How do you know when you've found the right house?

[Muddywellies]

Yes house not horse ?
We've been humming and haaing about moving, whether to stay here and buy a field to get away from being on livery. Fields are like hens teeth and almost never come up for sale.
In the meantime we've come across a sweet little bungalow overlooking fields. There's no option to purchase the field behind so this won't be an equestrian property. So sadly we remain on livery (which tbh gets me down sometimes).
But its such a sweet property in a lovely spot. Needs an awful lot doing to it which makes me nervous. When we viewed it we both really liked it, but it didn't make our hearts sing, I think because it's so outdated. If we could get the work done it would be a truly wonderful property. I'm scared to commit, and scared to move house but this area is just too noisy and I'm getting on a bit now, plus working from home, so I need some peace and quiet.
How did you all choose your homes and how did you know you'd found 'the one'?

 

[splashgirl45]

i found mine by driving around local villages and found a village i liked and there was a board up on one of the cottages, i didnt think i could afford it as it was in such a good position facing the village green but also not far from the main A road, so good travel links as well as good outlook. luckily they accepted my offer and i have been here for almost 20 years. you can make the property what you want over time and if you love the location why not go ahead?

 

[paddi22]

don't underestimate how stressful it is to buy a property which needs a lot of work or total updating. you will hit unexpected issues on the way and end up spending way more then you would have on a more expensive house at the start. plus it doesn't have an option for keeping your horses there. if it was perfect and ready to move in then go for it, but as you said, it didn't make your heart sing. there's plenty of nice houses with nice views. there seems to be too many cons with this one. I would hang on.

 

[Micky]

We looked a few houses in a variety of places within our range, but none made our hearts sing either..until we both decided to look at one in an out of the way area, totally fell in love within seconds of entering the house,just a really good feeling, despite all the work that needed doing, (hubby v handy at diy) never mind it had stables and enough land to keep my two on..you will know when it’s the right place, keep looking and don’t dismiss somewhere out of your comfort zone!

 

[Bernster]

Bah I was gonna make a silly comment on the basis it was a typo ?

 

[Muddywellies]

don't underestimate how stressful it is to buy a property which needs a lot of work or total updating. you will hit unexpected issues on the way and end up spending way more then you would have on a more expensive house at the start. plus it doesn't have an option for keeping your horses there. if it was perfect and ready to move in then go for it, but as you said, it didn't make your heart sing. there's plenty of nice houses with nice views. there seems to be too many cons with this one. I would hang on.

We bought this place as a doer upper and indeed, it was v stressful even tho we weren't actually doing the work. Simply project managing it and if course paying for it, was stressful. Hence I'm a bit nervous to go through it again. Maybe second time round, with more experience, it may be slightly easier (or maybe I'm kidding myself). I just wish I felt excited about it when we viewed it, but I didn't. We liked it, and saw the potential, and it's a lovely place to live, but something is holding me back.

 

[Muddywellies]

Bah I was gonna make a silly comment on the basis it was a typo ?

Pmsl!!!! I wondered who would be first ???????

 

[Leandy]

You need to decide how important it is to have land. If it is very important to you then keep looking. If it isn't then location, location, location and it seems you have found the "location". That is very important. So long as you have the means to fix the house as you would like it then this could be the house for you! For both buying a horse and a house, I use the same test! Does it make me excited to to think I would own it. If I cannot decide then the answer is that it is not the right one and I need to keep looking.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

I would keep looking, I couldn't tell from your post why you might want to buy it.

 

[Muddywellies]

I would keep looking, I couldn't tell from your post why you might want to buy it.

It's a sweet property in a lovely spot, with potential to be a lovely home (with time and expense)

 

[oldie48]

Generally I have fallen in love with a property immediately even though it may ave needed some work I have been able to see the potential. However, we bought a very small cottage on Exmoor as a second home many years ago. The location was lovely, it had a nice garden but it was very quirky inside, been empty for quite a long time so was damp and had an inner room which was dark and dingy. I wouldn't have bought it but fortunately OH had more vision, loved a challenge so persuaded me. It was also very cheap! I grew to love it and we loved every hour we spent there. sometimes you just need to step back and imagine how it could be. It was very old but had been modernised in the 1800s and as we stripped back the renovations we found all sorts of treasures. Go and have another look and think about what it could be rather than what it is now, if that doesn't inspire you, keep looking.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

When you walk in rather than thinking 'which house is the right house' you'll be thinking 'which side of the lounge will my sofa fit best in'. That's the mantra I have always followed.

 

[paddi22]

there is A LOT to be said for having even 2 acres at home to keep a mini and one horse if you were stuck. I've one that needs a lot of care and medication and special feed/bedding/management etc and there is no way any livery yard could have managed him as he needs a very controlled environment. at the moment I have him up at my house and it's been a godsend.

 

[JoannaC]

If you haven't got the buzz then it's not the one. When we looked at our house we weren't meant to be actually buying yet as I wanted to explore lots of different areas to ensure we got it right but we were both so excited by it even with the huge amount of work it needed that we made an offer the next day despite not knowing if we'd have the money in time (I was awaiting inheritance)!

