OP you make good points, I wish you luck in your endeavours!
Just be careful when researching market info that you don’t run into confirmation bias (e.g the YouTube guy, who does sound interesting). There could well be further rate rises, however some finance commentators have felt for a while that BoE hasn’t been waiting long enough to let the effects filter through (for example, it’s only as people come off 2/3/5 year fixes that rate rises affect them), also that they will have to slow rises or risks major recession. You may know all this already but there are so many interesting economic factors (low unemployment here, German economy faltering, surprise rise in US unemployment) that it’s worth reading the business pages of a few papers to get balanced opposing views of what might happen.
Re renovation - I really hear you, I have renovated quite a few from minor to nothing-left-but-bare-brick, although you are absolutely right that it is so incredibly expensive to renovate that price must reflect that or location/opportunity offer something exceptional.
I think lots (not all) home shows have so much to answer for - there was one last year (worst house best street?) that was fun but seemed to ignore all the realities of renovation - ie that decoration and furnishings are the last call and a ‘nice to have’. They never seem to have to worry about expensive drains and building control!
In order of what I would be looking for, I made a list after my last renovation and just checked it.
First was roof - I would take a house with internal issues but very sound roof over the other way round as roofing is expensive, stressful and roofers always seem in short supply.
Plumbing, new heating and wiring all go together in my mind now. In that if one’s 30 years old then they’re all likely the same age, also that it’s such a messy job that doing all at the same time is wise.
Means that you have to think about bathrooms at the same time too - kitchens are almost easier as services in the same room. It’s soil stacks and sewage removal that is the big issue and hard to change in U.K. houses!
Plastering. Replacing lath and plaster is a messy dirty business and expensive, but if the walls have been ripped apart for all the above, probably necessary.
Insulation. If you’re replastering you may have to replace with insulated plasterboard to meet buildings regs.
Everything at the end of that like painting can be done bit by bit.
It is SO expensive, stressful, time consuming and life destroying that these days, I’d recommend the already at least partially renovated house!
Good luck!