Owning your own home

@LHL really good shout and I am looking at flats. I am planning to let a room out to a mate which should help that too in terms of monthly costs.

For an different perspective, I love having a shithole house that I'm completely rebuilding! Its given me a huge sense of satisfaction from learning all the skills as I go along and bringing the house back to life but exactly how I want it.

I had a smaller starting budget to this and my options were basically limited to

1. shithole terraced house in good location
   
2. good (ish) terraced house in shithole location
   
3. small flat in good location (and I hate living in flats)
   
   

IMO tired houses that just need a bit of updating take much longer to do up than shithole ones because theres nothing that cant wait till next week/month. As long as you dont have kids, theres no great hardship in "camping" inside a bedroom or 2 upstairs while you take a hammer to the rest (especially with summer coming up). Once you have a bedroom as a safe space and a bathroom to keep yourself clean, the rest is just decadent luxuries.

These old Bristol victorian terraces are simple beasts made of dirt and wood and covered in countless layers of gloss paint and woodchip wallpaper. Perfect first time project houses :)

edit: but i would avoid that house in shaftesbury av tho

@Silly_Savage don't really know Eastville to be honest but I do have a preference to be quite central. Going to have an explore that way later. All my mates are central ish and easier to let a room out somewhere like St Werburghs.

Soundproofing - would a survey pick that up? From what I've read some conversions are definitely better than others. Living in a terraced house at the moment and neighbour's kitchen one side backs on to the lounge and we hear everything.

@txkxo have you got a link to the sold one please? Going to have an explore that way

@popdown shaftesbury av one is off the list for sure. That's a really interesting perspective.
Chesterfield road in St Andrews has a busy bit where buses go down then on to Cromwell road, but a lovely quiet bit too with some ridiculous houses.

This has just gone up in the good bit, but nowhere to keep/clean bikes.

This has been up since October, and has dropped 10k in that time. Way expensive for what it is even now, garage is shit and in the wrong place, it is dated (old guy lived there last 2o years and has now moved to Brighton), the outside space is weird and shit, needs bathroom/kitchen, redecorating and new light fittings, epc D, GFF has a private courtyard garden. On the plus side, could add value and next door is identical but has a converted loft

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St Andrews is always hella expensive. I believe it has "good schools".

Victorian terraces are never going to be great for that, but noise from above is a lot more invasive than noise from the side (see bastard neighbors thread). I'm no expert but I believe building regs on this were improved sometime in the 90s? Whether individual build are compliant is probably a different question. My conversion was done in the 80s and was pretty shocking in that regard, although some of that was down to tenants behaviour/routine but the building didn't help isolate that.

Eastville: massive park, Tesco & IKEA, pretty good links in to town or out, less hip pubs/cafes. It might not be any cheaper though, I'm out of touch with the Bristol market since I moved away.

It's really nice! Very envious of the size of it, that view, terrace plus garden etc.

Are you sure you don't want to keep the garage as a garage and get something stylish to put in it? A garage opens up all kinds of impractical options...

I would have been open to something like that in theory at least but I'd never get my other half to move to the Cronx and we are too attached to East London.

@popdown yeah 100%. My point was just about budget really

@bobble I'll pm you

Soundproofing - would a survey pick that up?

Nope. A surveyor will listen for 'noise and disturbance', but unless there's any happening while they're there they won't spot it. You need to do your own due diligence on this.

Here's what the survey for the place we're buying said:

No factors relating to noise or disturbances were noted during the course of the inspection. However, you may wish to carry out drive-past inspections of the property at various times during the day so that you can assess whether there are any factors which may affect the property.

So that's external noise but the question is how to assess internal noise at various times of day.

My conversion was done in the 80s and was pretty shocking in that regard

Snap.

I would also add Ashley Down to that search. Just as central as Werbs - in fact it's only across the allotments from my bit of Werbs. Minutes from St Andrews but not St Andrews prices.

It will be super easy to let a room in a place that's been decorated nicely like this one:

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/89326141#/

How do I find out what the planned use of a building is?

Needs a little more context. Checking actual current use against what is supposed to be, or is this about a planned future build/conversion?

Plant a wire tap on viewing

Need to check what the proposed usage is. I thought it was bar/cafe with houses on top. Scatters banging around now "yeah this is gonna be a Tesco express".

I'm no expert but I believe building regs on this were improved sometime in the 90s?

They were.

Whether individual build are compliant is probably a different question.

My 00s new build failed as the developer used the wrong blocks for the party wall. 2 years of testing (play white and pink noise in property 1, measure in property 2), debate and finally sound insulation applied making the rooms smaller to sort it out. One day a resident is going to spot one side of the room is different to the other and ripe the fancy boards off.

Use Class legislation changed last year, now retail (supermarket) and food (bar/cafe) are the same - new Class E. I think that means that you can get planning for a cafe and just change to shop (or office, nursery or gym) without any kind of permission required. Unless it's somehow been restricted by the local council.

Presumably the planners could put a condition on the award that it needs to be the actual thing that was proposed.

Soundproofing - would a survey pick that up?

Not really.

Try to avoid having people living above you if you can.

@Silly_Savage top floor flats I've seen tend not to have outside space and ball ache bike wise, but would hate someone above me. Going to check Eastville but there isn't much FS there atm. Cheers

@Fox due diligence on the inside like scope out who else lives there?

@lemonade keeping my eyes peeled on that area. Cheers. Some of the prices take the piss though

Why don’t you just follow the bike path out through Easton/ Fishponds/ St George way, then you’ll be able to have a nice house for your budget? E.g. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/78267444#/

Takes 15 mins to get into the centre using the bike path and close to nice parks (old bury, eastville, troopers, st george) and cafes/ shops (easton, st george etc). Would really recommend spending a day cycling around east bristol to see if there are any areas you like