We need to move house as due to my neurological condition I struggle with stairs and our house isn’t adaptable.
We made an offer on a plot in a stunning position, we’d have to knock down the existing house as it was basically a ruin, and build a new house to our needs, lift, wide doors etc.…
We thought the offer probably wouldn’t be accepted as there was an existing accepted offer for ½ the plot although the buyer had done nothing for 6 months, so we offered for the whole plot and it was accepted. Yesterday the agent called us to say that the vendor had changed his mind and was going to sell ½ the plot to the original buyer for £50,000 less than we offered. I suspect he’s looking to get planning permission for the other ½, although as it’s in an AONB and there's only 1 house on the plot at the moment, I think that’s pretty unlikely.
The vendor is within his legal rights to do what he did as we hadn’t exchanged contracts, but I think it’s pretty shoddy behaviour. Also apparently the original buyer is a friend of his, so the yes-no-yes is a weird way to treat a friend. His daughter told us that he’s an awkward git.
We could be criticized for offering when it was already under offer but the original buyer hadn’t exchanged contracts in 6 months so I don’t feel too bad about it.
Anyone here built a house for themselves? I'd like stories of what to avoid, any tips and tricks etc.
Things to look out for, Japanese knotweed, large tree roots covered up, mining works, restrictive covenants, hidden drainage/electricity cables, incorrectly marked boundaries, poor ground conditions, not costing everything before committing, I'm sure others will add to this not exhaustive list.
I wonder it it's possible that the vendor has done this off the back of the recent news that planning permission is to become automatic?
BBC News - New homes to get 'automatic' permission in England planning shake-up
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53625960
I wonder it it’s possible that the vendor has done this off the back of the recent news that planning permission is to become automatic?
If he is he's in for a nasty surprise. We're in Wales, where I think it doesn't apply.
Also doesn't apply universally even in England. Only on certain land.
Where in Wales are you?
I've just put planning in for two bungalows in my garden.
Newts - plot near us has newts on there so developer has to do loads of surveys and relocate them. The newts have been there for years as we used to play near the area. A gypsey millionaire developed a nearby plot and had to spend shedloads to get the same thing, and it delayed his build massively. Local populaton is well aware so any planning the stock reply is newts, what about the newts.
Where in Wales are you?
We're in Monmouth and looking to ge within 5 miles of Monmouth, as all our friends are around here.
Oh yeah, bat survey if you are demolishing something, first quote was £1650, ended up paying £670, just a bloody money generating exercise.
