What is wrong with this house?

[ButterPiesAreGreat]

Saw this house on Facebook last night.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/160791941#/?channel=RES_BUY

Sent it jokingly to DS as it’s not far (15 mins walk) to our team’s football ground and that was highlighted as its selling point. Then I looked through the pics and realised it’s a hell of a house.

Now the area it borders is not great but it’s not awful and a good mile from the really rough parts of town. It’s well away from the ground with most fans staying well away from the house taking different routes back into the centre. It looks out onto the park so it has a lovely outlook and the road in front is not a through road so doesn’t get loads of traffic. It’s also about a mile from the uni, where there are a few purpose built student accommodation places.

The more I thought about it, the more I was curious about the price because the house is in apparently good condition, even if not all of it is all to my taste. You could easily move straight in.

So I looked back at Zoopla price history and discovered it was listed 3 years ago, for £800K! Then it was listed last December for £650K, then listed again in June for £590K. There’s been 4 reductions of price since then, the latest just last week. It’s not sold any of those times, it was last bought in 2006.

Now I completely get that the area is not completely salubrious, and that interest rates have affected house prices but a 50% reduction in 3 years seems excessive. As it stands now, the owners are selling it for £50K less than they bought it for 20 years ago so they wouldn’t get back what they have clearly put into it.

I can only think that there is something structurally wrong or there is a legal problem of some sort, because if you wanted a 6 bed house in Preston, surely £400K sounds like a bargain. Our house is not much cheaper than that and it’s an OK size in a nice but not super expensive area.

What do you think? What do you think is wrong with this house?

This was the one I couldn’t stop thinking about recently

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/155797775#/?channel=RES_BUY

Agree, beautiful garden but it kind of strengthens my point. It’s on for £70K more and yet about 2/3 of the size. And only a couple of roads away from the other side of the park. That’s what having Fulwood and PR2 in your address does for you.

It's very overlooked by the property next door, both house and garden

V pretty. Never understand bath tubs in bedrooms though!

Are you selling the house? Just asking.

And it has been used as a family home, if the commenter on Facebook is to be believed. She said parents were downsizing due to all the children leaving home. Claims nothing wrong with the house but at that end, there are a few commercial premises so maybe it’s being looked at for something like that.

The landing is so long I’d be afraid the twins from The Shining would put in an appearance 😱

Given house prices have risen nearly 200% in the last twenty years in Preston and this has gone DOWN there has to be something seriously wrong - a rubbish kitchen, lack of parking etc is not going to make that much of a substantial difference!!

my bet is major neighbour issues - using the house for something untoward which becomes apparent the second you go and view. Something people really don’t want to live near that has cropped up when they first tried to sell - perhaps running a business with exceptional noise levels?

I’m so tempted to go and have a look. Will probably have to make a special trip, as I’m not going to North End in the daytime until after Christmas now.

Please go and when next door turns out to be a brothel/drug den/haunted let us know!

Have you checked for planning permissions locally
change of use for any of the businesses around

Proposed developments / changes to the area etc can seriously affect house prices

I’m actually going to deepdale tomorrow, should I drive past and have a nosy?

Not only an "Investors Dream", the listing includes plans to turn it into an HMO of either seven apartments or 11 individual rooms. It looks like its life as a family home is coming to an end 🙁

Parking on street would be a no for me

It has a driveway. Plus street parking - but it’s not a traditional street that you drive down to get somewhere

The Higher Bank Road house is exactly the kind of house I'd like, but I live in a different country... 🤣

I’d be interested to know what’s going on with the brickwork
It looks very different in places

It could just be random repointing but that could indicate something structural.

🕵️ don’t forget to dress for the part

Given that it has plans to turn it into an HMO, the problem is that other homes in the immediate vicinity are HMOs which perhaps was not the case 20 years ago. It is a gorgeous house. A colossal shame to split it up into apartments. How sad.

'Investor's dream' will put off family buyers as that usually means a rotten area and maybe that no mortgage can be taken on it.

It's the area

It's not the best

Just phone the agent and ask why it’s cheap.

It looks like it would cost a fortune to heat, also council tax relatively high, which will put off anyone who's not wealthy.

But anyone who could afford to run the house probably wouldn't look at that area if it doesn't have a good reputation.

They need to find someone who needs a large house, likes the period style and has a decent income so they can afford to run the property as well as feeding, clothing, entertaining and transporting a large family, but perhaps can't afford a more expensive area but wants or needs to live in that general location.

Therefore there isn't much of a market for the property.

Postcode

Is it "The Box" which is a few doors down, currently student accommodation but has proposed development plans?
This would put me off.

www.lep.co.uk/news/politics/plan-to-pull-down-old-preston-phone-exchange-and-this-is-what-could-replace-it-5266860

That’s how I took it because that was my thought too. It looks lovely. Prices here in the south are crazy. You really can’t get a rundown one bed flat for that here.