Flats / whole house conundrum

[Femining]

Hi there,

If you have insight, please let me know. In London, if a house is divided into two flats, is it worth more as two flats or as a single dwelling / house?

I have been given very different opinions, so wanted to cast a wider net!

Please let me know your thoughts, especially if you have experience or are an estate agent etc.

Thank you so much!

It's impossible to say as it depends on location, size and layout of the flats vs the house, etc. You're best bet is to compare to similar flats and houses in the local area.

Yes as per PP depends on a lot of factors. In a sweeping generalisation, in London two flats will usually be worth more than one house, flat conversions are very popular for this reason, but it depends on a lot of factors, the market can vary enormously across the city, central London very different to suburbs, zone 2 cool urban area popular with young professionals very different to zone 5 leafy areas that attract young families etc, in terms of housing stock and the target market and what they would prioritise, relative importance of outside space etc.

So whether it's worth doing a conversion on a current single dwelling (or indeed vv, merging two flats back into a single house) will depend on a lot of factors, the cost of building works and materials is very high now so you would need to do some very careful sums, allow a large contigency for unexpected problems as most conversions are of older properties and you can easily uncover problems with the plumbing, electrics, damp proofing etc which are expensive to remediate. Plus of course you'll need planning permission which is by no means a given to be granted again depending on the type of property and area...

Thank you for your responses. The property is in Maida Vale, so a families and young professionals area.

Generally two flats would be worth more, until a big family comes along that needs say six bedrooms then it might be worth more to them as one dwelling. My Afghan friend for example has him his wife three children, get parents and his parents plus a grandparent living together. They need a large house, but these days three beds is enough for most families