My OH is from Surrey- but we moved from London to the Midlands when we were first married. There is NO WAY we could ever move back to Surrey, and especially not back to a bungalow.
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Why bungalows for sale are so neglected?
(289 Posts)GNHQ have commented on this thread. Read here.
We have been looking for a bungalow in Surrey lately and got very frustrated with what we have observed being a trend.
Almost all of bungalows were built in the 1930-s and are quite small, typically around 65m2. They are in a really poor state and have not been updated for a few decades. Many show signs of utter neglect. Most of them have suspended floors, rising damp issues or damp and mould from leaky roofs and gutters. Doors and windows need changing, not to mention pink and avocado bathrooms and pine kitchens together with polystyrene tile ceilings. They have EPC of D or even E.
Whilst most of those faults and undesirable features are due to age, some are due to sheer neglect from the relatives of the elderly owners. We have seen plenty of probate properties still on the market a year later with dirty dishes still left in the stinking dishwasher, food left in the fridge and gone mouldy, kitchen units left dirty still full of contents.
The saddest one was a perfect in every sense bungalow, so well laid out and built, where the water butt leaked, stayed unnoticed for ages, created damp in the wall and eventually black mould took over the whole wall behind the built-in wardrobe. The doors were left open, and the mould spores disseminated all over the house, infecting every inch of surfaces, carpets and fabrics. This is how you get what is called a “sick building syndrome”. You will never get rid of that mould completely, the spores will make sure it comes back.
So on one hand, there is a real shortage of bungalows for the aging population, and on the other hand there are plenty of them but in such poor condition that nobody would buy them. Relatives overprice these bungalows in a hope to get a bigger inheritance, so the buildings sit empty for over a year getting musty, mouldy and accumulate problems – and depreciate to the point of becoming unsellable. Yet they do very little to make them sellable in the first place, like dealing with leaks and damp or at the very least giving these properties a good clean and empty the appliances.
It makes me so sad to watch some great houses going to waste instead of becoming cosy and loved homes. The only thing that could stop this madness would probably be the condition under which properties could be marketed – to be cleared, cleaned and issue free.
Some properties even got extended but we have seen so many extensions that were given little thought and resulted in convoluted layout, blocked light and fresh air and unusable or lost space.
Germanshepherdsmum
So perhaps postpone a move until then unless he has a private pension?
How can you afford to retire if you still have a big mortgage to pay? I think it is hard to imagine for people outside SE that this could be the case, but this is what high property prices and expensive mortgages do. It is a different world here, everybody is stretched to the limits, including those in well paid professions, unless you are from the upper class. I used to live in Cheshire, had my own 3-bed semi and could comfortably pay a mortgage and bills on a single salary. But my DH was born in this area and does not want to move.
Makes sense. Of course, we are in the age group of in-betweeners. Not young, not quite old. We can't wait to move because we already struggle with the stairs, we are on a 2nd floor without a lift. Fancy lugging your shopping upstairs and getting out of breath! With pain in the knees...
So perhaps postpone a move until then unless he has a private pension?
My husband is not of pensionable age for another 4 years yet
Alternatively you could move to a cheaper area where you could find what you’re looking for and your husband wouldn’t have to carry on working for ten years. Cheaper areas do not have to be unpleasant areas, far from it. I live in north Norfolk where a lot of people retire to and therefore there are a lot of perfectly nice modern bungalows and peace and quiet to be found well below the top of your budget depending on your choice of location. Other areas are much cheaper still as has already been said here. Unless your husband is desperate to carry on working of course. Is he, despite his illness?
RusBun:
'too much upheaval to live on a building site for a year whilst the house is being done'
Isn't that a little pessimistic? The bungalow I've just looked at has a massive garage - and tiny kitchen. It needs decorating, new bathroom and paving outside, too. Still, I do like the location and garden, so I'm focussed on the things that can't be changed.
I'm elderly but in good health. It's the dog that has trouble with stairs. I could live in the front rooms while the back is sorted out, then vice-versa. I could put up with the noise - but not the dust, so the hall would have to be blocked while it was being done. It doesn't seem impossible to me and I wouldn't want to rent somewhere in the meantime, that's OTT.
argymargy
You’re not making a general observation, Rusbun. You’re making a specific observation based on viewing a small number of bungalows in a particular county, built in a particular period. My experience is very different. Bungalows also fetch a premium, which is great in terms of my investment.
I made it clear that my observation was specific to the area. As others from my area have confirmed, there are very few bungalows south of London and they are of that age and condition. We have seen so many that I would not consider 200 to be a small number. Out of that number only 3 were built in a later era - hardly a coincidence.
Age is only a number. You can be fit at 80 as well as you can get mobility issues even when you are young. We are in our early 60-s but already showing signs of being incapacitated. I had to give up working a decade ago due to my poor health, hence we are still paying the mortgage. DH had lung cancer and part of his lung removed a year ago, he gets tired and out of breath going up the stairs.
It can happen to anyone. We are making the right decision to move to a bungalow sooner rather than later, whilst we still can deal with the move. We may not be able to move again or later on.
He is physically capable and is engaged with modern life but would still be classed as ‘very elderly’. Some people are positively old at 60 because they live in the past and refuse to change with the times.
Our best doerupper was a a property above a shop, 3 floors.
It had been empty for 7 years where squatters had lived.
In this time the roof had collapsed in places letting in the rain.
In the previous 10 years to the above it had been used as offices.
In the 5 years we were there property prices went mad 😄
Germanshepherdsmum
I don’t know what your definition of ’elderly’ is Whiff, but I doubt anyone else would say that 96 isn’t ‘elderly’ (or even, frankly, very old).
