Last minute house purchase worries

[Olivetree77]

Anyone else had last minute 2nd thoughts about house move and is this normal? We are meant to be exchanging in 2 weeks and I keep feeling like I am making a massive mistake.

I think part of the reason is that the house we are buying was on the market for 2 years and I worry that we will not be able to resell it. However everytime I visit it I love it. I think it sat so long becuase it was initially v overpriced and also has a half completed extension. It is also quite rural which will not appeal to everyone.

I think if there had been lots of people chasing it I would be feeling a lot happier but now I keep thinking there must be something fundamentally wrong with it if no-one else wanted it

We are planning to complete the extension which should improve its future saleabilty plus it will hopefully be our last move so I don't really know why I am having this wobble.

The unfinished extension would have put most people off , i would think that was the main reason it was on for 2 years .
But you are willing to finish it and you love the house so go for it .

In this market, houses are not flying off the shelves. People don’t necessarily want the bother of finishing someone else’s extension. You don’t mind doing that, you love the house, you’re prepared for the work and you want semi rural.

I agree that it's the unfinished extension that would have deterred other buyers. As you're willing to take it on because you love the property, it was obviously waiting for you!

We purchased a 400 year old rural Welsh house in 2018 that was originally put on the market in 2011. It sat without selling for several years (!!!) as the owners had moved back to London. They then let it out (still for sale), till it was eventually repossessed. A couple of locals told us they'd viewed it but thought it needed too much work - the badly finished extension had a failed roof/collapsed ceiling, so the space was soaking when we viewed.

We renovated over six and a half years then sold making a decent profit.

Another house we offered on (in 2011) had an extension finished to first fix. It had been for sale for 18 months when we saw it. We were happy to take it on and complete the work but pulled out for unrelated reasons. That one eventually went to auction in 2013 and sold for considerably less than our offer.

I'm buying a house that sat on the market for two years with no offers, so I had similar qualms as you. But like people above have said, it's a bad market, it was also initially overpriced, and ours needs a lot of work to get it to a modern standard. Not many people want to take that on. I think when we've redone the roof, replaced the windows, and changed the bathroom and kitchen, plumbing, electrics, it would be a much easier sell. We wouldn't make any money doing that, as all these things are expensive, but at least it would make it more marketable, and I'd hope we might break even. We are planning on staying there, though, so that's just in case something bad happens, like a divorce!

Thanks all. I know you are all right, I think it must be just psychological. I tried to picture how I would feel if someone else wanted it as well and I know I would be so much keener and probably even end up in a bidding war with them.

Funnily enough before this house we missed out on another one that had also sat on the market for 2 years but with this one the agent went back to all the other viewers and told them it was under offer and it was their last chance. One of these viewers then out bid us on it.

I don't know why I am worrying really. It is meant to be our forever home so hopefully we will not need to sell it anyway. I know what you mean though Fibrous, it is nice to know you could sell it if you needed to.

maybe speak with the guys at 'chattoyourbuiler' about the works. They might help you sleep a bit better with proper insight.

@Olivetree77 your property is the most significant investment you will ever make. Buying into that investment when you have doubts that you'd easily find a buyer if you needed to sell and move on for any reason, is something to seriously consider as to whether that's wise.

People too often buy a house thinking it's "forever". There are many reasons why you may need to move in the future, that may not be in your control, eg job loss, financial problems, health issues, family issues whatever. Restricting yourself to a property that you don't think will have a market in future without significant improvements closes off your options. Always go with your intuition, that's why you have one, that why you're having a wobble, and none of us on here have seen your new property so cannot actually judge if the investment is sound or not. I'm going by what you've described and the circumstances sound off to me.

the other concerning thing is buying into a property with an unfinished extension. That could become an open cheque book. Currently the cost of building materials and labour have gone sky high due to the global situation. Having that uncosted, unbudgeted millstone round your neck when it wasn't of your making is ill advised. The vendors must be clicking their heels that you're buying them out of their mess. Has their EA justified the property price and how much it has been reduced by, to allow for you to add value by investing in the unfinished extension?

obviously it's your choice, but having bought and sold numerous times, I would say Caveat emptor, let the buyer beware.

You seem to have posted this same "advert" several times, which is against Talk Guidelines

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