but the people moving out have left it (and have no intention of fixing it) in a very dirty state (think gross ovens, cobwebs, mouldy fridges, floors not cleaned after breaking up furniture etc) and have taken anything they can, including things they originally said they'd leave. Lots of holes in every wall! They won't be resolving any of it and no point going via solicitor due to their circumstances.

Oh and there is no heating or hot water as the oil tank is broken and half the toilets don't work! (We knew about these though!).

To top it off I got a company to quote for a move in clean and the quote was £750, £1000 if we want carpets properly cleaned! We have said no but pray we can find someone else.

Please tell me your stories of feeling anxious and worried at this point and hopefully, how your new home did feel like home eventually.

Wish I didn't feel so glum now!

Did they have 3 dogs and 17 cats? Plus furry friends in the loft? The grime from that...combined with gloss paint on ceilings, pink, yellow, blue...they smoked too.
We cleaned it ourselves, stayed with parents while we did a clean up /quick decorate job.
Now thinking about downsizing/relocating to the coast but it's oh so much effort

Half the toilets immediately makes me wonder how many there are!

Seriously, I helped friends move into a house which was left in a state by the vendors. My friends were a bit deflated but it was the first time I’d seen the house, so I was excited and that helped! It will be lovely soon.

In terms of cleaning quotes, I guess a professional clean will always be that. Is it worth using a TaskRabbit type website? Or asking around if you know anyone who might need to earn a bit extra?

a few ears ago we moved into a house like this list to follow
Kitchen cupboards full of food, carpet in the klitchen that a puppy (more about him next) had pissed all over it stank every time i took something through the kitchen muttered this carpet is gone tonight
every carpet in the house was filthy
bedroom fitted wardrobes full of old tatty clothes, kids games, books etc
didnt see the back garden when we viewed as she said husband asleep in downstairs room, found out why, the huge patio was three feet high in rubbish, im talkng bin bags nappys you name it it was there, and in the middle of it the poor puppy they had left behind, god knows why they thought that was ok think they were hoping we would take him on, luckily had their phone number threatened to call the rspca on them, made them pick up the puppy

three skips it took to clear the rubbish and manky carpets, but once we had done all the clearing redecorating and cleaning it turned into a very nice house

excuse typos fingers not as fast as my brain

Grrr just wrote a long message and list it!

@isseywithcats - that is pretty bad! So glad you felt it was good in the end.

The house was always a project as it even has a derelict outdoor pool. That has been used as a rubbish dump and has god knows what in it, all kinds and of junk is visible through green water which smells but is full of frogs! The pool is going as it's ugly, pointless in the UK and there is literally no grass in the garden!

@Ariela - no cats or dogs but survey says rats in the loft and garage!!

@RosaWaiting - 5 toilets! 2 in en-suites. 1 in main bathroom. 1 off hall. 1 off the garage. They really liked toilets...!

Glad others have made hovels transform to homes! I know it has huge potential but it just needs everything doing! New kitchen needed, walls need to come down. Taste of decor is

I just need to get a grip. It WILL feel like home by Christmas! There, I challenge myself to get on with it!

Off to google TaskRabbit!

We moved into a house that was disgusting. Well we moved into our parents and are currently renovating it. We thought we could spruce it up but no we had to go back to shell and start again. My nan in law couldnt even come in the day we competed she was heaving at the door. My step mum who worked in care and has worked in an undertakers came inside but was heaving. It was awful. Dog piss and shit everywhere it stunk!!

You liked it for a reason, and itll be fabulous once you've done it up

@WBWIFE Thanks. Yes you are right. It was just a wobble I hope. They have managed to unscrew so many fixtures and fittings. Things I wouldn't have even thought to remove.

DH was more keen on it than me in the first place whereas with our current house I felt at home on first viewing. But I know it ticks most boxes and the school for my kids is perfect. It WILL be ok! It will....

For what it’s worth, I’ve cried over every house I had to move from and for a spell hated a lot of houses I moved into - those hated ones turned out to be the ones I loved most once i changed them to my taste.

@Toodeloo I really hope that's me in a few months!

I'm back at work today and our house is far from packed and we move 2 weeks YESTERDAY! I think the thought and stress of working most of the next two weeks and combining looking after the kids with packing isn't helping too.

I'm hoping we just need to get there and start - literally on any of the zillion things that need doing - and I will start to feel better.

We only have 3 weeks once we move in and then we are off on a really badly timed holiday for 3 weeks which I think is adding to my stress somewhat!

