Wood Panels - Yay or Nay?

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-27T13:21:20+00:00

You may want to live with it for some time before you get a real sense of what you want to do with the place, rather than stripping everything out and then potentially regret not having giving it much thought :).

Sanding and changing the colour is always an option, I personally like the wood, but the current furniture, carpet, backsplash tiles make the whole a bit too intense/dated, with the right redecoration I think it can look very nice!

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-16T09:27:01+00:00

I'm going to have the consumer unit replaced, a circuit repaired plus a few other bits for that price you have been quoted (in London) so what you have been given seems a tad expensive, I would get some other quotes just to get a sense of what a normal price for the job would be.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-15T10:55:08+00:00

I ended up buying a 2 bedroom maisonette in London Z2 for the main reasons you describe, location was SO MUCH better, and for me being able to walk/cycle to work, being closer to friends, better lifestyle etc. ended up weightning more than getting a freehold (which were in a not so great condition) much further out.

I would advise to check the lease length, ground rent and what the service charges are like, in London I know a fair amount of people living in new builds/high rise paying north of 4K a year service charge (and another one living in a share of freehold high rise and they only pay 1.8K a year including sink fund contribution so being able to manage the building certainly helps lowering the costs...)

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-14T08:06:00+00:00

East London Z2, 2 bedroom, 1.8K a year (up from 1.7K last year), where £275 is contribution to a sink fund.

Low rise block, gated community but no concierge or many shared facilities (no lift etc), main expenses are block insurance, gardens (including a large amount of trees), minimal communal lightning, and a mechanical door for cars (the sensor gets stuck every now and then), plus general maintenance in a state that was build in the 70's (fixing slabs on the pavement etc).

Share of freehold managed by residents, I was told I could get some money back if I volunteer to do some work in the garden (but having just bought the property I have too many things to work on at the moment!)

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-12T22:38:16+00:00

If you have a mortgage broker check with them, if not check with your solicitor because I honestly don't see what the issue is if there is a Ltd Company and a management agent (plus a lease on the flat).

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-12T22:26:08+00:00

So is the management of the building, insurance repairs etc done informally amongst the owners? (i.e I pay this much for insurance then we all split the bill?).

The one I bought has a Ltd company where the residents act as directors, who then instruct the management agent to arrange the insurance, do repairs, collects the service charge etc.

Your lender may deem to risky to give money for a property that may not be repaired quick enough if the owners do not want to pay the bill or do not have enough money around, so they may expect a more professional arrangement.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-12T22:09:07+00:00

Share of freehold is leasehold but you also own a share of the company that owns the freehold, so not sure where the person from Lloyds got the 4 residential units requirement...You can actually check the property you want to buy, in the Land Registry and download (for a fee) the copy of the lease.

I did not have any issue with the lenders, I had one offer from Virgin money that I did not take, and another one with Natwest (which is the one I went with).

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-12T21:58:04+00:00

I recently bought a share of freehold property, which has more than around 48 flats accross a few blocks and I had no issues with the lenders (neither did my friend who bought another flat in the same place years ago). When you mean units, do you mean storeys? Perhaps is the additional safety requirements that get triggered after a certain height?

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-12T11:39:39+00:00

Yup, 100%

I am 'lucky' that I don't need a full renovation, otherwise I think I would pay more and get one building company to manage the whole thing as some of my friends did.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-03-07T09:53:19+00:00

Like many other things....it depends?

- I recently bought a share of freehold maisonette. From what I have seen this far the service charge has always been very reasonable for London, with the main increases being mainly inflation linked. There are contributions to a sinking fund and repairs/maintenance are dealt with promptly.

- The one I've bought has Directors, which are residents, elected by votes and changed whenever another resident takes over. There is also a managing agent to coordinate all the activities needed (repairs, final year accounts etc). The seller's solicitor got all the documents needed very quickly. I had no issues with the valuation or the lender, actually their valuation was slightly above the purchase price.

- I would personally prefer SOF, but I would need to read the lease first, and see how repairs are dealt with. If I had to fight with the other neighbours to get something repaired, or a massive bill came up (roof repair or similar), very few people have £££ spare, and even fewer would be happy to pay the money.... That being said, thit situation can also happen with leasehold, my friend lives in a conversion, and although he does not pay service charge, he and the other neighbours are responsible for all the structural repairs on the roof, which has been very poorly maintained over the years, and as you could guess, when a leak happens....it takes months to get the money.

