Should I buy an ex council house in didsbury in manchester? I’m not sure if I’m making the right decision…

[smileandshinefortomorrow]

Hi!
I’m a first time buyer and I was super excited that I found a house I like in a nice town called didsbury in Manchester.
The house is 10 min walk away from outstanding primary schools and 15min walk to the didsbury town which is very lively with lovely restaurants.
When I was viewing the house, the agent told me the house was an ex-council house many years ago . I asked what was the implication of this, and the agent said not much. In fact he said he prefers ex council houses as they tend to be more sturdy.
There were some nearby roads that looked rather dodgy… but also some nearby streets with very lovely and expensive houses.
I made an offer, and I got the valuation for the house today for my mortgage but I’m now worried after reading the report. It says the property is in an area of predominately social housing( which I did not know), and that some lenders do not let on properties of this type of construction which may affect future saleability! ( what?!!)
It also says the property has suffered previous movements but no evidence to suggest this is ongoing.
I looked up online and I realised ex-council houses are often built with unusual materials that apparently are not that good?
It says
Walls: coralite blocks
Roof: pitched tile
Would these construction materials cause problem for me in future?
Arghh my parents never owned a house before and I have no family members or friends to ask for any advice :(
I worked very hard to save deposits and thought I was finally about to get on to the property ladder… but I don’t want to make the mistake of buying a wrong house.
What should I do?
Ex council house
Previous movement
Lenders may not lend for this type of constructions
Unusual construction? ( I don’t even know if these materials are actually unusual and I couldn’t figure it out from googling either ).
Help please 🙄😞😣

Years and years ago someone I know bought their council house on one of the cul-de-sacs off catterick, through right to buy. Sold it with no problems at all about 10 years later.

Are you sure this house is actually in Didsbury. Also this non standard construction is a bit worrying. Proceed with caution.

@SeeminglyOblivious

Non standard construction for an ex council house turned into an absolute nightmare last year for my cousin when selling.

The best bit was it wasn't even his house that caused problems but the next door neighbours (attached, semi).

Please excuse the vagueness because I don't know the specifics. However both houses were non standard construction. My cousin several years ago spent £££ in changing his house to meet 'standard construction' specs - something like adding a brick layer so it wasn't just concrete. So done.

When selling last year his house was fine. But he had four buyers drop out when their mortgages were declined because the attached neighbours house was non standard construction. He ended up selling to a cash BTL invester and lost a fair amount.

Non standard construction would have me running for the hills.

Ahhh thank you for sharing this! Something to keep in mind for sure!

@dunroamingfornow

I know the area. There are a lot of council houses, probably many privately owned now. Many are covered in rendering which personally I know to be expensive to redo which it will need at some point. Yes, it's basically edging towards Parrswood, Burnage and is as you describe surrounded by very expensive housing and social housing. I wouldn't have an issue with that as it's a great mixed neighbourhood but would with the red flag re materials and possible future sale of the property. It will have been well maintained though as ex council stock.

Thank you for the insight. I'm waiting for my level 2 survey 🤞🏼🤞🏼

@JC12345

We're not far from there and Catterick Road is fine. Very close to tram/bus and Didsbury Village and several good schools around.

Yes, The most attractive aspect of this area was the good primary schools without breaking my bank account. Am I right to assume that the closes primary schools eg. Beaver road, st Catherine, didsbury primary are the mostly likely schools to get if I live in this area?

@SunshineOnKeith

If other houses of the same construction are being regularly bought/sold and your bank has no issues with the mortgage, I think that's your answer. It's all good

Thank you. That's very reassuring!

@dunroamingfornow

I know the area. There are a lot of council houses, probably many privately owned now. Many are covered in rendering which personally I know to be expensive to redo which it will need at some point. Yes, it's basically edging towards Parrswood, Burnage and is as you describe surrounded by very expensive housing and social housing. I wouldn't have an issue with that as it's a great mixed neighbourhood but would with the red flag re materials and possible future sale of the property. It will have been well maintained though as ex council stock.

Yes, it's more towards Burnage( another area I'm not familiar with) but there is a train station there so I thought from the commute point of view, it would be convenient.

After hearing what everyone has said so far, I think I'm less concerned about the location now. :) thank you everyone!

@Incywinceyspider

Is the house nearer the parrs wood road end or the school Lane end? If closer to School Lane then it's fine. The Parrs Wood road end would be too close to Burnage for me. I rented one of the ex council houses in a street off Parrs Wood Road a few years ago and honestly it was hideous. Noisy neighbours, drug dealers in the street, someone attacking a neighbour with a pitchfork, the list goes on. I'd do very careful research on local crime for the street and drive round at different times of day before you commit.

Ooooo I think I will check out the neighbourhood over the weekend to get a feel of the vibe. I actually don't know if the area im considering is still predominantly social housing or privately owned (although the valuation from the bank says predominantly social housing ). Hopefully I won't have neighbours attacking each other 🙄

Thank you for the advice.

@SeeminglyOblivious

In addition to my last post I'd also be wary of your mortgage company being 'fine' and mortgage approved. Two of my cousins buyers had that and were FAR down the line before their bank withdrew their mortgage. Mortgage offers can be withdrawn at surprisingly late times.

Oh!! Really? Why would the bank withdraw the offer ? 😱 I didn't know they can do that..

@miltonj

Go for it! I love ex council. And you'll be in a great spot.

Hehe the more I do research on this, I think I feel less worried about the ex-council stigma. Thank you. I guess I just need to figure out more about the survey and insurance etc

@lastqueenofscotland

I’m surprised Theres any council stuff left near fog lane park. I’d think you were fine round there. But have a good look into non standard construction. I think a lot of people who bought unrepaired concrete have since been stung

I was surprised too. In fact I didn't actually know till I got the valuation report.

I will just wait to see what my survey report says.. thank you!

@juggler82

Years and years ago someone I know bought their council house on one of the cul-de-sacs off catterick, through right to buy. Sold it with no problems at all about 10 years later.

Phew that's reassuring to hear! Thank you for sharing this information

@Viviennemary

Are you sure this house is actually in Didsbury. Also this non standard construction is a bit worrying. Proceed with caution.

Well the post code is didsbury but probably closer to burnage/parrswood on the map. ( so basically not the expensive typical didsbury area with fancy houses that I can't afford...).

@calliecapers

Call fhe surveyor. Ask for their advice

To a first time buyer, surveys can be daunting as tney mention every tiny detail which is often a
Non issue

Perhaps they can talk through the issues and help you understand the implications more clearly

I've called the surveyor so hopefully I will get a better understanding. Thank you!

I just want to say thank you to everyone for their time and kind contribution to this post.

It's so daunting being a first time buyer, especially when I don't have any family members or friends who can advise me on this. Mumsnet is amazing!
Thank you everyone. Much appreciated.

Regarding schools I would check what the actual catchment schools are for your street. Just because an outstanding school is 10m walk away doesn’t mean that a child on your street would automatically get in.

Otoh schools get better and worse all the time. If you’re not planning on children soon it might not be that important a factor because you cannot predict what the situation is going to be like in a few years

Agree with others that it’s the non standard construction which is what you might need to worry about. Can you get a dummy insurance quote? Just try and get a quote based on what you know about the property after the survey. If you can get insurance fine then chances are the lender will be ok with it too.

Or ask the current owners who insures the house now if any worries about insurance?