Bad timing or something more? 😓

[Ohexcellent]

We had an offer accepted on a property the day after it went on the market (earlier this month). Our mortgage has just been approved yesterday. We’re in Scotland so had a home report to go on and the property was immaculate. Recently fully renovated to a high standard.

I got a property alert last night from Rightmove - the semi-detached neighbour of the house we’re buying 😓 The street has around 190 properties - 2 have sold in the last 4 years and now we have adjoining properties selling at the same time. Nothing else on the street is on the market.

Complete coincidence - the neighbours have seen how quickly the one we’ve gone for went under offer and saw the price and have jumped on the bandwagon?
or...
Hidden issues - we’re about to move in and find that the property is actually falling down and we’ve just sunk all our savings into a money pit? 🤣🤣🤣

This is my first time buying a property - what should I be checking for?!

On our street, nothing had sold for 12 years and then within 2 months, four neighbours sold! Pure coincidence and there was no negative reason as such - I suspect once someone in the street sells, it gets others considering the possibility.

It could also be a life stage thing - if owners are a similar family age/size and naturally outgrow a house, or want to downsize, it would be explainable!

I will say though- with a critical eye, I'm wary of houses that have been recently renovated/painted/plasterboarded etc, as it could potentially be hiding issues like damp/cracks.

I prefer a house that hasn't been touched for years, definitely not painted the week before viewing!

@LoveLimesoda Thank you! Nice to hear that it does happen. I’ve got the home report survey for the neighbouring house and there doesn’t look to be any issues there (that have been noted in the survey anyway!)
Completely get you with things that have been recently done etc. The couple that we’re buying from actually bought it 4 years ago as a renovation project for themselves to retire into. They have both now retired and family circumstances have changed (their DD, who lived 10 min walk away, has had their first grandchild and now lives at the other side of the country after being relocated with her DHs work) so they’ve decided to take advantage of the market and sell up and move closer to her.

You can get a full survey if you are worried.

This is what happened when we sold our house last year - 3 houses for sale in a row of houses where sales are rare, two of which hadn't been sold since the 1950s, the other one was ours.

And it also happened with the one we bought. Not the semi other half of ours, but the one the other side came on the market about six weeks after our offer was accepted.

In both these cases it's simply the case that people of a certain age bought them initially, raised their families there and grew old there. Our old house we'd bought from elderly widower and the neighbours either side who went on market at same time as us were all around 90 and needing to move into supported living.
Same with our new house - we've again bought from elderly widower. The house next door that came up for sale later is because a 90yo moved into a home. I imagine this will also happen to the house attached to ours as the couple are elderly and keep ending up in hospital.

@JamMakingWannaBe @RidingMyBike Thanks guys. I’m glad to head it does happen. I think there being nothing for sale there for so long and then adjoining properties being listed within 8 days of each other just really threw me!!