Repossesed Houses

[Fidgits]

okay, following my housing thread, in which you all were very helpful thanks..

Someone mentioned reposessed houses...

Well i found one through an estate agent, now its on at market value, because according to the agent 'they have to at least try to sell it for what its worth, but really, they just want to cover their loss.

Now, it needs a lot of work - well, not structurally, but it would need completley redecorating, new kitchen and bathroom etc...

I suggested making an offer of 1/3rd asking price, and he reckoned i might be lucky (he didnt know) which would be a bargin for the house, even with the work needed...

Now, my experience of updating a house is from Property ladder and not much else, but I reckoned i could do everything for easily less than £50k, which would still make this a bargin if i got it for the above offer... what do you think?

Also, are there any hidden dangers with repossed houses?

[Mr Morse]

There are (often) plenty of problems with repo properties, just like there are with cars, which is why it is usually a developer who picks them up.

First you would need a full survey (min £400), which should pick up most of the problems but is no guarantee.

Then if you are still serious, unless you are a dab hand at DIY (seriously) you need to make some good friends within the trade (sparkies, plumbers etc). Don't think about taking on the big jobs unless you are a pro

Most of all you will need plenty of

L = labour

U = under

C = controlled

K = knowledge

Yes there are bargains to be had, but equally as many disasters :o

[Gord]

As Mr morse says ian get full survey 1st

[norkep]

Ian - we got ours on a reprocessed basis, only worrying thing was that omeone could put a higher offer in resulting in them getting the house and not you. They still left the house on the market while we put our offer in, only when the sale peroid was up did they then remove the house. Only paid 72K 3 years ago, needed a complete new kitchen including floor, and top to bottom decorating. The house was valued at 125K at the beginning of the year.

Took 5 months from start to finish to get the house into order but it's worth it, looks the business

[T7RY B]

Project Manager / budget control.

Co-ordination from the start is MOST important. It can save a lot of time & money.

No good having the plumber ready to go and the walls are not tiled etc.

I have project managed before and I say that it is the most vital part of the project. Tradesmen (If not D.I.Y.) Must come recommended. Shop around for materials B&Q are not always the cheapest!

[Fidgits]

woah guys - im not about to start knocking down walls...

I think it will just need the walls stripping and repainting... I can get the kitchen and bathroom proffesionally done? no?

[T7RY B]

You say in your post that you can get everything done for less than 50K That is some wallpaper and bathroom & kitchen!

[Parthiban]

My knowledge is limited, but I do know that if its an average size house, and there's no structural work needed, that you should be able to do a complete renovation for £50k. But its never as clear cut as that ;)

[stuwood]

A lot also depends on whether you are doing this to make money, ie, an investment, or a family home.

If its the latter, providing you have the time & money then you can do what you like with it, pretty much like a blank canvas.

However, if it is for an investment then you really need to put a lot of thought into it.

Good luck with what ever you decide to do.

Stuart

[Mr Morse]

My knowledge is limited, but I do know that if its an average size house, and there's no structural work needed, that you should be able to do a complete renovation for £50k. But its never as clear cut as that  ;)

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Like I said previously mate, get a full survey before you do anything else!

If there is nothing structurally wrong, you won't need to spend anywhere close to £50K unless you want gold taps in a Poggen-Pohl kitchen

[deejaygee]

I disagree completely, my house was renovated as you are planning - I am currently undertaking the bathroom & kitchen at present - no structural work required - however total build cost estimated to be £45k.

Labour is not cheap anymore, expect to pay at least £140 a day for all tradesman excluding any materials.

Planning is essential - unless you have serious spare time never attempt to Project Manager the job yourself!

And finally under current Part 'E' legislation the amount you CAN actually do yourself is limited, and unfortunelty you can't blag it! Materials have been changed to confirm to Part'E' and certification must be logged with Building Control - if its not you can't sell the house on.

My knowledge is limited, but I do know that if its an average size house, and there's no structural work needed, that you should be able to do a complete renovation for £50k. But its never as clear cut as that  ;)

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Like I said previously mate, get a full survey before you do anything else!

If there is nothing structurally wrong, you won't need to spend anywhere close to £50K unless you want gold taps in a Poggen-Pohl kitchen

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[Fargo]

i would have thought that if your buying a 'normal' house or a repossesed house, the perils are pretty much the same (get a survey done, etc etc)

the additional thought i would have would be that if the house was repossesed then the people that lived there before would have know they wer losingthe house and so may nto have bothered with certain issues (electricly, structurly etc) and may have even stripped ALL what they can (plug sockets, switches, lights etc)

but from what i gather watching all these house programs is that 50k will be plenty (even allowing for some small problems)

[javadude]

I guess the address would be blacklisted with credit agencies so getting credit once you move in might be tricky?

[lexus boy]

credit agencies wont mind as it has been a former repossesion

yeah i mention as that is what my mum does

repossesions you do have to look around a lot and see if you can look at other houses on the street see what the neighbours have been like, also see if have had any probs on their houses if same style of house

as long as you get a good survey done, shouldnt bee a problem

and 50k is one hell of a budget, thats rebuilding the whole house territory lol

[deejaygee]

I beleive it is now the name and not the address which are effected by Credit Ratings.

[Fidgits]

well, im not looking at it as an investment, well not really.

I'm trying to get onto the property ladder, and struggling - and although this house isnt exactly what i want, if it was a bargin, i'd be happy with it, at least for a couple of years - then move on...

[Jiberjaber]

50K should be easily enough to get the renovation done as long as you know what needs renovating... if you dont get a survey done you might come unstuck... imagine that you think you just need a new lot of paper putting ont eh walls, only to discover once you have taken the old paper off the plaster is all shot...... then you talking about ripping the whole lot out and re-plastering - could be a good month or two before you are back in a position to paper again! and you'll be a bit lighter in teh wallet as well.