I can't say I've woken up suddenly loving the house which I was hoping might miraculously and unrealistically happen!

what you want to do is take photos now at its worst and then when you have done all the work and got it all lovely and the way you want it take more photos and compare what it was and what it became then you will feel all the hard work was worth it, the house we are about to move into needs decorating and new carpets right through as older persons taste, think 20 year old axminster with flowers everywhere , and once we have done a small extension on the kitchen a new kitchen but nowhere near as much as yours

We bought a family member's house that I didn't want in an area I didn't want to live, when we moved home last year.

I didn't hate it but was very meh about it and went along with it because dh was keen.

I was actually just thinking earlier today that I'm happy in the house and the area now. It's far from a perfect house or area but it suits us at the moment.

We'll move in a few years, I'm sure of it but it did surprise me when that thought popped into my head. I'm not telling dh so he can gloat he was right

OP if you have the time or inclination, feel free to have a look at my thread on almost exactly the same matter!

Lots of people feel the way you do (including me). A month in (today) and I still feel weird at times, but the feeling of wanting to 'go home' has faded and this house is now becoming home (slowly)

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/property/3602136-Buyers-remorse-tell-me-its-normal

Have you considered a packing service? I've seen a lot of people on here say it's not that much more than regular removals and they do it so quickly...

We paid £250 for a deep clean before we moved in to our house, which included the grotty oven and one grotty carpet in the whole house!

We're in London too so I am sure you can find a more affordable cleaner.

Moved several times with children. Get packers in they can also unpack if wanted. Get deep clean. Offload kids as much as possible to ensure you can unpack make it feel homely. I often have to pay for childcare as no family near by. Then enjoy your 3 week holiday. Sounds like it’s perfect timing.

@DavetheCat2001 - I've just read your entire thread! I'm feeling loads better that it's not just me feeling like this. Your bedroom is gorgeous. I now have bedroom envy! Ours has loads of oddly placed walls into eaves and odd alcoves, I'm convincing myself that some might not be supporting and can eventually come down! It was great to see your progress in print, thank you.

I'm still feeling bleuh but I did book a deep clean including carpets which are upstairs for 2 days prior to move in. It was eye watering expensive but I think it's a medicinal spend. I couldn't face walking into what I saw yesterday.

DH now stressing over bins as there aren't any due to the lovely (not) vendor not having paid council tax for 15 years (from what we can deduce!). Council have several weeks wait for delivering them to us so that will be an interesting challenge!

@mumdone And @AwkwardPaws27 - we are packing ourselves as frankly we have so much stuff I'm not sure how a company would even begin to cope with the toy chaos. Also, I think I'm a bit of a control freak and feel really unsettled by someone else doing it. Probably ridiculous...I know. We do, however, have my dad and his partner coming over tomorrow so I'm hoping that it can't take 4 adults to look after 2 kids and some packing will get done.

@UnderOverUnderRover - your secret is safe with us 

@isseywithcats - pictures are a great idea. Would be lovely to think we can look back and be pleased.

I realised that I also didn't mention that the edge of the garden is a buildings site (yes an actual building site) as the current owners sold two thirds of their garden off and 2 new houses are being built. In a way it's good as if they hadn't we wouldn't have been able to afford the house in that location. On the downside, the builders park IN our back garden at the moment (next to the derelict pool!). Huge fences, moving of the drive to the pool location and serious landscaping is needed ASAP. When we put the offer in I told DH it was conditional on us sorting the garden out to be a garden ASAP. As soon as we get back from holiday I have to feel we are moving towards sorting it out as feeling hugely guilty the kids are going to miss their current green grassy and full of trees (but also not huge) garden. I think once I see bulldozers in the garden I might just be able to breathe again!!

I'm off to bed now to order clothes rails as new house has none of the current built in wardrobes we have now. It's that or leave them in the wardrobe boxes!!! Oh god...

I will be doing a massive charity drop when we move again. Play room, bedrooms will be cleared from excessive toys when my 3 are asleep or out somewhere. The toys is the worst part, that and the kitchen. Good luck!

Wardrobe box is a good idea 😂

Whole day spent packing. My dad and his girlfriend were good and did about 8 boxes of fragile stuff and photo frames. I managed another 6. There is just so much left to do though!

I have managed to book 3 week days off between now and the move in in 11 days time. Praying DH gets some packing done in the week too!

Am hoping that once we are there it will all feel less daunting. Dreaming of bulldozers on the stinky pool tonight!

@mumdone I'm finding toys I didn't know we had. Slightly bad. The kitchen hasn't even been started. My mum is here on Friday daytime so I may set her to work in there then if DH hasn't got to it by then (he's a stay at home dad but has a zillion things on his list for this week!)