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

Good closing sentence
That's exactly the problem. The situation here is extremely sought after. And the motto applies here: "If I don't buy it, someone else will."

Therefore, there are only 2 questions:
Do I get more upset about the high rate, but have the "dream" house? Or do I get more upset later when I see that someone else has nicely renovated this house: "Oh, if only I had back then..."

So. I still owe all readers and interested parties here some feedback.
I will try to keep it as brief as possible. Basically, I could write a whole book about this entire story. Since the end of August (the first viewing), the topic has been dragging on:

Quickly the framework conditions again:

[*]For us, the almost perfect house in the perfect location. Single-family house 1987 with 540m² plot
[*]Purchase price €540,000 plus incidental costs
[*]Condominium sale for €500,000

Viewings were conducted etc. Talked to my bank guy (he’s a freelancer who already handled the financing for us when we bought the condo in 2018). Everything was set in motion.
Then all the drama began. Something was missing here, something missing there. Corona, home office, banks need several weeks to process applications. Pledge exchange is a different department, so longer processing times etc. etc. In between our vacations and the sellers’ vacations and so on. Notary appointments had to be postponed twice and so on.
In between, all the back-and-forth from our side towards the buyer of the condo. Incredible stress.

For us, it was clear: we would only sell if we also buy. That’s not always the rule. But with a wife and a 3-year-old child, I don't take the risk of selling our condo and then not finding something new.
We consciously took the risk of buying and then still having to sell the condo elsewhere. Although it was made very clear: “WE WILL DEFINITELY BUY THE CONDO.”

Accordingly, everything went back and forth. Meanwhile, the house was also not bought twice. Conditions had changed. More equity was required after all etc. But somehow it settled again.

At that point, financially it looked like this:
€2415 instalment – a lot of money. But it would have worked. Financing was already approved – subject to the appraisal – someone had to come out and inspect the house. Notary appointment(s) were scheduled.

Call from the bank advisor (I’ll abbreviate).
House was valued at €460,000 because the bank factored in a 15-20% safety discount (due to the current situation). The bank would give us a maximum of €487,000 credit. Financing had initially been calculated at €581,000. Including renovation etc.
So topic over. That was it. Got excited for nothing. Wife devastated. It started again. “No longer feel like the condo” “I was so looking forward to it” etc. Women :)

Well, called the realtor, explained the situation. House cannot be bought.
Next morning, realtor calls, “I’m talking to the owners and explaining the situation.” HALF AN HOUR later, realtor calls, “You can buy the house for €480,000.”
Unbelievable. Called the bank people. Also somewhat incredulous, “WHAT?!” Financing adjusted to the bank’s maximum, i.e. €487,000. New instalment €1915 – €500 less per month!!!
Compared to the previous constellation, theoretically about €20,000 of renovation money is missing. We’ll see about that. We still have an equity buffer to tap into if something is missing. The €500 less per month is however a big deal.

Monday was the notary appointment for the house purchase. Yesterday for the sale of the condo. All finalized.

For us, a roller coaster of emotions and an extremely tough time. My wife and I argued so many times. The mood often spilled over to the child, so the little mouse was upset too. Really hard.
But the motto applies here: all’s well that ends well.

My bank advisor also said, “The ‘bad’ appraisal was the best thing that could have happened to you.” Because the value in the appraisal results only from the bank’s “cautious” stance due to the current situation.

If you calculate with the €2415 and know that it will still work out well (the ETF savings rates of €400 will no longer apply, otherwise everything stays the same) and then suddenly have €500 less costs per month, that is really something.

We honestly couldn’t quite believe it. The €540,000 was definitely too much for the house, yes. But we would have paid it because it would have been worth it to us.
Now we pay almost €70,000 less for the house including incidental costs and pay €162,000 less over 27 years. In total, we save more than €230,000. Incredible.

We are now extremely looking forward to the new chapter in life. There are one or two things that need to be done but we are also looking forward to that.
“My” craftsmen all have time in January and February, so the renovation/modernization should be no problem by 1.3.

A new kitchen is already ordered (we had the clause written into the contract that we can withdraw from the purchase free of charge if the house is not bought). Many other things are already planned and partially even bought.

Now it can start :)

Sorry for the long text. But as you can see yourselves, a lot has happened. Putting all this into words is simply difficult :)

Now I’m looking forward to your comments :)

Best regards

Congratulations and much joy in your new home. There is nothing more to say.

Then congratulations! And please report on the renovation, etc. (if there is time for that ;) )

Good closing sentence That is exactly the problem. The location here is extremely sought after. And the motto "If I don't buy it, someone else will" applies here. Therefore, there are only 2 questions: Do I get more upset about the high rate but have the "dream" house. Or do I get more upset later when I see someone else has made this house beautiful "Oh, I wish I had back then."

And it turned out well, great! As I already wrote, there was strangely a buffer and room for negotiation - and no real (solvent) other interested parties. The real estate agent knew that too, and preferred to secure his somewhat smaller commission rather than end up with no payment from the property in a few months. Location, fear of missing out, seller's market, etc. - that absolutely no longer applies. The agent knows that too, because the banks are not "fearful," but realistic.

That was already a rollercoaster while reading. Thank you for the summary and congratulations on the house. Have fun with it!