AIBU to pull out of buying this house?

[BeQuaintLion]

Please be kind, no judgement about money please. I’ve come from very little and worked really hard for what I have. I know I’m lucky to be able to buy but this is a massive thing for me and I’m worried about getting it wrong.
Buying an older house for £250k. Mortgage offer is through, solicitors are doing their thing and now I’m having serious second thoughts.
I knew it needed work, wasn’t expecting to just move in and put my feet up. But looking at it properly I reckon it needs at least £70k just to bring it up to a basic liveable standard. No luxury finishes or anything fancy. Electrics, heating, kitchen, bathrooms, general repairs etc. The heating is currently disconnected too.
It’s in a former pit village and there are cracks in the house which are worrying me. I’ve also found out that land at the back was refused development, from what I understand because of mining concerns and contaminated land. I know that doesn’t automatically mean there’s anything wrong with this house or that the cracks are connected, but it’s made me much more nervous about them. I’m looking into a level 3 survey as I don’t know whether they’re cosmetic or something more serious.
There’s also a loft conversion where we still don’t know what approvals there are. It just feels like the further we get, the more questions there are.
I have savings for work but I don’t want to spend everything getting the house sorted and then find something else major needs doing. I’ve worked so hard to have some security, the thought of eating through it all is making me feel sick honestly.
We’d be looking at £320k between buying it and the basic work, before fees and whatever else crops up. I’m starting to wonder if I’ve got carried away seeing the potential and not really thought enough about what it’ll take to get there.
It’s been on the market about a year. Other houses nearby seem to have sold for similar money in much better condition which is making me question the price as well.
I keep thinking why don’t we just buy somewhere more liveable for the same money or less and do bits as we go? I work long hours and don’t know if I want all the stress of a big renovation on top.
Then I think am I just getting cold feet because it’s all becoming real now.
AIBU to walk away at this stage? Has anyone felt like this and been glad they pulled out? Or gone ahead and been glad they did? My head is all over the place with it.

I think you pull out purely based on this. If you don’t pull out now it doesn’t seem that unlikely that you’re going to spend loads on solicitor and surveyor fees only to need to pull out further down the line because the bank’s conditions can’t be met anyway.

Your solicitor will establish whether relevant planning conditions were met and a completion certificate issued. However, before you spend a fortune on solicitor searches this is something you can do yourself via the local authority planning portal online. My DS is currently buying his first property so the first thing he did with any property was forward the Home Report to me and I started digging.

Mortgage offers based around conditions that haven't been met yet are risky. How would you satisfy those conditions, and who decides if those conditions are "satisfactory "? (The mortgage company.)

Yes, this exactly.

I pulled out for a lot less. I put myself first was right call. 100% pull out. It's too much.

I was going to say exactly this OP. I started to have serious doubts about our last house purchase. We were moving to an area we didn’t know well and I didn’t understand the nuances of the local market. Some weeks into the process I started to worry it was overpriced and that there was too much work to do. In the end I went through with the purchase, in part, at least, because I felt we were too far down the line to back out. Eight years on and I still regret it. There turned out to be an awful lot more work needed than I’d anticipated. We’ve spent a not-so-small fortune on it. We now need to move and will lose a very serious amount of money. I wish I’d trusted my gut.

Bale out! If it’s not right, it’s not right.
Hundreds of sales fall through every week.
The estate agents have seen it all before. Just keep looking.

Exactly, plenty of better property to choose from.

Run!

I wouldn't do it. We had cracks in our house which the survey said were nothing to worry about. Turns out the roof was spreading. Spent I can't even think about how much on a totally new roof and structural work and it has been so stressful.

If you do go ahead find a structural engineer and don't rely on a surveyor.

You’ll be looking at more than £70k if you want kitchens and bathrooms aswell. Maybe find something you could do up gradually over the years?

No heating connected??? HELL NO!! You are looking at MAJOR major work and £££ and the £ you have guesstimated won’t cover anywhere near that! Walk away now and save your £ and your sanity! You would never be able to sell this house again!

My sibling walked away from a house where the lift conversion didn’t have approval - the parts of the roof trusses that were cut out were structural Sibling rang for advice about withdrawing offer and my surveyor husband said don’t it’ll cost a lot to fix. And in mining areas expect subsidence if there are cracks in the walls.
i’d look elsewhere, you might get a smaller house but it hopefully wouldnt be a money pit next to / potentially on contaminated land

Run fast!

@BeQuaintLion It sounds like a lot of the houses on homes under the hammer and maybe it should be sold at a property auction. I would walk away. They have been very vague about the things you've asked about so far and who knows what else will crop up further down the line

Thank you all, i have come to the decision to pull out of the sale, whats the best way to break it to the vendors/agents? i do pity them as the lady has started looking for a flat near the coast to buy, but i simply am not going to commit to a money pit when i can take much less risk elsewhere.

Apologies for making a mistake - it’s too big a project for me after all and I didn’t realise until I started really working through the detail

This 💯

I think that’s definitely the right decision OP. Keep looking, you’ll find what’s right for you.

e-mail the agent and tell them, they will tell the seller, don"t get too emotionally involved in what the seller might or might not be feeling, they are trying to sell a house near contaminated land on an old mining site, they will probably have to get used to disappointment and dropping the price by a lot.

This!!

I think you've made a very wise decision.
I really don't think you've acted in bad faith,
You were considering the property.
They really have not been forthcoming with information and it occured to me when several pps were saying you could check this here and check that there, that the seller ought to have already done this themselves!
But perhaps was hoping no one would ask.!
With all of the above, it sounds like its completely overpriced and would be a better bet for a developer or something.

Put this way - you've actually done them a favour, showing them that selling this property with all its faults needs a lot more work from them!
Personally I think you would have had difficulties with the mortgage because of these things, and with insurance companies who are nervous about subsidence.

The money and time you would have had to spend on unseen problems and fixing work, is now freed up to spend making the next property you decide on, much more comfortable. Well done.

Good points, the seller was hoping no one would ask while they were off down the coast measuring up their new apartment! I would send the e-mail without a seconds thought about the seller and move to the next house, and if "information is not forthcoming" from a future seller, drop them like a hot brick as well.

You are definitely doing the right thing. You’ll find an amazing property that will make this entire process worth it all. 🏡