Someone give me a kick in the behind please.

[Tootsiroll]

So I'm doing what I always do, talking myself out of making a hard decision that will result in me doing nothing.

My partner and I are in a position where we could buy a house, we never thought it would be possible but the stars have aligned and here we are.

I just got back from viewing a property, it's a fairly old mid terrace (Over 100 years old) two bedrooms, one bath, two reception rooms and the original fire place is still there and functional (something I've dreamed of). Without gushing too much it's perfect for us, the kitchen and bathroom need replacing but what's there is fine and will hold until we get around to replacing it.

However I keep fixating on the faults and telling myself not to bother. I noticed the main bedroom has damp on the external wall (probably a ventilation issue) as well as some suspicious areas in the kitchen. There's an electric shower which I don't like and there's no bath plus the entire bathroom is just an odd setup. There's visible wires and pipes sticking out here, there and everywhere that you can't really hide. I live in a similar house and it's always slightly cooler than is comfortable even in summer and is the same in the winter dispite having the heating on.

If I refelct on it, part of me is just terrified at the responsibility of being a home owner. We have no concept of DIY, have awful decorating skills and no sense for interior design, we can't even do minor repairs. Just the thought of organising the replacement of a new kitchen is overwhelming.

However, on a practical level, it doesn't make sense to continue to rent. If house prices continue to rise then we will be priced out forever. Neither of us want to be working till we drop but just looking at the numbers, there's no way we can retire if we have to pay rent and we don't want to be destitute when we get to retirement age.

The last thing is, this is a one off chance. While buying would be cheaper, the initial cost is high and we have to be careful. Take the deposit, solicitors and survey fees as well as an emergency fund that my partner insists we must keep back just in case then we can only really do this once.

So please, take aim and give me a kick so I stop worrying and just get on with it.

Have a kick! The damp in the bedroom is potentially from clogged or leaking guttering or a roof issue which could be as simple as a slipped tile/slate or flashing that's moved.

What's weird about the bathroom set up? A lot of smallish terraces were built with no inside bathroom and had outside toilets. Where use of the space hasn't been well planned in order to put a bathroom in, you can get strange set ups and oddly shaped rooms. The good news is that often this can be fairly easily fixed as the wall between the bathroom and the adjacent bedroom is likely to be a stud wall. If you have to walk through a bedroom to access the bathroom then you need to consider what the options are. Just looking at the photos of sold houses on the same street can show you different options.

It sounds as though it could be a good buy for you. You can do courses to learn how to do things - look at adult education, etc and online.

How many houses have you viewed?

Your reasons for buying over renting seem logical enough. But whether this is the best house for you is less clear. If you are that nervous about building work it might be better to consider a newer house?

I view loads of houses when I am looking to buy. After viewing dozens you feel pretty confident when you put an offer in that this is the best house on the market in your price bracket.

I wouldn't view your "second-guessing" as necessarily a bad thing. You are thinking about all of the potential defects/issues that you will have to fix and repair, and, of course, you must consider the costs.

It is smart to view purchasing a home both at a "macro-" and "micro-" level. At a macro-level, yes, it makes sense to purchase a home now, when you have the funds to do so, thereby setting yourself up for the future. At a micro-level, however, you must account for the detail . . . which includes everything that must be done to make your house "livable," in the short and long term, and will avoid the domino effect of additional issues arising because of failure to address other issues.

For example, "dampness," or "poor ventilation," can lead to mold if not treated. A fireplace that is 100 years old, if not properly inspected, could need hidden repairs that not done could be a fire hazard or cause carbon monoxide exposure.

So, you have a thorough inspection done, and if you need specialized inspections (like fireplace/stack), you pay the extra money to do so. In the moment, it may feel like an unnecessary expense, but if you uncover a problem then you can ask for concessions in the counter offer to pay for the correction.

