Single-family house from 1987. Evaluation of the price and the "necessary" work

Hello,

I’ll start my 3rd thread on the topic of buying/building, sorry :)

I would like to get an assessment of the following plan (building has basically been ruled out):

Last week, a single-family house in our absolute dream location came onto the market. We are already calling it fate :D because we saw it on the same day during a walk and thought, "THAT would also be a great house with a great plot." (Sounds like nonsense, but it really isn’t :)

Well:
Single-family house with basement. Built in 1987
121m² (with about 40m² of living space again in the basement)
537m² plot
Gas heating. Completely renewed in 2011.
Energy rating: 143.6 kWh/(m²*a)
Great room layout etc.
A 3x7m garage with an attached approx. 1x3m storage room
Large basement
Attic

Costs: 540,000€ plus additional costs.
Less the land value, the house costs 357,420€ (537€ x 340€) Average is about 175€/m²

The plot is absolutely perfect for us. Nice large “forecourt” with garages and 2-3 parking spaces, small front garden etc.
At the back a nice small garden. Completely sufficient for us. The location is absolutely perfect both in terms of “value” and emotionally for us.

So far so good, why am I writing here then?

- 1987. Is that already “old”? Sure, it’s not 100 years old but also not a new build. Can you say in general it’s worse/better than XXX or not?
- Windows: Wooden windows with double glazing are installed. They look good. So they shouldn’t need to be replaced immediately, right?
- The stairs to the upper floor COULD be replaced. The stairs to the basement are solid.
- I still need more info about the roof. But it’s probably the original roof. If there are no prior damages etc., the roof shouldn’t have to be done in the next 2, 3, 4, 5 years, right?

Time has just stood still here, meaning:
both bathrooms need to be renovated. Old tiles out, old doors out etc. Terraces need new floors. New kitchen.
But these are costs and effort I can estimate pretty well and I’m not really worried about them.

How do you assess the price for a single-family house with the above data and renovation needs?

ps.
Does it read again as if I’m just looking for confirmation? :) Or are there points I’m overlooking?

Thanks to you all.

How do you evaluate the price for a single-family house with the aforementioned data and the need for renovation?

Location? For such a house in a normal location, still a usual price. The standard land value confirms the reasonable location. Roof: The roof itself will continue to hold. Concrete roof tiles might be replaced mid-term - but can also last another 20 years. Electrical: Should be technically okay, whether the equipment is "modern" (network, number and arrangement of sockets, etc.) you have to see. Sanitary: Always a matter of taste. The pipes should at least last for decades. Bathrooms are about appearance and can also be renovated later. Windows: Are only one energetic component. From '87, however, certainly energetically "junk." Possibly consider new panes (not the entire window). Heating: The biggest issue from my point of view. Not technically, but financially. With the year of construction and the current gas price, you can also calculate about €350 monthly heating costs (so please look at the consumption of recent years, then you can calculate yourself with current prices). Basement: It is equipped as living space, so also heated. Hurts the wallet. Is there any possibility to insulate the basement ceiling anyway and only use the basement room occasionally as a guest room? Others (floors, doors, walls): Matter of taste. Can also be done while living inside and then deciding on renovation. Possibly energetic measures for roof insulation/top floor ceiling or pipe insulation necessary (observe the requirements of the Building Energy Act in case of ownership change). Conclusion: An '87 house is (usually) solid and quite modernly built. Renovation rather than core rehabilitation is required.

Hi Stelli,

first of all: Is the house still available at all? The listing was deleted on Immoscout (not just deactivated). In my opinion, realtors only do that when they are sure they no longer need to put it online. At the moment, it can only be found at the real estate archiver Mapio.

What is crucial here in advance is whether it is a solid house or a prefabricated house. When I look at the photos, it partly looks like a prefabricated house. And with prefab houses, I would be cautious with the year of construction 1987 – the issue of pollutants was not settled back then.

Otherwise, it is a relatively good year of construction.

Costs: €540,000 plus additional costs. Deducting the standard land value, the house costs €357,420 (€537 x 340 m²). The average is about €175/m²

For the location, the municipality provides not only land value standards but also real estate value standards with correction factors. When I enter the key data, I come to a value of €460,000. Many members here in the forum consider these values too low, but you cannot argue away that they were determined from real notarized purchase prices from the previous year – and that in this region and with the current building interest rates, an increase of 17% would not be justified – especially since the full broker commission is also due here.

Gas heating. Completely renewed in 2011. Energy value: 143.6 kWh/(m²*a)

You will not be happy with that in the long term ... especially since this is a consumption certificate, which is usually lower than the demand certificate – also because single-family houses of this age were often inhabited by only 1-2 people and the children have long since left the house – ergo not all rooms are heated. So you would have to tackle this issue – probably with external insulation, possibly roof insulation – and probably also underfloor heating right away, since the tiled floor on the ground floor is no longer quite modern.

- 1987. Is that already "old"? Of course, it is not 100 years old but it is also not a new building. You can’t say in general whether it is worse/better than XXX, right?

As I already wrote above: Regarding the materials used (in solid construction) generally good. The problem with this age is more that it is difficult to decide how extensively you want to carry out work that is difficult or impossible in an occupied state. You would actually replace electrical and water pipes after 40 to 50 years – you are now just under that. The same applies to the windows, which would still last another 10 years but are already no longer energy efficient today, especially if you are thinking about external insulation.

- Roof, I am still missing more information. But it should still be the original roof. Provided there are no prior damages or similar, the roof should not need to be done in the next 2, 3, 4, 5 years, right?

What kind of roof tiles are those? Concrete? That’s what it looks like in the photos. Google “concrete roof tiles lifespan” and form your own opinion. Even experts have differing opinions between 30 and 60 years, I’ve heard everything.

My conclusion: I would negotiate it down to €490k and then bring it up to date for €250k.

First of all, thanks for your detailed answer.

But what really interests me first is how you know which house it is? :-) It is deactivated, that's correct. There are many interested parties.
However, we are "in the draw". We are in contact with the real estate agent and also visited yesterday. Photos, exposé, etc. I have it all.

I will now roughly respond to your post since I am on the go.

It is a prefabricated house, not a solid house.
No point in negotiating. The price is fixed.

Investing 250,000? Then the matter is settled.

But first of all, I’m really interested in how you know which house it is?

Well, if I describe that here now, then anyone could do the same. Should I? Roughly: enter a few key data into Google - and be able to use Mapio dot net.

:-) it is deactivated, that’s correct. There are many interested parties.

No. It’s even deleted. That’s exactly the difference, that you can’t reactivate something deleted. Haha, the real estate agent is seriously hit by self-confidence. Let’s see how many interested parties are left when they tell their banks they want to buy a prefabricated house from the 80s at this price.

It’s a prefabricated house, not a solid house

Then forget it. Possibly you could name the manufacturer and then experts here in the forum could say something about the pollutant load. Have you had an indoor air analysis done? Upload it. But since it was then commissioned by the seller/agent – I don’t always fully trust that.

You can forget about negotiating. The price is fixed.

Says who? And if nobody buys it, then what?

It is a prefabricated house, not a solid house

Prefabricated houses are indeed more problematic than a real house ;) . For the construction year, probably energetically better than the solid construction - but more difficult to renovate.

My conclusion: I would negotiate it down to 490 k€ and then bring it up to date for 250 k€.

Demolishing and rebuilding surely can’t be your intention? Where do you want to sink 250 k€ in such a small hut?