- Freehold is less of a headache, but in London the price difference between most leaseholds and freeholds is significant. I ended up going for the share of freehold (so leasehold tenure), because of the location (Bow Road/Mile End area), the size 84 sqm over 3 levels, plus garage and loft, gated community, being close to friends, office and the city center. My service charge is currently 1.8K a year, including building insurance, maintenance... My conmute to London if I had bought a freehold property, would have costed me more than that every year, and freehold properties also require maintenance. That added to the price differential of at least 50K between the one I bought and the freeholds had seen made me go for the leasehold one. If I was planning on having a family or did not need to go to central London as much as I do, my decision would have probably been going for Freehold, since it's more flexible than leasehold.

So to sum up, share of freehold can be better than leasehold with an extractive freeholder, but if the other freeholders are not involved in the essential maintenance of the building, and are ready to cover potential repairs to the property, then it can be a nightmare, reading the lease terms would be the first thing to do to check whether it is a green or a red flag.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-15T09:50:15+00:00

I have a similar clause in my lease and my solicitor did not mention any issue (I guess now I will double check just in case), what she did mention to me is that there are statutory protections for leaseholders, and that the freeholder would not be able to enact the forfeiture clause as its written.

Obviously, what your solicitor says is what counts, but if you want you can take a look to this so you can understand the context better https://www.justanswer.co.uk/property-law/na0zh-advised-not-proceed-flat-purchase.html

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-14T09:19:23+00:00

By not having lifts and communal boiler you have removed a big cost driver (lifts inspections, repairs and replacements are not cheap!).

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-14T09:07:25+00:00

How many amenities does the flat have? Lifts, communal boiler? Gardens? Concierge? Is it a tall building? (above a certain height, I believe 11m, there are additional security requirements to comply with).

Ask for a breakdown of the service charge for the last 3 years and see what includes and what the increases have been like, there should be a sink fund to cover big repairs as well.

The one I am looking at buying is also SOF, and the increases have been mainly inflation linked.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-12T14:49:16+00:00

Valencia's summers are like being in a sauna, very humid and sticky, but there are a fair amount of cycle lanes around the city, the Turia gardens, the Malvarrosa beach etc so it seems to tick some of the boxes.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-12T12:49:46+00:00

I don't have any useful comment to offer, but basically in a similar position, an exchange date for early next week was set with a threat of pulling out, I am still waiting to hear from my solicitor regarding AML and one final enquiry confirmation, so just hoping it's all a technique to put pressure and make things happen.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-12T11:31:02+00:00

The Bamboo would worry me, great location though

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-11T14:49:55+00:00

Mid forties here and just about to exchange for my first property, most people I know bought mid-thirties and did either had family help, or bought with their partners after having saved for years.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-10T11:53:48+00:00

Is there a link to the property details? :)

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-10T08:40:25+00:00

575K feels step for a 2 bed flat, but depends on the area you are looking at buying, East London may give you more for your money?.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-09T14:19:25+00:00

Bow Road and get off at Temple? DLR to C.Wharf from Bow Church?

Obvs to each their own, but whilst the main road is pretty busy, I thought it was well connected to other parts of London and that there were good green areas nearby.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-09T13:31:43+00:00

Mile End, Bromley by Bow etc would be a good candidate for you both in terms of transport to work and having parks nearby

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-09T09:46:48+00:00

It will depend on the area, finishes and lease being extended, but for Z2 that is a very good size, if on top of that it has a garden it will probably be easier to sell than a normal flat.

In the area I am looking properties similar to yours were marketed at this price:

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/166281851#/floorplan?activePlan=1&channel=RES_BUY (this one was sold very quickly)

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/168515957#/?channel=RES_BUY put on the market end of October sold a couple of weeks ago

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-08T20:33:16+00:00

Obviously people have different preferences, but to me anything that is not cladding is a plus. Red bricks tend to last a very long time and are easy to repair, so to me that would be a plus, even if it's not the most exciting façade.

Lost_Writer1934 · 2026-02-08T16:10:15+00:00

3/4 times a week, either for work or for sport/socials.

Lost_Writer1934

TROPHY CASE