What this means is that you go into this with "eyes-wide-open" . . . understanding all the costs, hidden and long-term, and make a plan for what must be fixed immediately and what you can make a plan to fix later . . . and above all else factor those costs into how that affects the home value and price.

Does it have to be this house?

My DP and I are crap at DIY so we intentionally bought a house in good nick that didn't need a lot of work, which meant buying in a slightly different area as that was more important to us. When we do have work done we have to get someone out and it is expensive!

I don't think pausing and wondering whether you want to take on such a project house is necessarily a bad thing.

That being said, all houses will require a degree of work at some point. We have slowly started to do some smaller DIY bits ourselves as we know things will continually need doing and it would be useful to be able to do it ourselves where possible.

It’s why you’ll get a survey before buying. You could get a level 3 if you really wanted to cover all bases but level 2 would be fine by the sounds of what you’ve put - mix of cosmetic and perhaps a bit of damp to deal with. Even if you buy a new build there will be snagging and things that aren’t to your taste. Basic DIY really easy to learn such as painting, putting up shelves etc. The rest you just address as and when. We brought a 120 year old terrace 5 years back. In terms of had to do rather than chose to do we’ve replaced the boiler which was 2.5k, and I replaced the mains water and front room joists whilst I was down there as they were rotting. Cost me about £300 all in as I know what I’m doing but was quoted 5k by a local builder to give an idea. Other than that it’s all been cosmetic. Just do it, nothing is ever 100% in life so what you gonna do, sit on your hands just incase!?

I would buy a different house, tbh. There are too many problems with this one. Unless you have money to throw at those problems immediately (in which case, ask a builder to go round the house and give you quotes) then I'd knock that one on the head and go for another.

Honestly non of the issue sound that bad. You can learn virtually any DIY on youtube now too.

If your worried about interior design just paint it all one nuetral-esq color that you like (white, magnolia, grey, blush pink, beige, sage, light blue etc...), interior design really isn't that big a deal.

The house sounds charming but it’s a buyers market in many parts of the country and there will be other, easier, charming houses . I’d keep looking and getting used to the idea before you take the plunge.

Love a house that needs doing, as when done up it’s often not to my taste. My current house was perfectly lovable but tired as it had been tenanted for years. New kitchen, new bathrooms and built in cupboards and carpeting. Nothing structural. It cost about £100k to get it done to my satisfaction and I could have spent more - I wish I had the £15k to replace the ugly uPVC windows with sash, for example.
as long as you budget and are willing to put up with things until you have the money to fix things then go for it. YouTube is a great resource for tutorials on simpler household jobs like wallpapering.

Thanks for all the messages.

We did a lot of talking last night and my partner suggested we go ahead with our offer and pay the extra for the more expensive level 3 survey that should point out if anything serious is wrong and what repairs are needed. He also said we can get a damp survey if they recommend one.

His thoughts are, as long as we can live there then we can fix what needs fixing then replace what we dont like later on. The only think he won't budge on is we have to have £10k in our emergency fund for things like roof repairs or a new boiler.

I've submitted my offer with the estate agent. Now we just have to wait 🙂

Give the level three a bit of thought. They are still not going to be able to disrupt anything, lift floorboards, go under the roof etc without the current owners permission (which 99% guaranteed won’t be forthcoming) and therefore you may well get nothing more from it than a level 2. Level 3 only worth it with very old property or where there are clearly structural issues etc.

Have you checked sold prices for similar properties in the area. Does your offer reflect the costs of the potential work needed on the property?

Good for you on taking action. If it helps, I managed to pay my mortgage off JUST before turning 60, and at the point where I had to take ill health retirement with a chronic condition.

I was able to stop work because I can manage to live on my small private pension purely due to the fact I don't have housing costs/rent. If I was renting somewhere round here the least I'd be paying would be about £750 a month - not doable.

I dreaded the thought of renting through my old age and never being able to afford to retire. Buying a house is really beneficial for you in the long term.