I suppose if you're 110 then 96 is a spring chicken 😁
Germanshepherdsmum
I don’t know what your definition of ’elderly’ is Whiff, but I doubt anyone else would say that 96 isn’t ‘elderly’ (or even, frankly, very old).
I know what Whiff means though. Some people are elderly at 65, some aren’t elderly at 96, if it’s their approach to life you’re talking about as opposed to the age they are - it’s all about attitude.
I don’t know what your definition of ’elderly’ is Whiff, but I doubt anyone else would say that 96 isn’t ‘elderly’ (or even, frankly, very old).
Callistemon21
BlueBelle
Well my house is 150 years old with all original doors and windows, fireplaces etc and is in need of thousands and thousands spending on it but I m blowed if I m going to spend cash I haven’t got on doing it up for someone else to enjoy , it can go on the market for a knock down price and some builder will do it up and turn it into flats but I won’t know anything about it
Love it!!
😁
That’s the way to do it 😂
Whiff
RusBun what age do you consider elderly? I am 65 one of my neighbours is 96 he keeps his bungalow in tip top condition. And he is far from elderly.
This seems to be yet another anti-ageist thread!!
There are so many on Gransnet lately - what is happening?
Ageism is defined as discrimination against older people because of negative and inaccurate stereotypes—and it's so ingrained in our culture that we often don't even notice
Anywhere around here (outer SW London) bungalows are scarce and relatively expensive. The pre WW2 ones, which IMO is most of them, often have big gardens on wide plots, so tend to be bought up by developers who put a substantial two storey house, or two semis, on the same plot.
An ex colleague of mine bought one which needed a lot of renovation. It had been bought 2 or 3 years previously by a developer, who just sat on it, did absolutely nothing to it, and then sold it on after prices had shot up - which was presumably the idea. 🤬
Can I clear a house before probate?
No, you cannot clear a house before probate. If a loved one or close relative dies, you must obtain the grant of probate to settle the estate before you can clear the house or go through their belongings. Getting a grant of probate gives you the legal right to deal with a deceased’s assets such as their property, money, or valuable possessions, otherwise known as their "estate" after they die.
Why can’t you clear a house before getting probate?
You can’t clear a house before probate is granted because the deceased’s house may contain valuable assets or items like cash, jewellry, or antiques. The court seeks to prevent such valuable items from being stolen or sold before probate is granted because it means that the beneficiaries of the Will may not receive what they are entitled to.
gloverpriest.com/news/can-i-clear-a-house-before-probate#:~:text=The%20executor%20of%20the%20deceased's,for%20any%20loss%20in%20value.
"A typical bungalow purchaser is also old or incapacitated, and also has no energy or resources to do it up"
I have seen this general way of thinking in other threads - covering the needs and wants of a sector of the population despite their lack of prep work when that phase is reached
Society has to be inclusive of all, which does not mean has to prioritize a formerly or current able person's needs and wants due to age
BlueBelle
Well my house is 150 years old with all original doors and windows, fireplaces etc and is in need of thousands and thousands spending on it but I m blowed if I m going to spend cash I haven’t got on doing it up for someone else to enjoy , it can go on the market for a knock down price and some builder will do it up and turn it into flats but I won’t know anything about it
Love it!!
😁
Joseann
I have to say every bungalow we viewed in Devon was pristine, empty ones too, and they sell like hot cakes.
There is much more in some areas of Devon than here where there is little choice. Perhaps we should have moved back years ago!
Most seem to be reasonably maintained and some completely refurbished by family who have inherited one, but I would agree with Rusbun that there are some very peculiar layouts.
The other problem is location, location, location.
I get what you're saying Rusbun. While people cannot afford to run back and forward to parents bungalow, you would think they could empty fridge etc and generally clean a place before putting on the market Also what an awful waste to let it get overrun by mould., thereby lessening the value.
We would like a bungalow but we haven't the energy to do the refurbishment that most require and often the price doesn't allow for it anyway where we live.
Rusbun Quite often relatives do not live near where there parents live. Our 2 live 100 and 200 miles away respectively and. That is a long and expensive drive to make to look after an empty house. Many older people do not have the money to spend on their houses after they retire, or do not want the hassle.
Additionally family are awaiting probate to access any funds their relative had and cannot afford, for example, to pay a cleaner or gardener from their own resources.
Personally we LIKE houses that are run down and in need of modernisation as we are compulsive house renovators. We could not have afforded our current house if that had not been a renovation project and enthusiastically got settled into reorganising the property to provide a bigger (refitted) kitchen, a 2nd bathroom and a downstairs cloakroom.
Rusbub just because you are looking for a house in good order and well looked after, doesn't mean that everyone does.
You’re not making a general observation, Rusbun. You’re making a specific observation based on viewing a small number of bungalows in a particular county, built in a particular period. My experience is very different. Bungalows also fetch a premium, which is great in terms of my investment.
I can understand the point being made by OP, when we were looking to move a few years back, we viewed a lovely bungalow with a lot of potential and as we were a lot younger then we were happy to tackle what needed doing. It wasn't mouldy or anything, but needed new windows, updated heating and electrics, bathroom, kitchen etc. It was a probate sale and our offer was very fair, and chain free. The family who had inherited, a niece and nephew some 2 hours away, turned down our offer. The bungalow sat empty, and deteriorated, for over a year. The neighbours of the deceased remarked that it was a pity the family hadn't spent as much energy visiting their aunt as they did investigating how much the property would be worth when modernised.
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