Help - anxious about work needed on new house

[shizgigz]

Divorced after 30 years to a man that did all the DIY and now bought my first ever home solo.
its a late Victorian 3 bed over 3 floors (top 2 bedrooms in roof space put in over 30 years ago)

I love the house but now I’m in have seen multiple jobs that are going to need doing and I’m feel quite overwhelmed. I only have £15k savings so any work needs to be saved for or I take on a mortgage (at 55 I’m mortgage free for the first time ever!)

i would be really grateful for advice, feels like I am on a massive learning curve and am now doubting whether I made a wise purchase 😞

some of the jobs I see need doing but
unsure of priority are:

Windows: a mix of wooden sash and brown plastic. The 3 sashes are rotten, don’t open properly or stay open and one is frankly dangerous. Ideally I’d like to replace all 8 windows with modern upvc sash but thinking mega bucks? Can this be done piece meal?

bedroom 3 hasn’t been separated off from the staircase and gives no privacy from bedroom 2 (see plan). I need to get it boxed off properly with a separate door but again I’m worried out the cost.

it’s currently roasting on the top floor, I’m assuming there is minimal insulation. As there is no loft (save for small cupboards running along the eaves) what should I do?

Boiler is a about 20 years old, regularly serviced but I’d like to get it replaced with a combi boiler

Decking rotten in parts. The whole area directly out the back of the house has been raised with decking and a stone patio (plus integrated pond! 🤦‍♀️) several decked steps go down to rest of the garden.
Can decking be fixed easily? Looks like it’s made out of some sort of click together system.

Some of internal doors don’t shut - at all! They are painted pine (don’t think
they are old as fairly lightweight) and clearly been sourced from elsewhere without being fitted.

lots of other smallish cosmetic jobs.

Congratulations on having your own place and I wish you all the very best with this new stage in your life.

If I were you I'd prioritise what needs done in terms of safety and convenience. Some things might not be ideal just now, but if the day-to-day impact is minimal, those jobs can wait a bit.

For the windows - ask for recommendations for local firms, and get round to measure up and quote. You don't need to get all the windows done at once, but best to get the most rotten/draughty ones done first. Whatever you do, don't get any of the big national companies involved. They send a salesperson who'll sit in your house for hours, won't give you any straight answers or a simple price, and can get stroppy when asked to leave. Local companies - look for ones which are well established - are cheaper and more straightforward in my experience. They measure up, and give you a price!

As the decking sounds dangerous that would also be a high priority job. Decking can be slippery and rats can nest under it, so getting rid of it entirely might be a good option, which would also mean no on-going maintenance cost. How easy that will depend on the height, what's under it. Again, would be worth getting quotes from local trades - general building/landscaping/gardens.

I've found that YouTube is a brilliant resource for all sorts of DIY projects. Start small and you'll grow in experience and confidence. I think B&Q might do classes or tutorials - sure I've seen those advertised.

I have bought doors on Gumtree and paid a joiner to fit them - I can't remember how much it cost, but not expensive. The doors you have might be adjusted or shaved to fit. You also see doors offered for free on sites like Freeshare.

The windows can indeed be replaced piecemeal- I know because I’ve done mine over 3-4 years! Get quotes, ask to see work they’ve already done- ours were able to give me a list of local addresses they’d worked on so I could see from the outside. If you have a local FB or WhatsApp group, ask on there for recommendations. The price varies hugely, depending on the style and quality.
If the boiler is functioning ok now, that can move much further down your list of priorities.
As for the attic rooms, the issue maybe insulation, but I don’t think you can retro fit that. Was there building regs consent for the conversion? I think all attic rooms are going to be hot and stuffy. You might be able to get an extra window installed but I imagine that would be very expensive.
You might be able to get a portable aircon unit for 2-300 pounds, but you have to make sure they can ventilate properly- they work better with sash windows. I don’t know how expensive it would be to get permanent aircon installed- might be worth looking into.
The decking sounds like it is a job for a pro: can you avoid the dangerous bit until you have saved up more money?
As for the minor cosmetic jobs, I would say painting is fairly easy, and you could do it yourself. Most other things require skill and the right specific tools, but there are YouTube videos on most things if want to have a go, eg tiling small areas.
If you can find a reliable handyman that would help. Not easy though!

