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?

I think, as pointed out by a pp, that you may have misunderstood the it’s up North post. For those of us who live South it absolutely is a shame it’s up north because many of us would love the chance to buy a house like that. In the South we haven’t got a hope in hell. As another pp pointed out you can just about buy an ok one bedroom flat for that where we are.

I think OP said the dentist next door is not the attached house. So what is going on at the attached house? Odd building shoehorned in.

I would put money on there being an issue with:

• extension
• roof
• attic/basement bedrooms

I suspect it was bought and previously marketed as an 8 bed property but the attic and basement rooms aren't legally bedrooms..

I bet it smells like cat wee (sofa damage clearly from cats).
Anyone buying is going to have to redecorate a lot, it is pretty hideous and being large, thats not a minor expense.
I suspect that the days there isn't loads of people parking for the dentists, there is loads of sports on the field immediately at the back which will be LOUD.

I can hear a local small football club and the rugby club from my house, and they are a good 10 minutes awalk from here, not immediately over my back fence!

Old house that has seen some action.
It looks to me to be used as a b&b or student accommodation.
I'd love to live in it.

Lovely old house. I lived in one just like that when I was a student in Manchester.
All the previous comments but am wondering about the previous price paid as that’s the bit that makes no sense unless they sold some of the garden off?
I sold a large house recently in an area (In SE) which is massively popular with South Asians. Indeed of the 21 viewers we had in the first week all but two were S Asian. All wanting a single large home for extended family living. So it doesn’t make sense that the area is predominantly S Asian and it hasn’t sold unless the schools are terrible. (Ours was in catchment for a Ofsted outstanding 96% Asian school).
Anyway I would seriously consider it if you can afford to run it and are happy to live in a very lively area full of HMOs. I loved my old house and S Asian community.

It's a gorgeous house for the money

Utilities & CT are probably high

I'm a softy southerner but I actually went to university in the northwest (Lancaster) and loved the area -- but Preston was a bit meh at that time. I think I remember the market and a UCP café/restaurant that did tripe and cowheel. This was in fact a plus point for me, I love tripe. I doubt it's still there, though.
It definitely wasn't prosperous, lots of friends were in flats that were a bit grim and I even recall a couple of people buying small terraced houses which were very cheap - much cheaper than Lancaster anyway.
I think the house in question looks lovely, and if the immediate area is ok, and the local schools too, I'd go for it.

Lots of people have pointed out things that would put them off, but they’re all personal so if you love the house and aren’t put off by those things (or actively see them as a benefit e.g. back garden being turned into parking, near the football stadium, taste in decor etc) then it might be the right house for you.

However all the things mentioned might put off other buyers, especially if they don’t know the area well and they’re just looking on Rightmove or if they have different needs or requirements to you (e.g. Landlords, people with disabilities who need parking, large families who need the 6th bedroom not to be a basement room etc).
If all the buyers have found some something that’s a deal breaker for them and the owner is keen to sell then that does explain the price dropping (it was also probably overpriced to start with).

If it’s the most expensive house in a less desirable location then sometimes it’s not an issue with the house itself it’s just that people who are willing to live in that area can’t afford the price (and people who could afford that type of house don’t want to live in that area). In those cases the main buyer will usually be a developer who will just want it as cheap as they can get so they can turn it into multiple flats- they won’t pay a premium for period features or nice decor.

There’s also a possibility that there are issues that only come up on viewing or during the survey/searches process.
Sometimes things aren’t immediately obvious on house listings. We went to see a house that was described as being on a cul-de-sac, the side of the house was, but the front was directly onto a busy main road! We also pulled out of a purchase when the survey identified a load of issues that weren’t obvious from viewing but would have been prohibitively expensive for us to fix.

Not sure any of the above would reduce the value of a house by £400K.

It was likely very overpriced to start with.

There's definitely something structural going on there, unless the camera car just went over a bump!

One explanation could be that the sellers are in trouble with their income tax and or vat. This happened to someone I knew. They entered into a voluntary agreement and one of the conditions was that they had to sell their house.They were told the price they had to ask and the Inland Revenue accepted a very low offer. Less than half the market value.

I know Preston very well, this isn't a bad area but is close to the A6 and Blackpool Road which are extremely busy main roads. Moor Park is not as nice as it used to be and has had its issues in the past. Being so near Deepdale would put a lot of people off but would also be perfect if you like football.
Most people can't afford to buy or upkeep these large houses anymore so they end us as businesses or HMO's.
Preston has largely been taken over by students and that is now where all the money is spent.
Having said all this, there must be something wrong with the property, as the history of it shows. Preston is not a bad place to live and like any city has its good and bad areas but I would proceed with caution on this one.

Yes, which indicates a much higher value home than £400, which would be around D band

That's just a guide price so it will probably go for more. There are HMO plans and it says 'investor's dream' so I'm guessing other houses in that area are also houses of multiple occupation e.g. students. That can be problematic with noise, multiple bins, litter, cars etc. Basically, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is!

I'm glad I'm not as close- minded as you! You're missing out on some of the biggest and best parts of the country.

I believe estate agents must disclose if there are serious issues with the property. Ask and let us know :)
Its a nice enough house, any "issues" visible in the photos won't warrant such a low price

This comment is unnecessarily rude. Why include unfortunately?

Picture 2. What is the building on the other side of the hedge? The roof expands down the whole of the garden. Check it’s not a commercial property.

The interior design as well as the garden are quite questionable imo.

But that’s easily changeable and a matter of personal taste. And the house itself is lovely!

It will probably come down to the neighbours (maybe there’s a dispute they have to declare?) or the value of the general area, which I know nothing about.

As pp said, heres the answer (strucural not old kitchen or blue walls unfortunately)

Looks like it was an hmo and has been converted back- and not particularly well. Looks like the neighbouring properties are Hmo too which could make for less than ideal neighbours.
I think it has been overdone- all that paving in the back "garden"..... the basement and loft conversion. All the charm has gone.
Also, all those grey carpets are very Homes Under the Hammer, they'd have to go. The original fireplaces seem to have gone. The windows and back door are horrible plastic. The basement is unpleasant- such a low ceiling.... the kitchen is unimpressive; I don't like the faux victorian toilets... or the grey tiled bathroom or the feature wallpaper- very dated, not very tasteful.
All in all, I think the conversion is very poor and only the front exterior is attractive. Having said all that, I don't think anything I have said explains a huge price reduction and it is still good value, if you like the interior style.

Oh wow, OP, that is an absolutely gorgeous house 😍. I would definitely view! I love how it looks onto the park, too.

When something is marketed as "An investors dream" that is code for 2 things. Either it needs a massive amount of hidden maintenance or for some reason its un-mortguagable. In this case both.