Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Need opinions on this mews home

38 replies

221BakerStreet · 20/11/2024 11:51

hi folks - we're newer to the london property market but looking to buy in the belsize park area due to proximity to work and schools. My partner likes this home: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/153856976#/?channel=RES_BUY

I don't have a good sense for how overpriced this feels, whether mews are a good investment, if it will increase in value. I felt that the kitchen and living area were a bit small even tho bedrooms are good. price is higher for us by a couple hundred thousand to be frank. Any opinions?

Check out this 3 bedroom flat for sale on Rightmove

3 bedroom flat for sale in Eton Garages, Belsize Park, London, NW3 for £1,250,000. Marketed by Foxtons, Hampstead

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/153856976#/?channel=RES_BUY

OP posts:
Nikitaspearlearring · 20/11/2024 11:58

You're going to have to watch hitting your head in that kitchen, especially if you're quite tall. I had a bedroom like that - I did get used to it but it was a stress and I did forget and hit my head a couple of times.
I like the roof terrace.
I would be a bit concerned about stretching yourself that much over budget though.

221BakerStreet · 20/11/2024 12:04

Nikitaspearlearring · 20/11/2024 11:58

You're going to have to watch hitting your head in that kitchen, especially if you're quite tall. I had a bedroom like that - I did get used to it but it was a stress and I did forget and hit my head a couple of times.
I like the roof terrace.
I would be a bit concerned about stretching yourself that much over budget though.

thank you! and good point. in general are buyers in london ok with these kinds of quirks? or would this slopey quirky kitchen become something that makes the sale of this place difficult in the future? do buyers steer away or does the allure of a mews overpower these factors? my husband had to bend his head while getting up the stairs from the lower level to the living space even. i wondered if it would be bad for much taller folks..aka hard to sell in the future?

OP posts:
YouAreExtraExtra · 20/11/2024 12:16

Don’t underestimate how annoying it will be to have to bend down to get every single item you use in the kitchen.
My sibling had a kitchen with no wall units, it was a PITA. There also doesn’t look to be much actual storage in the kitchen, especially if one of those doors is a concealed dishwasher, I’d be more concerned about that than a sloped ceiling.

SecondClassmyass · 20/11/2024 12:17

Mews house are all about being in a fabulous and upmarket area, compromised by being small with quirky layouts. You could never buy a ‘proper’ house in Belsize Park/Kensington etc for 1.2m so it is not a bad value I would say.

mondaytosunday · 20/11/2024 12:40

Yes those kind of quirks are totally acceptable in London. It's a stylish flat and probably reasonably priced. What are the service charges though? I'd be wary about that. Flats do not appreciate as much as houses. Plus a roof terrace - how old are your kids?

meeeeeee1234 · 20/11/2024 12:46

I echo a previous poster, there doesn't look like there's a lot of storage in the kitchen, maybe that's why the cereal boxes are out on the work surface.
Generally spreaking you'd have kitchen units/cabinets on the wall above the work surface, but you can't here because of the sloping walls.
I'd think carefully about the storage.

InTheRainOnATrain · 20/11/2024 12:49

Is it a mews house though? It looks more like it’s a flat, above something (a garage?) that you don’t own. Or am I missing something?

SoupDragon · 20/11/2024 13:20

It appears to be leasehold. This would put me off.

Twiglets1 · 20/11/2024 14:03

SoupDragon · 20/11/2024 13:20

It appears to be leasehold. This would put me off.

Nearly all flats in many parts of London are leasehold, buyers have no choice if they want to live in that location. Many have very long leases close to 1000 years though.

Mipil · 20/11/2024 14:22

It’s a maisonette. What is on the ground floor? A residential or commercial property? A garage that belongs to someone else?

Nikitaspearlearring · 20/11/2024 14:25

221BakerStreet · 20/11/2024 12:04

thank you! and good point. in general are buyers in london ok with these kinds of quirks? or would this slopey quirky kitchen become something that makes the sale of this place difficult in the future? do buyers steer away or does the allure of a mews overpower these factors? my husband had to bend his head while getting up the stairs from the lower level to the living space even. i wondered if it would be bad for much taller folks..aka hard to sell in the future?

I think you need to concentrate on what makes YOU happy and fits your lifestyle rather than trying to predict buyers' preferences in the future. Selling always depends on having it on at the right price. You might have a smaller pool of buyers if there's a problem or something unusual with it, but it will sell.
Properties have always gone up in my lifetime, apart from selling in around 1995 when prices tumbled and we lost about a fifth what we'd paid for our home six years earlier We could've waited for prices to go up again but we sold at a loss, but of course the house we bought was also correspondingly cheaper. Interest rates were crazy then - topped at 17 per cent IIRC, which is why I think you should borrow to your comfortable max but not further.

221BakerStreet · 20/11/2024 14:31

Twiglets1 · 20/11/2024 14:03

Nearly all flats in many parts of London are leasehold, buyers have no choice if they want to live in that location. Many have very long leases close to 1000 years though.

that's what im seeing. i barely see any freeholds we could afford. this has 90 years left on the lease. that's close-ish to the 80 year mark. Should we be spooked that we'd need to renew the lease? Everyone says its straightforward until 80 years but just seems like hearsay.