Take a deep breath. None of this is critically urgent in the wider scheme of things. Also, there are different trades here, so you don’t need to worry about finding a general builder to do all the work.

First, review your survey. They usually have a traffic light system on work required. Are there any reds? Concentrate on those first.

Windows are a big job, but can be done piecemeal if necessary (though better all together if you can). As a rule of thumb, you will probably need to pay about £1,000 on average per window. If you can get some done before winter (the dangerous sashes for example) that would be good.

Can’t quite see what’s going on with the bedroom division, but a stud wall and door is not that big a job. Probably £1-2k.

If the ceilings on the top floor are boarded, you won’t be able to check out the insulation situation without making a hole in the boards, which is easy, but messy. This is a job which can wait and needs you to be ready for disruption. Can you cope for now with open windows and fans? And obviously heaters etc for the winter.

If the boiler’s not broke, don’t fix it, at least until you have the cash. It’s likely to be about £2-3k, but if it’s passing its service, there’s no hurry.

Decking is easy, but you will need to have it all re-done rather than repaired. Get a few quotes and see how you want to prioritise it after that.

The doors don’t fit. Oh well. :) Unless this is to do with movement, which your survey would have highlighted, just live with this for now. Get ready some draught excluders/door curtains for the winter. Refitting all the internal doors will be pricey, but it’s not urgent.

For the cosmetic jobs, do one room at a time and do as much as you can yourself.

All manageable. You’ve got this!

I am no DIY-er but just wanted to say that is a gorgeous house and congratulations, OP!

First of all it’s not really a 3 bed, it’s a 2 bed with a bug upstairs hall. Have you checked what they are labeling as a bedroom meets building regulations for it to be a bedroom?

Of all the things to advise on you chose that ?

Its a lovely house and well done to the OP
for getting settled again after divorce

The loft will need the ceiling coming down to put more insulation in to make it cooler. It's a big job and probably best saved up for. It will be easier to put the partition wall in at the same time. Depends where you are and how much work you can do yourself but should be under £10,000 for ceiling down, reinaulating, stud wall and replastering and painting. You could take the ceiling down and insulate and reboard yourself. Not difficult just will take a while.

Firstly, the house looks absolutely gorgeous. Congratulations on finding such a lovely new home.

In terms of work, it sounds to me like there is very little which would either be really expensive or be couldn’t be lived with for a short time (with perhaps the exception of the dangerous sash window and potentially the decking, although it’s not clear quite how bad either of these things are).

in terms of the sash windows, what do you mean when you say it is dangerous? I live in a very old house with several dodgy sash windows which either don’t open at all, or when open need propping with say a book or something else to keep them opened. Nonetheless, they are perfectly safe because I make sure that I close them when I’m out and it’s not like they’re falling out of the frames. If the sashes aren’t that bad, what I would suggest is getting someone in who can look at them and tell whether they can be restored/repaired. This is often cheaper and helps maintain the value of the house. Quite often new UPVC windows themselves do not last for a long time, and they can devalue houses if you’re not careful. Also, if the dodgy sashes are in rooms which you don’t use very often and stay closed for 90% of the time this may not be an issue at all. Agree, do not go for a big national company, go small and local
with some good customer recommendations if you do decide to replace.

Equally, do you need the third bedroom as soon as you move in? If you do, it’s not a big job to put in a stud wall and a door, but unless you’re using it as a private bedroom what you may want to do is just live with it for awhile. As others have said I would not touch the boiler if it appears to be working properly– did you have a survey as part of the buying process? Could you get some sort of insurance on it so that if it fails you can get some of the cost covered (I think I have something via homeserve?).

