First time buyers

As an independent financial adviser, my recommendation would be to to speak to an independent mortgage broker who understands the local area, rather than an individual bank, or tied adviser, who only has access to their own products and lending criteria.

They can help prospective buyers understand all of the related costs (stamp duty, valuation, solicitors fees and other disbursements etc) and will be able to advise them of the deposit required and how much they can afford to borrow.

Whilst I can’t help you find a mortgage myself, I’m happy to point you in the direction of good independent brokers who are also able to assist with the help-to-buy ISAs too.

Be very cautious if they decide to look at new build - I've only just found out (maybe everyone else knew this!) that as soon as you buy a new build home, its value drops, just as it does if you buy a new car. There are heart breaking stories of people who cannot sell homes they paid quite a lot for when new - or only at a desperate loss. An older property sounds a better bet, so long as they can get a mortgage and do whatever work is needed.

Thanks for your good wishes. I hope they find a house they can live in. A lot is down to luck I feel, and neighbours!
They are young and have restored a house before but didn't own it.

We bought an old house 40 yrs ago which was a project. It hadn't been lived in as a house since the 1950s and we had to apply for change of use.

Friends advised against it because we lacked DIY skills. However it was sufficiently cheap - we offered a realistic price which was accepted - that we were able to pay for the big works to be done and just had to decorate big time, and put up with living on a building site for months (and months and months).

I agree with MOnica though, older properties don't have the teething problems of newbuild. Although I used to advise others never buy a house with potential!

Our current house did not have a shred of insulation in it in 1996, when we bought it. We moved in during a cold snap just before Christmas. Fortunately we knew that in advance because we had inspected the loft when making our second viewing. So, shortly after the removal vans left, the builder's vans rolled up to put in roof insulation. One of our rolling projects is increasing the insulation in the house. In the next year the last part of a flat roof will get insulated and we will have double glazed windows installed in that part of the house.

With Listed houses wholesale installation of double glazing is not possible, although we do have quite a lot of internal double glazing.

One tip, check what any roofing insulation is. My daughter and family were buying an old farm in Cornwall. Sold their house, got right to the survey stage and then discovered that their mortgage offer was withdrawn as the house they wanted has spray foam insulation and they give them a loan because of this. Otherwise, good luck!

I think the doomsayers on this thread are overegging the dangers. Buying a house you should get a survey done which should let you know if there are any serious problems. Do without a survey and you deserve all you get.

For all the tv programmes showing home renovations done in months at huge costs, most people doing up a rundown house are usually doing it over years and out of income. I know that is how we have done it and anyone else we know has done it.

Yes, you need to be a practical person, but most impractical people know not to consider a rundown house. Our DS certainly wouldn't touch one

And considering all the expensive problems that many purchasers of new houses are having, from leaking roofs and misfitting windows to purchasing houses that are leasehold or have unrestricted charges for estate maintenance, a project house is a doddle.

Be very careful with a “semi derelict” property it can hide many nightmares even a house that is liveable but needs improvement can take a lot of work to bring up to standard. Location is a big part of a houses value, and isolated cottage in a rural area may be attractive but in practice that means long journeys to work and probably 2 cars.

Beware listed houses and houses with major structural problems they can be money pits

The amount of mortgage and loan depends on how much you are earning and can reasonably meet the repayments. It ever was easy to get the first foot on the housing ladder, in a great many cases parents help with finance or improvements. Those that do renovate old properties usually have the skills and the cash to do much of the work, don’t be seduced by the TV programmes that show improvements looking easy, they’re not.

grandtante I totally disagree, As I and others have described many times in this thread, this is something we have done successfully, in our case and DD's, several times with great success and without bankrupting ourselves or running over budget. We would not be living in the large Listed property we have now, if it had not been our ability to assess and buy project houses and improve them within budget,

We have lived in all our houses while renovating and done them up gradually over years as we could afford it. Not every run down house needs major work, often it is just a question of redecorating and updating kitchen and bathroom and garden clearance.

When we bought our current house 20 or more years ago, we were disappointed that it was not more of a project than it was. We installed central heating, a contractor job and done in a week, knocked a couple of walls down to make a bigger kitchen and refitting it and that was really it, apart from redecoration and putting in draft proofing and insulation - oh, and the garden, but that is hard labour not money.

Any work we have done since has been the updating any house owner does, when they have owned a house a long time, refitting the bathroom, having the roof relaid.

We are currently planning a Kitchen extension, but again many GN members who aren't house renovators have done that.

