Buying a house (and renting)

OnlyShallow wrote:

1cmanny1 wrote:

OnlyShallow wrote:Got the keys for the house yesterday. Went around to have a look at it after work. Was transported back in time to a 1970's B&B. I think I'll have to start a DIY thread.

strawberry float me I feel middle aged.

Wait.. Didn't I ask if it needed work done, and you said "No"?

Errrr... I think what I actually said was

OnlyShallow wrote:It needs a new heating system, which we are having done before we move in. There are various other things needing done but they will get done over time.

Its at the top of the page. Not exactly hard to find.

Holpil wrote:I'm also in the process of buying my first house, currently living with my girlfriend in a damp, poorly heated and overpriced one bedroom flat.

Has anyone ever had any experiences of what the yanks call low-ball offers? My Dad's helping out with it and he reckons I should be offering a good 30k+ less than the asking price. After speaking briefly with the sellers and what they paid for it, plus their poor financial situation, I don't think they'll be too pleased.

1cmanny1 wrote:I have an Uncle. He wasn't that good at DIY. However he was really keen. All it took was someone to suggest that the kitchen wall might look better if it wasn't there, and he would start bashing away with a hammer.
Make sure you know what you are doing.

OnlyShallow wrote:

1cmanny1 wrote:I have an Uncle. He wasn't that good at DIY. However he was really keen. All it took was someone to suggest that the kitchen wall might look better if it wasn't there, and he would start bashing away with a hammer.
Make sure you know what you are doing.

Thanks for the advice. I'll bear that in mind next time I am in the kitchen and my wife suggests I knock through a load bearing wall. Luckily though, neither myself or my wife are mentalists, so I doubt the occasion will arise.

I can see her asking me to put up some shelves though. And do a bit of painting. And I said I'd try and see how easy it is to remove the artexing. strawberry float.

Rex Kramer wrote:

OnlyShallow wrote:

1cmanny1 wrote:I have an Uncle. He wasn't that good at DIY. However he was really keen. All it took was someone to suggest that the kitchen wall might look better if it wasn't there, and he would start bashing away with a hammer.
Make sure you know what you are doing.

Thanks for the advice. I'll bear that in mind next time I am in the kitchen and my wife suggests I knock through a load bearing wall. Luckily though, neither myself or my wife are mentalists, so I doubt the occasion will arise.

I can see her asking me to put up some shelves though. And do a bit of painting. And I said I'd try and see how easy it is to remove the artexing. strawberry float.

You'd probably be better off taking the wall out than trying to get the artex off, once that strawberry floater is on then its a bastard to shift. True fact, Indy's fridge in Crystal Skull was actually lined with artex.

OnlyShallow wrote:

Rex Kramer wrote:

OnlyShallow wrote:

1cmanny1 wrote:I have an Uncle. He wasn't that good at DIY. However he was really keen. All it took was someone to suggest that the kitchen wall might look better if it wasn't there, and he would start bashing away with a hammer.
Make sure you know what you are doing.

Thanks for the advice. I'll bear that in mind next time I am in the kitchen and my wife suggests I knock through a load bearing wall. Luckily though, neither myself or my wife are mentalists, so I doubt the occasion will arise.

I can see her asking me to put up some shelves though. And do a bit of painting. And I said I'd try and see how easy it is to remove the artexing. strawberry float.

You'd probably be better off taking the wall out than trying to get the artex off, once that strawberry floater is on then its a bastard to shift. True fact, Indy's fridge in Crystal Skull was actually lined with artex.

I know. Hence the strawberry float

I might end up just sanding that gooseberry fool off.

Igor wrote:Doesn't artex contain asbestos? RIP onlyshallow

Artex and health risks
Until the mid-1980s, the Artex coating was made with white asbestos to strengthen it. This means that only old artex manufactured by Artex Ltd will contain asbestos and most probably any Artex applied within the last 25 years will not contain any harmful material whatsoever. It is also worth noting that the texture is only harmful when in a powder form (i.e. being sanded) and poses no risk whatsoever while it is undisturbed on ceilings or walls and covered with emulsion paint.[2]

Removing even more modern non-asbestos coatings can expose the operator to hazardous dust particles. Older coatings, containing asbestos, pose a particularly serious hazard. Inhaling microscopic asbestos fibres can cause asbestosis, a fibrosing lung disease, and mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining (pleura) of the lung, so anyone removing the coating or working with a surface covered with it should wear effective dust-proof protective clothing and masks – and the area being worked on should be sealed off. Professional advice is advisable. Removal of Artex is covered by the UK’s Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations 2006, which make it illegal (if it contains asbestos) for a contractor not licensed by the country’s Health and Safety Commission to undertake most work on asbestos coatings.[3] However this has been recently reviewed. In the UK, once removed, Artex and any other substance containing asbestos must be disposed of as hazardous waste. If the coating is left alone and coated with paint and undamaged, it may be safe to leave the coating in place and managed 'in situ' by annual inspection.[4] Plastering over the coating may ensure it is safely encapsulated and the national website at artex.co.uk can help with this.[5]

Iron Nan wrote:Pardon my ignorance in these things (I am in no way buying a house) but I saw this in the paper;



I thought 100% mortgages were not possible any more? Also, anyone know what the catch would be?
The company is Ward and Partners There's no mention of this offer on their website weirdly.
http://www.wardandpartners.co.uk/mortga ... age-deals/

Rex Kramer wrote:

Holpil wrote:I'm also in the process of buying my first house, currently living with my girlfriend in a damp, poorly heated and overpriced one bedroom flat.

Has anyone ever had any experiences of what the yanks call low-ball offers? My Dad's helping out with it and he reckons I should be offering a good 30k+ less than the asking price. After speaking briefly with the sellers and what they paid for it, plus their poor financial situation, I don't think they'll be too pleased.

I think it all depends on just how much you want the property. If you go way too low, you run the risk of hacking of the owners and them deciding never to sell to you. But, its a buyers market at the moment and if you've got the funding in place and nothing to sell then you are definitely in the box seat. What's the property on at? 30k on a £250k house isn't unreasonable, 30k on £120k is.

Edit- the other thing to take into consideration is what they bought it for. If they've only been there a couple of years then they could already be facing a 10-15% drop on their original purchase price. Whereas if they've been there an age then they might have made quite a bit on it anyway.

Hexx wrote:Offer accepted.

I just spent 1XX,000K on something that can burn down

BID0 wrote:

Hexx wrote:Offer accepted.

I just spent 1XX,000K on something that can burn down

I wouldn't worry. You always have the land still.

Hexx wrote:Offer accepted.

I just spent 1XX,000K on something that can burn down

Octoroc wrote:

BID0 wrote:

Hexx wrote:Offer accepted.

I just spent 1XX,000K on something that can burn down

I wouldn't worry. You always have the land still.

I think you'll find that the land belongs to the Queen.

-that's Elizabeth II, not Hexx.