Question New Home (maybe) Advice :)

Scouse

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So, bird may be taking up an opportunity to start up a new office for her company miles away from Nottingham up in the Lake District.

I'm not averse to the idea. Quite like it. I'd be nearer both seaside and mountains and given I spend most of my weekends trying to get close to either or, preferably, both then from a things-I-like-to-do standpoint it makes a lot of sense.

She'd get a hike in pay. I'd be f00king miles away from work (but that's a side issue).

So, I've been looking at properties. If I'm going to move I'm not going to move to some shithole. I'm going to buy a home, not a house.

Presuming financing is not going to be an issue (which it may well be, she's got most of a small mortgage left to pay on her current house and I'm self-employed - and neither of us are wanting to sell our respective houses, rather mine's rented and her's would get rented) then I don't think I'm getting ahead of myself looking.

And, somewhat annoyingly, I've found a flood-damaged grade II listed building that's up for auction. Ground floor needs tanking. Rest of the ground floor indoors needs doing up (unlikely that anything can be done externally as it's listed). It's about as energy inefficient as a house is able to be and I daresay insurance could be tricky short-term.

It's where I want it to be, it's the size I want it to be and it's the type of house I love at the top end of what I reckon we could afford.

So. Advice.

1) Am I mad?
2) Anyone experience of buying houses at auction?
3) Has anyone any experience with listed buildings / consents etc?
4) How much does it cost to tank a building?
5) Flood damage is due to a culvert that was blocked that highways agency is due to replace. What's the chances of insurance being totally f00ked?
6) What am I not thinking about?

Answers not on a postcard but in this thread please :)
 

DaGaffer

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So, bird may be taking up an opportunity to start up a new office for her company miles away from Nottingham up in the Lake District.

I'm not averse to the idea. Quite like it. I'd be nearer both seaside and mountains and given I spend most of my weekends trying to get close to either or, preferably, both then from a things-I-like-to-do standpoint it makes a lot of sense.

She'd get a hike in pay. I'd be f00king miles away from work (but that's a side issue).

So, I've been looking at properties. If I'm going to move I'm not going to move to some shithole. I'm going to buy a home, not a house.

Presuming financing is not going to be an issue (which it may well be, she's got most of a small mortgage left to pay on her current house and I'm self-employed - and neither of us are wanting to sell our respective houses, rather mine's rented and her's would get rented) then I don't think I'm getting ahead of myself looking.

And, somewhat annoyingly, I've found a flood-damaged grade II listed building that's up for auction. Ground floor needs tanking. Rest of the ground floor indoors needs doing up (unlikely that anything can be done externally as it's listed). It's about as energy inefficient as a house is able to be and I daresay insurance could be tricky short-term.

It's where I want it to be, it's the size I want it to be and it's the type of house I love at the top end of what I reckon we could afford.

So. Advice.

1) Am I mad?
2) Anyone experience of buying houses at auction?
3) Has anyone any experience with listed buildings / consents etc?
4) How much does it cost to tank a building?
5) Flood damage is due to a culvert that was blocked that highways agency is due to replace. What's the chances of insurance being totally f00ked?
6) What am I not thinking about?

Answers not on a postcard but in this thread please :)

Is it a listed building on National Trust land or anything like that? Because if it is, avoid like the plague.

Yeah, you're probably mad.
 

caLLous

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Definitely mad but you need to be a *little* but unhinged to approach a project like that.
 

Scouse

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Is it a listed building on National Trust land or anything like that? Because if it is, avoid like the plague.
It's in the Lake District national park boundary. But why specifically?

I can't envisage ever wanting to change the outside of the house. Internally is up for grabs on grade II listeds though isn't it? Garden?
 

DaGaffer

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It's in the Lake District national park boundary. But why specifically?

I can't envisage ever wanting to change the outside of the house. Internally is up for grabs on grade II listeds though isn't it? Garden?