Have you got any friends in the trades who you trust? Might be worth a quick viewing with them in tow to check it out for you (be careful of any conflicts of interest though!)

As Deejaygee said there are changes tothe Building regs that have just come in which limit what you can do yourself now as well...

I am on my third property now but with the new changes it is getting harder to do it yourself and soon I'll have to start gettign the trade in (which might mean I get less hacked off with it all and the work done quicker :) )

Pictures from the last two places are here: http://www.jiberjaber.org.uk/cm/index.php?cat=4

HTH :) best of luck.

[lexi1]

Mate, as long as you are pretty handy or no people that are, you should have no problem at all getting your house up to scratch for under £20k. In my first house i ripped down every ceiling replastered every wall fitted a new bathroom kitchen and central heating for under 10K. Admitedtlly i am a plumber by trade but as a guide this is what i think you should be looking at based on prices i would charge and mates of mine in other trades.

Price of kitchen + £1000 to fit which should include plumbing and electrics

Price of boiler and rads £1000 to £1500 for material i.e. boiler, 8 rads, pipework, valves etc + £1500 to install

Price of bathroom + £400/£500 to install

This should cover your your main costs. I no there will be other members now screaming you must be joking i paid x amount for this and x amount for that. Believe me, these prices can be met and not by cowboys. Seriously, you should be able to build a house from ground up with 50k.

[Fidgits]

thanks for the info - unfortunatley i dont know anyone in the trade - so thats a hinderence... but we'll see...

[lexi1]

thanks for the info - unfortunatley i dont know anyone in the trade - so thats a hinderence... but we'll see...

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Just shop around mate and dont except your first quote. There are some right rip off merchants out there and i can honestly say from experience generally the more they charge the worse the workmanship and after service. Funnily enough i done some work yesterday for an elderly guy who was charged £2800 to swap over a boiler. Same boiler, same place, he was told the boiler was £2000 in fact it can be bought for just over £450. The robber who charged him done a duff job, left no number and didnt even warrant it up. He called me to put it right, he nearly died when he found out i would have done the same job under 1K.

[janey]

And finally under current Part 'E' legislation the amount you CAN actually do yourself is limited, and unfortunelty you can't blag it! Materials have been changed to confirm to Part'E' and certification must be logged with Building Control - if its not you can't sell the house on.

You are really gonna scare poor Ian saying that

The new legislation you are talking about is Part P - Building regs.

It only covers certain types of domestic electrical installation :D

There there Fidgets..........not quite so scary now

best bet is send Mrs Mop to building classes, with trowel & spirit level in hand

[Fidgits]

thanks for the info - unfortunatley i dont know anyone in the trade - so thats a hinderence... but we'll see...

←

Just shop around mate and dont except your first quote. There are some right rip off merchants out there and i can honestly say from experience generally the more they charge the worse the workmanship and after service. Funnily enough i done some work yesterday for an elderly guy who was charged £2800 to swap over a boiler. Same boiler, same place, he was told the boiler was £2000 in fact it can be bought for just over £450. The robber who charged him done a duff job, left no number and didnt even warrant it up. He called me to put it right, he nearly died when he found out i would have done the same job under 1K.

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well, since your not that far from me - I might call you for a quote...

and if i need electrics doing, there is always Barrie ;)

Just need a builder now :D

[lexi1]

thanks for the info - unfortunatley i dont know anyone in the trade - so thats a hinderence... but we'll see...

←

Just shop around mate and dont except your first quote. There are some right rip off merchants out there and i can honestly say from experience generally the more they charge the worse the workmanship and after service. Funnily enough i done some work yesterday for an elderly guy who was charged £2800 to swap over a boiler. Same boiler, same place, he was told the boiler was £2000 in fact it can be bought for just over £450. The robber who charged him done a duff job, left no number and didnt even warrant it up. He called me to put it right, he nearly died when he found out i would have done the same job under 1K.

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well, since your not that far from me - I might call you for a quote...

and if i need electrics doing, there is always Barrie ;)

Just need a builder now :D

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Mate i will happily guide you on prices you should be paying. I work for a building company so i can give you an idea on what you should be paying for virtually anything building related.

[Parthiban]

This is slightly off topic, but these companies that do complete renovations themselves, as in you call them, they do absolutely everything and then leave, so you don't need to call different builders and plumbers, etc.

How much of a premium should you expect to pay for what should be a much easier process (obviously assuming that you pick a good company)?

[Jiberjaber]

And finally under current Part 'E' legislation the amount you CAN actually do yourself is limited, and unfortunelty you can't blag it! Materials have been changed to confirm to Part'E' and certification must be logged with Building Control - if its not you can't sell the house on.

You are really gonna scare poor Ian saying that

The new legislation you are talking about is Part P - Building regs.

It only covers certain types of domestic electrical installation :D

There there Fidgets..........not quite so scary now

best bet is send Mrs Mop to building classes, with trowel & spirit level in hand

←

Part E is regarding sound insulation...

Yup Part P came in on 1 Jan 05, there was a bit of a hohar in the IEE news about it as loads of CEng's are not competent due to the new requirements (courses certified and then people certified and associated insurances, all similar to Corgi registration with inspections of work etc).

Luckily I finished the full re-wire of my gaff well in advance of it all :) Of course you can get round it if you notify the local building control office and get them to inspect it all but I am not sure on their availability to inspect nor the costs asociated with that, I guess it's going to be more than the std building control certification costs (which are broadly based on value of works carried out).

More details on building reg etc from the ODPM Building Regs

There's a full FAQ on Part P on the IEE Website