Finally, with regard to the decking I would want to get rid of that, but again it depends how dangerous it is. We are coming to the end of summer so if you can live with it over the winter, you may not need to spend money on that immediately. Personally I would be tempted to take it up and look at what’s underneath and try and get something better fitted, like a stone patio, or if you’re in a really tight budget just a weed proof membrane and gravel which you could do yourself (but that’s because I hate decking because it always rots, is slippery and starts to fail very quickly).

So broadly, don’t panic and live with it for a bit, then tackle the things which are annoying you most! Don’t take on a mortgage unless you absolutely have to.

Window companies are notoriously bad for inflating prices, we had an initial quote of over £40k and they came down to the teens. Get plenty of quotes and don't get pressured into buying there and then (as previously said they will stay in your house for hours). They can be done a few at a time as well.
Good luck with everything.

If the glass is falling out of the windows I would do those first and the decking.
other things can be done gradually. A stud partition isn’t that difficult to do but you might want to save up and do things over a few years

Agree with pp about getting a local firm in for replacement windows - and yes they can be done piecemeal!
For most of the other jobs, get a handyman round for quotes. Putting up a dividing wall shouldn’t be too big of a job and you can absolutely get decking repaired/ replacement boards as long as the majority of it is sound - but a decent handyman would be able to advise you. Same for internal doors and cosmetic jobs.
Unsure about insulation and would leave the boiler as it is working!
Congratulations - it’s a beautiful home 😊

OK… congratulations and deep breath.
You can do some of this yourself too.

Firstly I would focus on upstairs:
Cut a small hole in the plasterboard in one room and see what is going on behind it.
I suspect you have no insulation and LONG TERM and for resale you would be better getting these two rooms reconfigured to have a proper segregation from the stairs and also some insulation.
This could involve removing the plasterboard from the ceilings, adding celotex, battening, adding superfoil and new boarding, plaster skim. A chat with a good general builder can help there. Its possible this work might need building control oversight as it related to ventilation/ condensation and fire risk (stairs). It would be an excellent opportunity to add wired fire alarms and fire doors there.
You will never fix the heat or heat loss until you do this.
This will realistically use up your savings.

Next - windows. I agree that find a good local small firm and do piecemeal as you can afford, or do on a 0% credit card.

Ignore the boiler for now, if it works its fine. Just get it serviced and checked if it hasn’t got a recent safety check. Use a local person who is Gas Safe registered.

Has the property had electrics checked? Domestic should be checked every 10 years, tested and certified. Get that done.

Decking: get a skip and pull up the decking yourself. It can be paved or gravelled when you can afford it.

This is the decking - it’s only rotted through in a few patches so will probably be ok for a while but will need doing. You can also see the integrated pond in right hand corner. The whole structure is about 8 x 6 metres and sits about 3 foot off the ground so imagine it would need significant landscaping work for it to meet the back of the house (currently level with the patio doors)

@shizgigz - congratulations on your beautiful new home!

Re the windows, I'd try to get what you have restored rather than replace with upvc which imo could devalue your lovely house. If you really want upvc (or whatever, really), I agree that you should avoid the big national companies and find a recommended independent who won't charge silly money and will enable you to do them piecemeal.

My OH has just restored the timber windows of a house local to us. The house owners were quoted 60k by a company to replace and in the end OH's painstaking restoration came in at 8k (which included loads of other external repairs/repainting). It took far longer but looks so much better than plastic.

You should definitely be able to do some of the other stuff yourself (particularly that decking), there are so many YouTube guides and other helpful info online - just take things slowly and enjoy your new home!

The decking looks ok to me for the time being- if it’s just a few dodgy patches just lay a flat piece of wood over the top and put a light-ish plant pot over the top to stop people walking there. Agree needs doing eventually. If you wanted to get rid of it you could just have a few steps down from the back of the house and then paving etc.