Getting permission to do anything on NT land is a massive ballache. You say you don't envision doing anything external but roof work, windows, even your front door, are all covered on NT land. You can do the work, but its almost certainly going to cost a lot more money. A second cousin of mine bought a place in Snowdonia years ago (one of those little farmers cottages). It was a holiday home and she just said it was wearying getting anything done, and that wasn't a listed building.
 

Raven

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It's in the Lake District national park boundary. But why specifically?

I can't envisage ever wanting to change the outside of the house. Internally is up for grabs on grade II listeds though isn't it? Garden?

Its not just adding to, its maintaining. That being said, it does not mean you are not allowed to make changes, just that you have to ask a man with a clipboard and an extensive stamp collection. Our house, that isn't listed but in a preservation area can be a pain at times. We have a long front garden with a ~200 year old stone wall at the front, we want to knock a bit down and put in a drive, can't (Although we probably could if we went through a lot of crap, which we can't be arsed with)

Then the flood damage, how long has it been left to its own devices since the flood? That could be a nightmare if the stone is quite porous, I imagine limestone?

Regular flooding can be a pain to insure against these days but as it was a freak accident and the building is not in an area that regularly floods it might (speak to an insurer) be OK and if the council are responsible for the damage then they are probably liable.

Without an extensive survey though, I would avoid.
 
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Gumbo

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You won't get a mortgage on something which you can't insure. That's the first hurdle to clear.
 

Tom

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Why is it flood damaged? A local river flooding? If so, avoid - it'll flood again. No-one will insure it and do you really need the hassle?

Buy something on a hill.
 

Job

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Is it in Kendal by any chance.
My uncle has just done up a barn there and had to tank it because you know...floods.
He didnt report anything epic.
My mate has tanked quite a few of his properties for basement flats...but has always ended up getting some mould.
That may have been me using too long screws in the rad mounts.
 

~Yuckfou~

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Full surveyors report needed, it's being auctioned for a reason. Also as pointed out check if it's insurable.
 

old.user4556

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What's your budget? I'll find something in Skirtland for you.
 

MYstIC G

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2) Anyone experience of buying houses at auction?
If you clear all the issues everyone else has touched on, be careful that the auction will likely have stringent conditions of sale and also ensure that you have a hard set "this far, no further" budget in mind. It would be dead easy to go tens of thousands over what you were going to pay, I've not done this but I've seen the "shit, what did we do" faces in an auction room after the hammer drops. Best advice is if it goes over your budget, get up and walk out.
 

sayward

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Our flat wasn't listed but was in a Conservation area. We weren't allowed to replace the dreadful wooden sash windows ( Victorian). Not even with exactly the same modern wooden ones. We could've applied for planning permission but were told we probably wouldn't get it.
 

Vae

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Isn't trying to buy an auction property with a mortgage a bit of a no-no as you can't get a valuation until after you've won the auction?
 

Scouse

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Isn't trying to buy an auction property with a mortgage a bit of a no-no as you can't get a valuation until after you've won the auction?
You decide your maximum bid and get a mortgage beforehand. If it goes over that bid you don't purchase.


The flood damage is a mountain beck it's adjacent to - wouldn't have flooded but the culvert that goes under the road was blocked or damaged. It's near a lake but 30 feet above it so no chance of flooding from that.

In terms of changing the externals of the property - I'd never want to. It's a listed building and I can't see why people buy them then want to change them. Buy another property ffs! :)

@Big G - bird's job is the reason to move, so no to skirtland. @Wij - I work in Yorkshire and used to live there so I'm half a man at least.


Then the flood damage, how long has it been left to its own devices since the flood? That could be a nightmare if the stone is quite porous, I imagine limestone?
This is the thing I'm wondering about. Does the whole ground floor need replacing or does it simply need tanking. If it's the latter then a move in, live on upper floor + kitchen whilst spending a few years doing up the ground floor is something I'd be happy to take on.

Any bigger than that and I'd not have the funds to do it anyway. Leave it to a richer person.
 

