Grade 2 listed, would you?

[blade7]

Looked at this house recently.




Before we got there we thought maybe £50k would fix it, afterwards we reckoned £100k is more like it. So, roof has seen better days, we thought £20-25k?. Wooden Sashes are knackered and there's 10 of them, repair or replace along with around 10 UPVC windows/doors that may or may not have been there when it was listed, potentially £25k to sort that lot out. Various ceilings sagging, floors uneven, £15k? Wiring ancient £10k? Oil heating old £10k? Brickwork needs repairs, plenty of cement pointing in the past, £15k? The enforcement notices could come thick and fast when a conservation officer gets involved, plus the 2 year building site to deal with. Is it worth it for a house that probably wouldn't be worth more than it ended up costing?

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It's in the Fens...

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Here's a side view. The roof is slate, looking at the size of it is my £25k estimate optimistic?

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It's not our ideal location, but we probably couldn't afford it if it was. I don't think there'd be much profit in it at the end, and I really don't want to renovate a house for someone else. My Mrs loves the look of it but thinks we'd be mad to take it on, anyway the estate agent choked on our first offer .

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I didn't mention the basement, it's under the front half of the house. I got down there and it looked like a dungeon that's been disused for 100 years

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jason61c said:

Is anything actually wrong with it though? If you don't live in an old house, you might think stuff needs doing when it doesn't.

Depends on your definition of wrong really. As I said the windows and wiring definitely need doing sooner rather than later,probably the heating too. I renovated a Victorian cottage from top to bottom recently so I know a bit about old houses. Though this house needs a lot more work and it being listed doesn't help.

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stewjohnst said:

My advice would be to get a full building survey, look at the estimates and prioritise the works and crack on.

Also, start a thread and make sure to keep it updated better than I have

I think we're a long way from agreeing a price yet, and TBH I think a lot of surveys are money for old rope. I suppose there's good and bad surveyors. As suggested I had planned a chat with the local conservation officer to sound them out.

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stewjohnst said:

It doesn't make as much difference as you'd think.


Buy it already

Are you related to the vendor or the estate agent? If only I could fit the £600 UPVC georgian bar dg vertical sliders like I did in the last place I renovated. If it happens we'll be heading into winter, so my old sheepskin coat might make a comeback. Great thread on your house, though the thought of that amount of work made me a bit twitchy.

Edited by blade7 on Monday 31st July 10:44

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No where near the smoke .

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The information on the Historic England website details the construction and brick type, roof type, plus the windows and door type in the front elevation. Is this all the information a conservation officer would have too?

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Thanks for all the constructive replies.

Edited by blade7 on Monday 31st July 11:42

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The vendor didn't think much of our offer, so it's unlikely we'll be chilly in The Grange this winter .

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Yidwann said:

Might still be time to wait it out...... not sure what its like around that area, but the market here has pretty much ground to a halt.

Good, it's well overdue.

[blade7]

Thanks for the info, but the vendor rejected our offer and the estate agent doesn't seem interested either. The basement layout seems unusual, it's only under the front of the house, and the floors of the 2 rooms above it are around 3ft higher than the rest of the ground floor.