Renovated 3 properties over the years plus two for AC. You need to be realistic about what your skillsets are as inevitably what look like a little job turns into something a bit bigger and costlier. If your DD would be living in the property when the work goes on she will need to be fairly robust accepting mess, sometimes no electricity water etc. Delivery costs if materials can also be high in rural areas. And, the cost is always higher than expected. A full structural survey is essential if the property is in poor condition. You mention 2 GC, they will certainly add stress to a full conversion. The Borders has lots of property for sale and well below the average price, know of someone who gave up trying to sell after a year and rented out her house. Perhaps your DD needs to widen her search for location though do appreciate distance from towns etc can be an issue. Hope she finds her dream home.

A run down property is usually more trouble than it is worth and will cost much more than they thought or can afford to repair.

They need to go along to their bank and find out what price range they should be looking at, whether they can get a mortgage and on what terms. Two young people, both presumably with good incomes and a young family certainly don't need the hassle of a do-it-yourself home, unless they absolutely love living in dust, dry rot and rubble.

IMO location is not everything - the running costs, rates and taxes on the property plus the interest on their mortgage are the things they should be looking at.

I think a common issue is that people often under estimate the amount of work actually involved. So, if they do decide to restore, make sure they go in with their eyes wide open.

Well if they have children they need to be near a school. People living in areas so remote that the house prices are low tend to have to drive all the time to get the kids to school - and as they get older, drive again in the evening to get them to their social events. So the hassle and cost of that needs calculating too.

I don't know if they will go for this one but they are seriously looking.
Your DS was lucky to have such DP!!

The perfect first project. Do your DD and SiL have the skills and determination to do the project? It is hard work and can take much longer than planned.

Our DD has done it twice. DS and DiL wouldn't do it if you paid them. Yes, I said DS bought a run down flat, but he went off to India for three months while we did it up!! To be fair he helped DH get the living room carpet up and take it to the tip.

thanks I will pass this on. mcem.

She has found a bungalow, (on-line) with a horrid concreted garden but nice outlook; old person's decor but cheap. and very near a lovely primary school. It's been on the market ages.

I think Martin Lewis is set to discuss above-mentioned isa at 8 tonight.

Callistemon

Mine's rather shabby

It's all new housing going up around here, both private and social housing.
Unfortunately nowhere near the Scottish Borders, sorry.

That's very true crafty and Callistemon and we did a fair amount ourselves at first so know what it's like to live up a ladder..
Our DC want a forever home to live in and bring up their children in, they aren't looking to make a profit.

I think the best advice here is to find a shabby, older but not historic house which just requires redecoration and tlc. ooh and do it quickly before the isa offer runs out.

Do you know of any??

I do wish it was easier for the young, fit, idealistic young ones to be able to finance their dreams.

So many really ugly (* personal opinion) new houses have shot up recently in our county and it seems almost criminal that the developers have no problem getting permission for these, in the greenbelt and on fresh green fields and in the main with no thought for the environmental impact. They all have garages so expect car ownership and there is no infrastructure such as schools, shops, doctors etc. It makes me angry. And they are very expensive which will lumber a young family with the need to be in thole to a large mortgage for ever.

Yes, it is a consideration when you have young children, not just putting everyone's lives on hold and having no money to spare for their recreation but the dust and dirt etc too, and living in a building site if the renovations are extensive.

We had to do that, bit by bit, when our DC were small because it was all we could afford but I'm not sure I would have done it had there been a alternative.

we did similar at their age, husband was a structural engineer who was also on the rise at work with all the responsibilities that entailed. We had 2 children under 4 and the property was 1750 rural and isolated. Don`t underestimate the stress of it all, the fact that every precious family moment was taken up by essential renovation. We did not look to upgrade, just to bring to a good living standard.

We never had time or money to go out, there were many worries about tradesmen, those that we could afford. Building control was a worry. Exercise and recreation went out the window and result was that my husband became ill, all that stress plus all the stress of having to do those business things that need to be done if you have ambition. Ok we were young but isolation was also too much, having to drive everywhere. We sold at no profit and moved to find a standard of living that we could afford. We put it behind us but that stress was truly dreadful.

Before getting wooed by clever photographs etc. The first thing to look at is the location and the floor plan.

A house that can be easily extended is always preferable.
Look to see if neighbours have extended or gone up in to roof space, if so this has set a precedent and planning is hard to refuse.
A house can be extended on building regs if it is within a percentage of the existing footprint.

Adding a garage, bedroom or conservatory can really add value and make a home more practical.

I would advise to look for a property that is dated but ok to move straight in to.
Work can be done with due thought over a period of time.

Neighbours!! I once was ready to purchase a property to let in a market town close to my home.
I went to the local police station and asked the desk sergeant about the street.
He told me there was a notorious family two doors down who were serious trouble. I appreciate this would not happen now but local knowledge is so useful.

DH and I have renovated two houses, I was the general labourer and he has the skills; when we have had extra building work done eg extensions, he has sub-contracted it oit as he knew exactly what was to be done.
He is still itching for another project, ie building from scratch but I think we are too old now!