 

[Goldenstar]

In my case there where fields and the rest was irrelevant .

 

[mariew]

We tend to be more excited by a big project than something readymade so a doer upper would be no problems

 

[GoldenWillow]

How realistic is it that you will be able to buy either somewhere with land or land and then a house nearby (this is what we did as an "equestrian" property was beyond our budget)? If it is a possibility it would change things for me and I would hang on until the right place came up. Otherwise it's always been about location as you can change a house but not the location, or would buying the house and making the changes, even if it took a while, enable you to then sell to achieve house/land that you wanted if you decided that the house was not for you.

 

[catembi]

When you feel that you can't NOT have it & would be absolutely devastated if you didn't get it! We looked at 30 houses over 9 months, all with land, most with stables, some with an arena & this was the only one where we thought, we NEED this house and put an offer in immediately. I just love this house so much. It had the land and is even better now we've put in an arena & stable block. I would say, keep looking. I checked four house sale websites every day, looking for houses within x miles of 4 locations. Not just for equestrian but for houses in a price bracket where it was likely they had land. I was absolutely relentless, for months on end, but was losing hope when this one popped up. On the market Friday, we viewed it the next day & put an offer in.

 

[Muddywellies]

When you feel that you can't NOT have it & would be absolutely devastated if you didn't get it! We looked at 30 houses over 9 months, all with land, most with stables, some with an arena & this was the only one where we thought, we NEED this house and put an offer in immediately. I just love this house so much. It had the land and is even better now we've put in an arena & stable block. I would say, keep looking. I checked four house sale websites every day, looking for houses within x miles of 4 locations. Not just for equestrian but for houses in a price bracket where it was likely they had land. I was absolutely relentless, for months on end, but was losing hope when this one popped up. On the market Friday, we viewed it the next day & put an offer in.

I'm doing exactly this. It's become obsessive.

 

[wills_91]

I don't think it's for you going by your op. The house we bought is old and out dated and a doer upper. From the minute I stepped foot over the rancid front door and back to the 60s I knew it was ours ?

 

[Muddywellies]

How realistic is it that you will be able to buy either somewhere with land or land and then a house nearby (this is what we did as an "equestrian" property was beyond our budget)? If it is a possibility it would change things for me and I would hang on until the right place came up. Otherwise it's always been about location as you can change a house but not the location, or would buying the house and making the changes, even if it took a while, enable you to then sell to achieve house/land that you wanted if you decided that the house was not for you.

It's doubtful we could afford a property with land attached. Yes maybe get the land first then move might be a good way to tackle this. But oh this pretty little double fronted bungalow with views out over a cow meadow.....

 

[Lois Lame]

It's a sweet property in a lovely spot, with potential to be a lovely home (with time and expense)

That sounds a good reason.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

The fact that you are asking the question means it's not "the one"...I'd keep looking

 

[shanti]

The place im in right now was exactly what I needed at the time and I knew as soon as I saw i that it was practical and would suit our needs...But I never 'loved it' or looked at it as a forever home. I have recently purchased another property and the moment I saw it I fell in love and knew it had to be mine.

I think if you are looking for a forever home you need to feel some sort of connection with the place. If it is a 'this is OK for now' place then practicality and value for money would be what I would look for.

 

[AUB]

When you just know where the christmas tree will be.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

It's a sweet property in a lovely spot, with potential to be a lovely home (with time and expense)

So, are you looking for your next home, or for something to do up and sell on to finance a potential house with land? If the former, it doesn't sound as if you've found it, if the latter you might have found it, if you have the wherewithal to do it up quickly.

 

[Errin Paddywack]

oh this pretty little double fronted bungalow with views out over a cow meadow....

Sounds delightful and will be worth more once done up. Living somewhere so nice may help with general mood so you might cope with the livery problems better.
When we were looking I wanted somewhere that would shorten my journey to our field. We looked at a lovely house, elderly couple downsizing so house priced to sell and actually well under the price we eventually paid for our bungalow. Would have shortened my journey by a couple of miles, good dog walking literally 5 mins away and a huge fabulous garden. House had a lovely feel but a tiny kitchen. Biggest downside for one of my dogs was that the main road was fairly close and got a lot of motorbikes on it, her phobia.
However I walked round that house loved it but freaked at the thought of trying to look after it. I just knew I couldn't cope with the house and garden as I got older which would mean another move, like it's current owners, so much to my sister's disgust (she loved the garden) we walked away. Settled for a tiny bungalow in a very quiet estate and lost out on being closer to our field. Best thing we could have done.

 

[J&S]

When you just know where the christmas tree will be.

This! I found my (at that time) dream home when I went to pick my daughter up from her friend's Granny's house after a Christmas party. I drove up the drive and saw the lights of the tree in a large bay window and fell in love! When, a while later I was actually actively looking I asked my daughter to get in touch with the family to see if it could be for sale. It was. My children were a bit horrified by the old flock wall paper and the 1950's kitchen but it was big, airy and had a great garden with a little bit of land at the back so we could bring ponies home for a night or two if we wanted. But, when it comes down to it, it's not all about the house, is it..................