Yea it indeed is a mews - if you google eton garages you can get a sense. We went there and was a row on each side. This one has another house at the bottom from what I could tell. This one has a set of stairs and the first floor is all bedrooms + bathrooms and second floor is the kitchen/living/roof terrace.

Honestly we can see ourselves being happy here but i only want to a 3K ish mortgage. For that we'd need to pull more money out from our stocks which seems insane to do. I'm used to the standard 20% down in the US suburbs i used to live in so anything more feels like a bad use of money (cuz we could grow it if we kept it in the market rather than put it on downpayment). IDK.

OP posts:
Twiglets1 · 20/11/2024 14:40

90 years is ok, that gives you plenty of time to extend the lease before it gets to the danger zone of 80 years.

We sold a flat in central London a few years that had a 92 year lease. I thought that might be off putting to buyers but it didn’t seem to be. As always, check with your solicitor though.

Amarige · 20/11/2024 15:09

I think I'd rather lose a bedroom and gain a green space -

www.primelocation.com/for-sale/details/65737704/?search_identifier=7ab55b3225ce91d04c934e69735be24b

Amarige · 20/11/2024 15:13

I like this one but can't see a garden

www.primelocation.com/for-sale/details/66150866/?search_identifier=7ab55b3225ce91d04c934e69735be24b

RoachFish · 20/11/2024 15:50

90 years can be OK if you can definitely afford to extend it. It can cost tens of thousands of pounds. There are calculators online to work out roughly how much it will be but for that property I would guess it's going to be more than £50K for the extension.

You also have to live in the property for 2 years to be allowed to extend the lease, before then a freeholder can say no.

Allthegoodnamesarechosen · 20/11/2024 16:15

I’ve owned two central London mews houses, and I’ve known two people who lived in mews as well. Because I liked them very much , I viewed lots more with a view to purchase. I liked them because they were proper houses, no one else lived above or below me. They also tend to suffer less from traffic as they are usually narrow streets and not through roads. Of course they were freehold because they owned the space and the ground print they occupied.

I would like to know exactly what is below, if it is someone else’s garage I wouldn’t touch it, you don’t want someone revving their precious sports car below your bedroom at all hours.

Most mews are not like that in terms of their floor space, they are essentially converted stables which lead to narrow rooms ( carriage and stable dimensions). They are ‘quirky’ because they are not purpose built, people who own them tend to prioritise style over convenience. This one certainly ticks the ‘original’ box but it seems to be rather less liveable than most I have known, the living space is crammed into a very low loft.

I would say that most mews are more suitable for singles or couples, not families with children. Even though we don’t have kids, we moved on ( to town houses) when we got a bit older and started to prize convenience and space over being cool.

SmartiesParty · 20/11/2024 16:21

I know that road. Not sure which exact flat that is but there's a car garage underneath with work always being done on cars

Worth checking out as it may be disturbing / noisy

Twiglets1 · 20/11/2024 16:24

RoachFish · 20/11/2024 15:50

90 years can be OK if you can definitely afford to extend it. It can cost tens of thousands of pounds. There are calculators online to work out roughly how much it will be but for that property I would guess it's going to be more than £50K for the extension.

You also have to live in the property for 2 years to be allowed to extend the lease, before then a freeholder can say no.

You can request the current owner starts the process of extending the lease before you become the legal owner, then you don’t have to wait 2 years.

Thats what we were told by our EA anyway. Again, OP should check with their solicitor.

MissMoneyFairy · 20/11/2024 16:31

I would find out what's on the ground floor

SoupDragon · 20/11/2024 16:37

Twiglets1 · 20/11/2024 14:03

Nearly all flats in many parts of London are leasehold, buyers have no choice if they want to live in that location. Many have very long leases close to 1000 years though.

This gives zero information on the lease which puts me off even more.

CraftyNavySeal · 20/11/2024 16:38

London flats haven’t increased in value in nearly 10 years, they are a terrible investment.

Look at the maths and see if you are better renting, if you can’t guarantee you will be there for at least 4+ years then you will likely lose money.

With a million+ budget I would get a house in Finchley and get the tube or rent a really nice flat.

Amarige · 20/11/2024 16:40

I think it's opposite Porsheworx and Hampstead motor services in Lambolle place.

221BakerStreet · 20/11/2024 16:40

you're all so savvy! thank you. taking copious notes. It seemed to be an actual human downstairs. Garage a few houses over that closes at 6pm.
The haverstock hill one has offers over! they didn't want to even show. I do need three bedrooms - I love having my parents over for longer stretches of time so we need 3. Maybe I can let them sleep in the garden? ahhaha
Tho for real - is an apartment with a garden the best thing to go for? Couple of you seemed to have that opinion. is that considered better/ more sought after? I just don't want to end up with something that'll be a million dollar present to ourself alone haha!!

OP posts:
RoachFish · 20/11/2024 17:04

Twiglets1 · 20/11/2024 16:24

You can request the current owner starts the process of extending the lease before you become the legal owner, then you don’t have to wait 2 years.

Thats what we were told by our EA anyway. Again, OP should check with their solicitor.

Yes, that’s correct. The current owners could start the process.