What Not To Do Before Buying Your Council House?
Major council house buyer no-no's…
There are hundreds of thousands of council houses in the UK. Also known as council housing or local authority housing, these buildings are owned by councils in every county and are offered to people in need of affordable, secure housing when they can't afford to rent or buy their own, or if they fall under a number of criteria laid out by the councils. <br/><br/> In relatively recent years it has become possible for residents of council houses to buy their home from the council instead of continuing to pay rent. This however, is fraught with issues. <br/><br/> Here are some things you should not do before you buy your council house: <br/><br/> Any Home Improvements <br/><br/> When you approach the council in order to buy your property, you may have been in the house for a while already. In that time you will have been able to phone the council (as your landlord) in order to get general maintenance addressed, which you can still do right up until the property is officially yours. But what you certainly should not do is start to carry out home improvements. <br/><br/> The reason being that when the council know you want to buy the house, they will send round someone to make an evaluation to work out how much your house is worth. They will look at the building and the state of the interior and come up with a figure that they think reflects how much the property is worth. Deductions will be made from this based on the amount of rent you have paid so far to the council so far and for the level of disrepair the property is in. <br/><br/> Unfortunately though, if you have recently built a conservatory onto your property, this will also be factored into the price, because as you were not the owner when it was built, you effectively don't own it. Which means that you will have to pay for it all over again as the valuation of the house will be higher than if it was not there. <br/><br/> This goes for all home improvements too. This could be a new kitchen or bathroom, UPVC windows, a landscaped garden or perhaps new central heating. Anything that you do to the house is not really yours until you have bought the property, after the valuation. <br/><br/> All you need to do is to hold yourself back until the property is completely yours. In fact highlighting any major faults or broken things in the property may even help lower their valuation, saving you money in the long run. <br/><br/> Good luck! <br/><br/> <br/><br/>
About the Author
Sam Qam lives in a council house. He has recently fitted UPVC windows and a conservatory only a few months after he bought his property out-right.
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