How to improve this house, in Penn, Bucks?

[wax lyrical]

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/90404222#/

Bit 'marmite', I know, but 'location, location, location'. In that area detached house are minimum £1.2m

Externally - thinking about off-white render at the bottom and restain/ repaint the wood cladding? Colour??

Internally - ground floor - opening out the hall by getting rid of the downstairs bedroom (to create a kind of Hall/Reception)? We don't need the extra bedroom anyway.

New wood floors & radiators all over, except the kitchen/diner (leave as is). If budget permits, maybe refit a couple of the en-suites (but not essential).

All advice and input welcome.

Edited by wax lyrical on Tuesday 24th November 17:57

[mikees]

The obvious answer is anthracite grey. White render grey windows and garage door , stain wood black. Flip it for 1.2m next summer.


Joking aside I like it. Penn traffic is bad during commute school run

[craigjm]

White render and then maybe a new england colour like a light blue on the wood? Interally the downstairs is a mess. There isnt a decent lounge and its hard to create one without knocking out the study and the bedroom which would then mean the main entrance comes into the lounge.

[wax lyrical]

THIS house wouldn't be worth £1.2m though. Too 'quirky' and compromised. Also, doesn't have a big garden. But at £840k, not a bad buy for the location.

mikees said:

The obvious answer is anthracite grey. White render grey windows and garage door , stain wood black. Flip it for 1.2m next summer.


Joking aside I like it. Penn traffic is bad during commute school run

[xx99xx]

If you're planning to live in it then the answer is to do whatever works are necessary to give you what you want. That would therefore be an improvement, for you.

If it's an investment to sell on for a profit then maybe do those things you've suggested as probably not worth doing major works just to resell as a garden that size is unlikely to attract top dollar with bigger plots in surrounding villages up for similar prices.

[wax lyrical]

Thanks All. We’re planning to stay fairly long-term, but have a limited ‘improvements’ budget for now.

[mcdjl]

Personally speaking, white render would put me off a place for to the need to paint/maintain it which the existing brick doesn't have.

[wax lyrical]

Our aim is to go for a 'Nordic' vibe to the exterior, so a render is going to be necessary.

Yes, the ground floor is compromised by the lack of a large separate 'lounge', but for entertaining, most of the time people will be hanging out in the kitchen/diner anyway.

[thebraketester]

wax lyrical said:

Thanks All. We’re planning to stay fairly long-term, but have a limited ‘improvements’ budget for now.

I like it. The whole thing would look instantly better by simply replacing that awful garage door

[wax lyrical]

Agreed!

Any suggestions for a really nice charcoal grey garage door (and perhaps matching front door)?

thebraketester said:

wax lyrical said:

Thanks All. We’re planning to stay fairly long-term, but have a limited ‘improvements’ budget for now.

I like it. The whole thing would look instantly better by simply replacing that awful garage door

[rustyuk]

Maybe make the sitting room bedroom 4 if needed and then convert the garage, study and bedroom 4 into your living room.

[wax lyrical]

Thanks. I'm reluctant to lose the garage though and don't really need a 4th bedroom, so would prefer opening up the Hall instead. The current sitting room is handy as it opens into the garden.

rustyuk said:

Maybe make the sitting room bedroom 4 if needed and then convert the garage, study and bedroom 4 into your living room.

[Camoradi]

wax lyrical said:

Agreed!

Any suggestions for a really nice charcoal grey garage door (and perhaps matching front door)?

https://www.hormann.co.uk/

[wax lyrical]

Thanks. Really nice choices.

Camoradi said:

wax lyrical said:

Agreed!

Any suggestions for a really nice charcoal grey garage door (and perhaps matching front door)?

https://www.hormann.co.uk/

[motco]

Having lived, until eight years ago, in Beaconsfield for thirty five years, I am surprised that a 3-4 bedroom detached house anywhere in that vicinity can be bought for that price - even with a fairly small plot for the class of property. If I were looking in Penn, which has some of the most expensive properties in the Home Counties, and I saw a house with pushing 2,000 sq.ft. of floor area for sub £1M I would be looking very carefully into why that might be. It is sufficiently interesting, though, that spending time looking would definitely be worthwhile. When I say Good Luck I am not being cynical!

Looking further into it, the house is on a small plot that could well have been sold off by the house to the left of Tamarisk Cottage and there's a public footpath down the right hand side which may be part of a track named Stump Hill. As others have said, this road B474 is a busy road in rush hour and Tamarisk Cottage lies quite close to the roadside.

Edited by motco on Wednesday 25th November 11:05

[thebraketester]

wax lyrical said:

Not sure but I would I for something that ties in with the cladding.

[wax lyrical]

Thanks. I'm hoping we've been lucky. Right time, right place, motivated seller and 'marmite' property that is VERY different to anything else in Penn (which is full of Period/ Listed Cottages and Mansions). Searches are currently underway and a Surveyor friend of mine has seen it and thinks it's sound.

The small plot will impact the price a lot and possibly the main road location. I can't afford one of the £1.5m Penn houses unfortunately, so this will do for a good many years, hopefully.

motco said:

Having lived, until eight years ago, in Beaconsfield for thirty five years, I am surprised that a 3-4 bedroom detached house anywhere in that vicinity can be bought for that price - even with a fairly small plot for the class of property. If I were looking in Penn, which has some of the most expensive properties in the Home Counties, and I saw a house with pushing 2,000 sq.ft. of floor area for sub £1M I would be looking very carefully into why that might be. It is sufficiently interesting, though, that spending time looking would definitely be worthwhile. When I say Good Luck I am not being cynical!

Edited by wax lyrical on Wednesday 25th November 11:10

[wax lyrical]

The cladding has faded over the years (greyish/beige now), so we will be restoring it to perhaps a natural oak colour.

thebraketester said:

Not sure but I would I for something that ties in with the cladding.

[motco]

There's an automotive porn shop along the road a bit - Slades Garage. It's full of mouthwatering metal!

[wax lyrical]

Yep - I've popped in a couple of times for a nosey.

motco said:

There's an automotive porn shop along the road a bit - Slades Garage. It's full of mouthwatering metal!