Two things...thick, heavy curtains from charity shops are your friend during the winter until you can afford to replace windows, draughty doors and inadequate insulation.

To find the best tradesmen, wherever you live, spot any signwritten vans belonging to local guys who are working in the area, such as plumber, electrician, plasterer etc and ask them who they recommend. These people constantly see the standard of work of other tradesmen and they know first hand who are the cowboys.

The BIG question is who have they used to work on their own homes!

Good luck.

What pretty house! Windows are £££ especially if you want to retain that look. Get a few quotes in and see if they have a payment plan or whatever. I find national companies just need to be beaten down in price if you go that route, they start high but you can negotiate hard. Not fur everyone though and I would prefer to use someone local and word of mouth is the best way.
Leave the boiler for now if functional.
Internal doors can be fixed by same people who do the wall in the loft. And it’s probably not lack of insulation making it hot but that it’s the top floor - my DDs loft bedroom is hot too.
Decking - get it replaced.
Painting and other small jobs you can do yourself but prep the area properly.
You need a trusted tradesman. Hens teeth I know! Who do you know in the area? We have a street WhatsApp group which is invaluable for this kind of thing. I’m also not above seeing a house being worked on and asking the owner if they are happy. I don’t trust checkatrade . Sometimes you can get a lead at your local diy store or tile/kitchen store. I found a great tiler through a tile superstore and he turned out to be able to do my flooring, fit my kitchen and do some plumbing and electrical work too! He also guy all my internal doors.
Anyway, prioritise, get quotes in, see what you can do yourself, budget.

@mondaytosunday it is absolutely lack of insulation that makes it hot.

our loft conversion is cooler than downstairs thanks to so much of it.

Look into UPVC. I've read, on a few occasions (probably in old house groups) that the weight of Victorian bricks (or roofs? Idk) can essentially crush UPVC windows.

So, it might be a false economy. Sorry I can't be more specific.

Wood will be x2, x3 more expensive to replace.

Thank you so much for all your advice and good wishes.

i had it drummed into me for so long that I’d never be able to cope on my own that my confidence was already at an all time low and then plummeted when I moved in and started to spot issues.
I originally nearly went for a newbuild thinking everything would be shiny and perfect but am really glad I chose this house.

i really need to take a breath and calm down; only been in a week and already stressing. Barely unpacked yet!

get a copy of this

https://haynes.com/en-gb/victorian-house-manual-2nd-edition?utm_term=50651&utm_content=print&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20822968684&gbraid=0AAAAADfBiZ6qq1lcLH8zFrAEcqLuHIop_&gclid=Cj0KCQjwzOvEBhDVARIsADHfJJSrN-N7S6-G8ZOfVbObcPOt58IRox3UVYRw3SpKA3byGq4Ja4-Zjc8aAj4NEALw_wcB

good luck.

Ach nonsense! You’ll be 💯 fine. If it’s worth noting some of the worst houses I’ve ever seen have been owned by men living on their own or families where the man thought that he was good at DIY. You just need to give yourself time to adjust. And realise that everyone’s house has something wrong with it!

I also think you’ll be very thankful you bought that beautiful house instead of a new build in time.

Congratulations!

We have replaced sashes in our Edwardian house piecemeal. Many were already replaced and we replaced the final few this year with wood effect UPVC to match the others. I’d have loved wood but these in my opinion look ok. And are so much warmer than the original rotting single glazed wood.

Ask about for recommendations for tradespeople - not on the local FB group as everyone recommends their friends and family, and hopefully you can find a good set of trustworthy trades when required.

Enjoy your new home and your freedom.

Brilliant book, full of good advice.

When I say the sashes are dangerous, that’s a bit dramatic. They don’t open easily or stay put. The only one I can open has to be propped open at the bottom with books.
another top sash drops suddenly down heavily if the latch is moved and wedges it self stuck. Quite a shock when I first opened it.
But it’s not like the frames are falling out. I just can’t open them - fun times in this heatwave!