House with extension already or house with extension to do

[Mintchocchipicecream]

House 1 is already extended and is £375000.
House 2 is not extended and is £250000.
Essentially the same house to start with.
Extension is to the back (kitchen) and above a garage and a loft conversion.
Which would you buy?

I’d buy already done because the thought of dealing with workmen fills me with dread- but house 2 prob makes more sense financially

It depends. Do you know how much it would cost? Would you enjoy the process of putting your stamp on a house etc? Our extension / re-planning of upstairs took about 9 months and it was hard work living through it with 3 children.

How much is the work of house 1 to your taste?
If I loved how house 1was done I'd do house 1...i have done multiple building projects and it is months of dust and hassle.
But if I didn't I would do the work and live with hassle.
Fwiw I have done the work (and am 50% of the way through in another place) but I'd happily avoid it if I loved what someone had done

I have no idea how much it’ll cost! Would love to know some ballpark figures.

Already done

They are moving because they’ve spent months doing the conversion and have royally pissed off their neighbours and need to move before the patio has to be refilled.

£100k of extension would be pretty epic. I would go with the unextended if you can afford to get the cash from somewhere to do it. You can make it your own and make sure it's done properly no short cuts etc.

Extension is to the back (kitchen) and above a garage and a loft conversion.

^You won’t get much change out of £125k for that

@misspiggy19 really?! Yikes. We would have about £35k readily available and could do a loan for more.

The loft room isn’t essential for us but the comparative house has one.

If the already done extension is cheaper than the house plus extension cost then it begs the question why are they selling cheap?

You won’t do it yourself any cheaper, and you’ll have to live in a building site for many, many months (or rent somewhere else).
What building work were you hoping to do for £35k, btw?

House 1. The level of extension you want to do will easily cost you the price difference.

Remember that building work attracts VAT at 20%. It's hard to break even if you get the work done yourself,

House 1 is in a slightly better location so I think that’s the better option!

Our extension was about £100k and we didn’t even do everything to the house we wanted. It was massive though and we also did some other work.

I’d go for the house without the extension so I could do it my way

A builder I know has said £1300 per m2 as a rough guide so above the garage would be around £28000. With the kitchen extension about the same.

Our two storey extension was looking like it would cost about £35k from initial estimates. It actually cost nearer £60k - and that’s in the north and a few years ago now.

We just had rear extension and loft done. In the SE and shopped around massively to keep costs down on finishings and sanitary ware etc. Cheap as chips kitchen. And it still cost heading towards £200,000 with stuff left undone like joinery. Honestly. Go for the house already done unless financials are the least of your concerns and you can afford to chuck money without a qualm. We didn't eve encounter significant problems. Just that everything - everything - is so bloody expensive.

Having bought a house that on the surface did not need any work doing to it but in reality turned out to have very cheap poor quality appliances (including boiler) and fittings, an extension and kitchen/utility that are too small and badly designed, now I would always choose a house that needs work doing so I could it all exactly how I want it to my standards and taste. The exception would be if by some miracle it was already done all perfectly. Also if you have young children or you're pregnant then obviously renovations would be an even bigger PITA than usual so in that case I would see wanting the ready-made solution.

However we've been looking for a new house and haven't found anything so we'll be renovating despite having a young child and another on the way

House 1 because extension costs seem to have spiralled in the last few years, assuming it's comfortable financially. The fact its location is better too, makes it easier.

For some very bizarre reason, that I am still trying to fathom, I had my heart set on getting a fixer up, that I could extend and put my stamp on. "If only I knew then, what I know now..." I love my house (though there are still many things to do and fix, as the builders were aiming real high at being the best cowboy builders they could be), I would never recommend for anyone to do this, if it's not a choice or part of portfolio. The stress, the unforeseen expenses, the endless problems with the architect and builders.

Go with house with the extension already there and use any money to splurge on the furnishing and decor and a holiday for after you've exchanged and moved in.