Are these costs reasonable?

[alecguinnessgenuineclass]

We're buying a house with a kitchen where everything is freestanding i.e. dishwasher, fridge, cooker etc. Our current house has a fitted kitchen so we're not bringing much with us in the way of appliances.

The owner has offered to sell us the following items and I can't work out if I think these costs are reasonable? I think they probably are, and she seems lovely, but we are planning to install a fitted kitchen and I don't want to spend a fortune on things that we will probably replace within a couple of years.

Bedroom curtains - £300 (they cost £1500 new for a bay window and small side window)
Fridge freezer - £300 (cost £900 in 2011)

Dishwasher - £400 (cost £550 at the start of this year)

They are leaving us quite a few things free of charge so I don't think they're trying to fleece us, just not sure if it's worth spending £1k on the items above.

What does MN think?

Fridge freezer is too old for that price.
I’ve always left curtains for free as they never fit any new house windows anyway. Do you like the curtains enough?
I’d probably say no thanks to the dishwasher too and do without for a while.

What they cost is irrelevant. What they are worth is what you could get similar age/quality for without too much hassle so look on the local gumtree for similar age items.

£300 for a 9 year old fridge freezer is way too much. £100 max.

Dishwasher is newer so I would guess £200.

Curtains- depends how unusual the size is - if they take them away will you end up forking out a fortune for bespoke ones to be made? £300 may be reasonable there.

Up to you - I'm leaving our curtains for our buyers for free and if they are a specific size they may not be worth anything to the seller but £1500 is a lot. Do you like them? You can get new standard size curtains for under £300 for 2 windows very easily if not assuming they are standard sizing.

Fridge freezer - that's pretty old and I'ld prefer to get my own.

Dishwasher - Seems pricey to me, I always think once you use something a third / half immediately comes off its value.

You could look on ebay for values of second hand items of their types and dates though would expect to pay a bit less as you've not chosen those items. But its basically what they are worth to you.

If you like the curtains snap them up as they will cost you a fortune for a bay window particularly if full length.

The freezer is taking the proverbial. I wouldn’t be agreeing more than £50/£75. Dishwasher probably £150 is fair, £200 if being nice.

Maybe the curtains. Especially if you are moving in that bedroom straight away. Would be very annoying for the first days unpacking in the day and sleep in a bedroom without curtains at night.

agree with others, see what you'd pay for 2nd hand versions of those things. I'm minded to think £200 for freezer if in great condition, £200 dishwasher & check curtains carefully. We've always managed to buy off-shelf curtains to fit any of our windows for cheap prices.

You could get 2nd hand stuff for a quarter of that price or even free

Why the heck are they charging for these things? Why oh why do sellers not price everything into their list price?

Are you paying asking price for the property? Do you desperately need the items they are selling? The fridge is too expensive, and my dishwasher was (a Which Best buy) was £300 so theirs would have to be spectacular for it to be worth £400 second hand

Your solicitor probably charges £50 for you to ring up and him not to return your call, so I'm not sure these items are too bad at the stated cost.

I suppose it's really the worth to you of the task of getting these things in place quickly yourself.

With curtains it really does depend if they are to your taste and the quality of them.

£300 for a 9 year old fridge freezer 😮😮😮 you can get a brand new one for that!

Curtains sounds worth it if you like them.

Dishwasher obviously you can buy new for that price but I’m guessing it’s a better one. I personally sold a Stainless steel Siemens dishwasher I’d bought earlier this year for £460 (on a special deal, RRP ) for £400 In days on Facebook marketplace. Obviously not everyone will see value in paying more for something which is Stainless steel, extremely quiet, actually and made in Germany and has a 5-year guarantee, however I’m sure you could get a ‘Best Buy, best value’ white dishwasher for £300 or some cheap dishwasher for £200 new.

Fridge what kind is it? If it’s say an American style Fisher Paykel and you can get an after market warranty on it (eg check Domestic and General) then I’d personally consider. Otherwise just see what you are willing to buy new or second hand. Also consider moving appliances.

Thanks all for this really helpful advice.

The fridge/freezer and dishwasher are both good makes. The curtains aren't to my taste but they are also very good quality by the looks of it.

That's a good idea about looking on eBay etc, I'll do that. It would obviously be much more convenient to just have what's there. We have a toddler and I'm not very enthusiastic about having to organise deliveries of fridges etc on the day we move in! Someone also told me it takes 24 hours for a fridge to "settle" when you get it delivered before it's working properly.

Money is tight since we've had to drop our house price three times to get this one, so every pound counts!