Vae

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You decide your maximum bid and get a mortgage beforehand. If it goes over that bid you don't purchase.
Aren't you then dependent on if the mortgage companies valuation of the property matches your purchase price or (in this case I'd suggest more likely) not. Also the mortgage would be based on the properties valuation in the current condition not taking into account any planned works. Seems very risky.
 

old.user4556

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Aren't you then dependent on if the mortgage companies valuation of the property matches your purchase price or (in this case I'd suggest more likely) not. Also the mortgage would be based on the properties valuation in the current condition not taking into account any planned works. Seems very risky.

This.

The mortgage will only be a percentage of what the lender thinks it's worth. If you bid and win at £500,000, but the lender thinks it's only worth £300,000, you'll only get £285,000 assuming a 95% LTV.

Haven't read the whole thread, apologies if i've missed it, but have you had it valued?
 

Scouse

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Not risky at all.

You get an agreement in principle for an amount of money you want to spend (and can afford to pay back) - value of a house + works + whatever else you want to do (consolidate other things). As long as you can meet repayments then you're quite free.

If the bid goes above what you can afford you're a fucking idiot. You stop bidding and miss out on the property - and never take the mortgage out. Simples.
 

sayward

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If you are going to live somewhere like that you will want draft proof windows....... and we weren't allowed to do anything with ours,
 

Scouse

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If you are going to live somewhere like that you will want draft proof windows....... and we weren't allowed to do anything with ours,
All things to talk about with the local compliance officer. I think you can get windows that look identical but aren't...

This is all a massive stab in the dark. If it's going to cost a couple of hundred thousand to do it up then it's a non-starter anyway.
 

caLLous

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Be sure you'll potentially be able to do things like that before purchasing though, of course. There's a building up the road from me that is falling down. Numerous people have made noises about buying it and doing it up over the years (the views of the Pyrenees are spectacular) but it's only got narrow openings for the windows and nobody has ever been given permission to enlarge them. So, since I've been here, the roof has collapsed and one of the end walls is on its way down. It's a crying shame that the planning people would rather see it fall down than restored to the beautiful home it could be.
 

Raven

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Its also one of those things that if you change the windows like for like then nobody is going to notice or care. You may run into trouble if you get those horrible plastic things put in though but I doubt you would want to ruin it anyway.

Bear in mind replacement wooden windows can be pretty expensive and most probably not a standard size, not a single one of ours is the same size.
 

Scouse

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Want pics? (Map is off on that, but google...)

Bear in mind it's quite (very) pie-in-the-sky thinking at the moment, but it's *exactly* where I'd want to live. Mountain biking from the doorstep, 25 minutes to the beach, kayaking on the lake, 20 minutes to the missus' possible new job.

Walls are slate, @Raven.
 

Raven

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I would be all over that to be fair, trouble or no.
 

dysfunction

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Want pics? (Map is off on that, but google...)

Bear in mind it's quite (very) pie-in-the-sky thinking at the moment, but it's *exactly* where I'd want to live. Mountain biking from the doorstep, 25 minutes to the beach, kayaking on the lake, 20 minutes to the missus' possible new job.

Walls are slate, @Raven.

You sound like someone who has already made up their mind.
 

Lamp

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As long as the property isn't prone to regular flooding and you can get insurance, if it's your dream house, do it. Buy a pair of wellies and go for it. Life's short. Enjoy it while you can. And phone your parents more often. When they're dead you'll wish for just 5 minutes more with them.
 

Vae

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Not risky at all.

You get an agreement in principle for an amount of money you want to spend (and can afford to pay back) - value of a house + works + whatever else you want to do (consolidate other things). As long as you can meet repayments then you're quite free.

If the bid goes above what you can afford you're a fucking idiot. You stop bidding and miss out on the property - and never take the mortgage out. Simples.

I thought, as @Big G said, that the mortgage company would insist on a valuation as that is their security. And then they would only finally offer whatever LTV % you have agreed of that valuation not whatever (possibly inflated) price has been agreed. This also means that mortgages on houses needing a lot of work can be difficult as you can't get a mortgage based on the future valuation of the house post works therefore have to fund the works yourself.
 

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