Tag: house

Katy and I have put an offer on a house in Saffron Walden. It’s been accepted. Scary. We’re now waiting on confirmation for our mortgage. We went through a mortgage broker, who recommended Chelthnam & Gloucester. It’s not the best deal in the world, but considering that we only have a 10% deposit and that I’m a Canadian on a visa that is not usually encountered, it’s the best deal that we can get. Even then, it’s in the hands of the mortgage under-writers at the moment who will decide if I’m trustworthy enough to get the preciousssss money.

We’re biting our nails off at the moment, waiting for an email that will say yay or nay. The last time I spoke with the broker, he said that things sounded positive and that this was just a formality. Touch wood, this will prove true. I’ve forwarded him all the emails I’ve had with the immigration lawyer I’ve hired to process my British citizenship app. This is, apparently, a strong point in my favour. Still, with the banks being as antsy as they are at the moment, I won’t be relieved until I have ink on paper.

Watch this space.

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A BEAUTIFULLY PRESENTED THREE/FOUR BEDROOM TERRACED HOUSE ENJOYING A BEAUTIFUL SOUTH FACING GARDEN

The property is conveniently situated for local schools, shops, Lord Butler Lesiure Centre and bus into the town. Saffron Walden is a fine old market town with a good range of shopping, schooling and recreational facilities, and is just 2 miles from Audley End mainline station (fast trains to Liverpool Street) and 4 miles from the M11 access point at Stump Cross.

Very well presented, this terraced property offers flexible accommodation with three to four bedrooms, two to three reception rooms, refitted kitchen and bathroom, gas fired central heating, replacement double glazing and a beautiful south facing landscaped garden together with a detached studio / office

REPLACEMENT D/G DOOR

To:

ENTRANCE HALL:

Large cloaks cupboard housing the gas fired boiler which provides hot water for domestic usage and central heating

SITTING ROOM / BEDROOM FOUR

4.65m(15’3”) x 2.18m(7’2”) Ceramic tiled flooring, radiator, meter cupboard

DINING AREA:

3.43m(11’3”) x 2.90m(9’6”) Wood laminate flooring, radiator, opening to:

LIVING ROOM:

4.67m(15’4”) x 3.20m(10’6”) Sliding, double glazed patio doors to rear garden, wood laminate flooring, TV aerial point, stairs to first floor with storage cupboard under

KITCHEN:

3.20m(10’6”) x 2.06m(6’9”) Fully fitted with an excellent range of base and wall units providing ample work surfaces with tiled splash backs, gas and electric cooker points, extractor hood, one and a half bowl singe drainer sink, plumbing for automatic washing machine, space for tumbler drier, tiled floor, replacement double glazed door to rear garden

ON THE FIRST FLOOR:

LANDING:

With access to loft

BEDROOM ONE:

3.68m(12’1”) x 3.05m(10’0”) Radiator, TV aerial point

BEDROOM TWO:

3.63m(11’11”) x 2.97m(9’9”) Radiator

BEDROOM THREE:

2.26m(7’5”) x 1.98m(6’6”) Built in airing cupboard, radiator

BATHROOM:

Refitted comprising wood panel bath with telephone shower attachment and electric shower over with shower screen, pedestal washbasin, low level WC, radiator, fully tiled

OUTSIDE:

The garden is a feature of the property being beautifully landscaped and south facing, patio area, feature pond, shrubs, flowerbeds etc, leading to:

OFFICE STUDIO:

2.87m(9’5”) x 2.87m(9’5”) With light and power, phone connected

We didn't get the house. We offered 225K for a property that was listed at 235K, in the hopes of possibly getting it for 230K. As is usual with good plans, it went totally out the window when somebody else offered the full asking price right off the bat and the buyers said yes. So yeah, sucks, but what can you do. We did everything we thought was right and right for us. We can't afford to go higher than 240K at the max of the max, and even then I'm not comfortable with that situation because although we can afford the repayments at that price, it leaves us with zero breathing room.

So better to have no deal than a bad one, I say.

Still, that was a nice house.

So, dang.

Katy and I went to see a house for sale in Hinxton last night. It used to be the servant quarters of a big manor house. It had a lovely enclosed garden, beautiful hardwood floors, exposed beams everywhere, a live flame gas fireplace, hand-build maple kitchen. All in all, it was decorated to a beautiful standard and the only thing that stopped us from making an offer on the spot was that it wouldn't have been liveable.

The kitchen, though beautiful, was too small. There wouldn't have been room for the dishwasher nor the fridge we just bought. The stairwell to get upstairs would have killed us at one point. There was an oak beam at eye level that I would have brained myself on a few dozen times and the stairs were narrow and uneven. The upstairs was as lovely as the rest of the house, but if the bathroom door was open, you couldn't get in or out of the guest bedroom.

So yeah. Disappointing. It was beautiful, but it wouldn't have been practical.

We got a letter from our estate agent last weekend telling us that our yearly lease was soon to be up and would convert into a rolling monthly lease. This would mean that they'd only need to give us 2 months notice to kick us out or change the terms. While common business practive over here, it was a bit of a bummer because it took away a bit of the sense of security we had at having a lont-term contract. We like the house we live in now. It's decorated to a standard we like. It feels like home.

We emailed the agents asking if it would be possible to get another long-term contract but started looking at other options at the same time. The good news is that the agents said yes to another yearly lease, so that's a load off our minds. The bad news, which is not really bad, but meh news, is that while we were looking into the prospects of getting a mortgage and buying a property, we found out that one of our neighbours is selling their house.

To be honest, it'd be close to perfect for our needs and wants. We want it. We want it a lot. We probably couldn't get it though, because we can't get a mortgage any time soon. Lenders will do 100% mortgages, or mortgages to people (like me) on visas, but very few will do both. It's an either-or thing.

If we had a deposit, we'd be fine. If I had an indefinite leave to remain (ILR) visa, we'd be fine. We can save up for the mortgage and I can get the visa (in about 3 years), but in the meantime, we're stuck.

If we were in Canadia, I could leverage some of my RRSPs to get a down payment without even batting an eye. The problem comes from the fact that if I try and bring my canadian savings to the UK, I get triply hammered by losing 5% of them to early-sale penalties, half of them to the canadian tax man and more than half again at face value for the exchange rate. So yeah, no.

Fooey, I say!